BYU football notes: Late-arriving crowd doesn't miss much in Cougs' slow start

Provo • Where have all the Cougar fans gone?

LaVell Edwards Stadium was barely more than half full when Saturday's 1 p.m. game against Weber State of the Football Championship Subdivision began.

It started to fill in the first quarter, but wasn't close to a sellout. Official attendance was 60,314, but a lot of blue-clad folks got an head start on their Saturday night plans and left early.

Last week, BYU drew 57,045 for the Pac-12's Washington State in the 63,725-seat stadium.

Fans couldn't use the weather as an excuse for staying away. The temperature at kickoff was a San Diego-like 74 degrees.

Rushing for scores

BYU didn't register a rushing touchdown against Washington State, but had four rushing touchdowns against the Wildcats. Backup quarterback Taysom Hill rushed for two touchdowns, and another backup QB, James Lark, also rushed for a TD.

The fourth rushing TD went to Mike Alisa, from 8 yards out.

Hoffman stays hot

With an 11-yard reception in the first quarter, Cody Hoffman extended his receptions streak to 21 straight games.

Hoffman's running mate at receiver, Ross Apo, did not start the game due to a sore hamstring. Alex Kuresa started in his place and caught a 15-yard pass on BYU's first possession on third-and-7.

Turnover troubles

The Cougars led 21-0 at halftime, but probably should have had more points after racking up 312 yards of offense in the first half.

The culprit was turnovers: Hoffman fumbled after a 10-yard reception at the Weber State 14 when it appeared BYU was driving for a score.

In the second quarter, Riley Nelson was intercepted for the first time this season, by Weber State's Tony Epperson, who also doubles as the team's punter.

Briefly

Former BYU running back Brian McDonald (2000-2001) carried the alumni flag onto the field. Safety Daniel Sorensen and defensive end Ezekiel Ansah carried the teams flags. .... Linebacker Alani Fua wore No. 5 on Saturday, instead of No. 36. ... Coach Bronco Mendenhall said there were no significant injuries suffered during the game for BYU.

drew@sltrib.com

Twitter: @drewjay