‘The Improbables’ were a big hit at SMU

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‘The Improbables’ were a big hit at SMU

BYU tight end Mata'ava Ta'ase catches a touchdown against SMU on Sept. 6, 2024 in Dallas. | BYU Photo

Dave McCann · Deseret News

Mon, Sep 9, 2024 ·

6 min read

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Pixar gave us "The Incredibles. " BYU has "The Improbables." And after Saturday, both share blockbuster moments.

"The Incredibles" earned more than $630 million worldwide in 2004. Twenty years later, "The Improbables" led BYU to 18 points — enough for an 18-15 win at SMU .

You don't have to be an Albert Einstein to figure out football. The team with the most points always wins. The team with the best players typically scores the most points. That's a theory of relativity everybody can understand.

The unofficial governing rules of the game held true to form Friday night in Dallas. BYU had better players, for the most part, and those players scored more points than SMU , 18-15. But it's the way the Cougars pulled it off that required an unexpected Hollywood script.

In fact, had Einstein been working the game as an analyst, he may have needed the Theory of Improbability to try and explain it. What fans saw was not what they expected.

The SMU faithful strolled into Ford Stadium where their favored Mustangs averaged 53.9 points during a current nine-game home winning streak. As a new member of the ACC, this would be a night of flexing their Power Four football muscle.

After watching Jake Retzlaff play a near flawless game the week before, BYU fans expected more of the same, especially with his stable of receivers. The junior quarterback lit up Southern Illinois for 348 passing yards, three touchdowns and no turnovers.

As the fifth meeting between BYU and SMU played out, the probability of both expectations diminished with each possession. The Mustangs didn't score a single touchdown and Retzlaff had three turnovers in a Cougars offense whose most consistent play down the field was a punt.

With the probabilities tossed aside, "The Improbables" stole the stage and fortunately for BYU, they had a few more of them. Unheralded guys like Enoch Nawahine, Marque Collins, Mata'ava Ta'ase, Brayden Keim and Miles Davis became the game changers.

Ta'ase, a burly 6-foot-3 and 255-pound transfer from Southern Utah, caught the game's first touchdown in the opening quarter and he also played a role in the Cougars' final touchdown in the third quarter. Retzlaff hit Ta'ase down the sideline that went for 26 yards and included his flying leap over a smaller SMU defender.

Four plays later, on fourth-and-two at the nine-yard line, Reztlaff handed the ball to BYU's fifth-string running back, and Nawahine exploded up the middle for a touchdown. The Utah State transfer wasn't even listed on the pregame depth chart. He was on the field because LJ Martin and Hinckley Ropati had been knocked out of the game with injuries.

SMU's ensuing drive carried over into the fourth quarter. Trailing 15-12, the Mustangs marched to the BYU 20. Quarterback Kevin Jennings tossed a pass to his tight end near the five-yard line when Collins, a Weber State transfer, stepped in front of him for the interception.

The turnover by Collins turned SMU away again, but it also set up the most improbable and most significant moment of the game.

Facing a second-and-11 at his own 17, Retzlaff attempted a screen pass over the middle. SMU's defensive tackle, Jared Harrison-Hunte, had fallen, but by the time the pass arrived, he was back up to make the easy interception.

The 6-4 and 294-pound transfer from Miami took off for the end zone but to get there, he first had to go through BYU right tackle Brayden Keim, who is 6-9 and 315 pounds. Keim is no stranger to making tackles and the former defensive end at Alta High in Sandy, Utah, greeted Harrison-Hunte at full impact — dropping him at the three.

Keim's tackle grew in significance when SMU fumbled the ball back to BYU two plays later.

The last of "The Improbables" — Miles Davis — made his impact on the Cougars' final drive. Facing fourth down and two at the 48 with 4:05 to play, Davis took a pitch from Retzlaff and ran around the left end for 37 yards to set up BYU's game-winning field goal.

It was the longest run from scrimmage for Davis in two years. Like Nawahine, Davis was only in the game because of the injuries that had knocked the other runners out.

For BYU (2-0) to reach its goal of the postseason, the probables (expected results) must return as the mainstay, starting Saturday at Wyoming (7 p.m. MDT, CBS Sports Network). Defensively, the Cougars appear rock solid, but the offense needs better quarterback play, more third-down conversions and fewer turnovers.

"The Improbables" were a hit on Friday and proved they can save the day, but the key to Kalani Sitake's success is for the probables to show up first — probably.

BYU takes on SMU in Dallas on Sept. 6, 2024. | BYU Photo

BYU takes on SMU in Dallas on Sept. 6, 2024. | Jaren Wilkey/BYU PHOTO

BYU football coach Kalani Sitake, SMU football coach Rhett Lashlee and Big 12 commissioner Brett Yormark speak before BYU and SMU play on Sept. 6, 2024, in Dallas. | BYU Photo

BYU football coach Kalani Sitake speaks with SMU football coach Rhett Lashlee before BYU and SMU play on Sept. 6, 2024, in Dallas. | BYU Photo

Jake Retzlaff hands off to LJ Martin in BYU's game against SMU on Sept. 6, 2024 in Dallas. | BYU Photo

BYU quarterback Jake Retzlaff prepares to pass against SMU on Sept. 6, 2024 in Dallas. | BYU Photo

Missionaries for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints watch as BYU takes on SMU in Dallas on Sept. 6, 2024. | BYU Photo

A group of BYU defenders tackle the SMU ballcarrier on Sept. 6, 2024 in Dallas. | BYU Photo

BYU coach Kalani Sitake celebrates after BYU beat SMU in Dallas on Sept. 6, 2024. | Jaren Wilkey/BYU PHOTO

BYU head coach Kalani Sitake celebrates as the Cougars defeat SMU 18-15 on Sept. 6, 2024 in Dallas. | Jaren Wilkey/BYU PHOTO

BYU wide receiver Keelan Marion celebrates after BYU beat SMU in Dallas on Sept. 6, 2024. | BYU Photo

BYU quarterback Jake Retzlaff celebrates with teammates after BYU beat SMU in Dallas on Sept. 6, 2024. | BYU Photo

Dave McCann is a sportswriter and columnist for the Deseret News and is a play-by-play announcer and show host for BYUtv/ESPN+. He co-hosts "Y's Guys" at ysguys.com and is the author of the children's book "C is for Cougar," available at deseretbook.com .

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