This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2012, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Provo • BYU entered Saturday's game having not defeated an opponent ranked in the top 10 at LaVell Edwards Stadium since a 28-21 win over the No. 1-ranked Miami Hurricanes in 1990.
The streak continues.
The No. 10-ranked Oregon State Beavers, seen as somewhat vulnerable and perhaps even overrated before game, torched the Cougars 42-24 on Saturday with a dizzying display of passing from backup quarterback Cody Vaz.
Prior to Saturday, the last top-10 team to play in Provo was TCU in 2009, and the Horned Frogs buried the Cougars 38-7. But this time, it was BYU's defense, ranked No. 5 in the country in overall defense, that let the squad down. The Cougars gave up 450 yards, including 332 passing yards by Vaz.
"It is frustrating, being a defensive player," said linebacker Spencer Hadley. "I kinda feel like we didn't hold up our end of the deal."
Nelson hot and cold
BYU quarterback Riley Nelson started after sitting out the past two games with a sore back, and he set career-high marks in passing attempts (51) and completions (28). He threw for 305 yards and a touchdown, but was intercepted three times.
"I thought there was a lot of progress made, through, again, about three and a half quarters," said coach Bronco Mendenhall. "I saw our offense probably play as clean as I have seen it this year."
Detmer honored
Former BYU quarterback Ty Detmer was honored during the game for his induction into the National Football Foundation Hall of Fame. Detmer, who won the Heisman Trophy, a Maxwell Award and two Davey O'Brien awards, quarterbacked for BYU from 1988-91.
"I had a lot of team members around me making my job easy," Detmer said. He is the sixth BYU player to be inducted, following Gordon Hudson, Steve Young, Jim McMahon, Marc Wilson and Gifford Nielsen.
The 2012 class will be officially inducted on Dec. 4 in New York City.
Briefly
Flags were carried out by James Lark (team), Alex Kuresa (special teams) and former BYU defensive tackle Stan Raass (alumni). ... Oregon State running back Malcolm Agnew was penalized 15 yards for continuing to participate in a play after his helmet came off. That's a new NCAA rule this season.
Twitter: @drewjay