Inside Game Day Saturday, October 10, 2015 By Al Myatt

QBs rule in the Rockies

BYU's Tanner Mangum, ECU's Blake Kemp trade heroics in shootout

Al Myatt
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PROVO, UT — Several peaks of the Rocky Mountains stand vigil over LaVell Edwards Stadium. A parade of great quarterbacks have performed for Brigham Young beneath their rugged presence.

Super Bowl champions Jim McMahon and Steve Young as well as Heisman Trophy winner Ty Detmer have directed the Cougars. Virgil Carter, another vintage Cougars signal caller, carried the BYU banner before the team's entrance to the field on Saturday.

Given the setting it was appropriate that the value of effective quarterback play was underscored in a 45-38 BYU win.

Blake Kemp, who had been overshadowed by teammate James Summers in recent weeks, returned to the spotlight in the nearest locale to his native Arizona at which the Pirates will probably play this season.

Summers started and helped the Pirates to an early 14-0 lead with a 34-yard scoring run. Yiannis Bowden blocked a Cougars punt for the Pirates' second score.

Then BYU freshman Tanner Mangum, who inherited the Cougars QB mantle with a foot injury to highly-regarded Taysom Hill, began to lead BYU back.

Mangum connected on 17 of 23 passes for 254 yards and three touchdowns in the first half as the Cougars rallied for a 28-14 lead.

The Pirates turned to Kemp on their final possession of the first half and the junior left-hander responded by directing a 77-yard drive capped by his one-yard scoring toss to Trevon Brown just six seconds before the half.

Kemp kept it going in the second half although the offense had three turnovers after the break. Kemp went 28 for 36 for the game for 371 yards with two touchdowns and one pick.

The Cougars pushed their lead to 38-21 in the third quarter and gave freshman Beau Hoge, the son of NFL analyst and former Pittsburgh Steeler, Merril Hoge, the reins after Mangum came up gimpy. The Pirates were able to get some stops with Hoge trying to get his bearings.

ECU coach Ruffin McNeill credited his team's fight as the Pirates crept back in the nonconference contest.

Chris Hairston capped an 85-yard drive with a 2-yard run to get ECU within 38-28 early in the fourth quarter.

Isaiah Jones hauled in a 7-yard touchdown pass to cut the gap to 38-35 with 6:02 remaining. Kemp was signaling that the Pirates only had 10 players on the field before the snap but offensive coordinator Dave Nichol directed him to run the play rather than take a penalty or call a timeout. Jones grabbed the ball and lunged into the end zone. A review verified the score.

Bowden picked off Hoge to set up a tying 34-yard field goal by Davis Plowman with 4:01 to go.

ECU had scored 17 straight points and obviously had the momentum but the crowd of 60,186 yelled its approval as Mangum trotted out for the ensuing series.

"When you're in the middle of the game, you want to do all you can to keep playing and help your team win, even though you're hurt," Mangum said. "When it came down to the last drive, I couldn't stay on the sideline any longer."

BYU coach Bronco Mendenhall was happy to see his offensive leader return. Hoge was one for five for nine yards with a pick and a sack.

"I didn't expect him to come back but I'm certainly glad he did," Mendenall said after the Cougars improved to 4-2.

Mangum completed a pair of 19-yard passes to Devon Blackmon on BYU's concluding 75-yard series. His 15-yarder to Terenn Houk got the Cougars within field goal range at the ECU 24. Then BYU went to its power ground game to run the clock. Algernon Brown scored the game winner on a 9-yard run with just 19 seconds left.

Three Kemp passes moved the Pirates from their 25 to the BYU 35 before time expired.

Kemp's final pass to Bryce Williams was followed by a lateral to Jones, a lateral to center Christian Matau and a lateral to Anthony Scott.

"We were trying to do the Stanford band play," Kemp said.

McNeill said the Pirates practice the series of laterals each week.

"We were too deep for a Hail Mary," McNeill said. "We've got some other plays in those situations, too."

Jones finished with 10 catches for 95 yards. Brown made six receptions for 84 yards. Williams had 87 yards on five catches.

Hairston rushed 15 times for 77 yards as the Pirates held a slight 518-508 lead in total yardage. ECU had more first downs, 27-26.

McNeill gave all indications that ECU will go forward into homecoming with Tulsa at noon on Saturday as a two-quarterback team.

As a former defensive coordinator, the Pirates coach knows that puts more on the opposition's plate in terms of preparation.

"We prepared for both quarterbacks," said Cougars linebacker Fred Warner. "We felt that we were prepared for both. We thought No. 10 (Kemp) would start, but we felt ready for both."

The way it's been lately for the Pirates it's not who starts but who finishes. Kemp gave way to Summers in wins over Virginia Tech and Southern Methodist.

That pattern might have been reversed with Kemp rallying ECU to a win if Mangum hadn't returned for BYU's last drive.

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PAGE UPDATED 10/11/15 05:20 PM.