PROVO, UTAH — There have been a lot of steps, but quarterback Max Hall climbed to the top of the ladder of BYU quarterbacks today with his record-setting 30th career victory.
With the names of Ty Detmer, Steve Young, and a host of others on the steps of the ladder, Hall masterfully passed the Falcons into submission on the way to a 38-21 thrashing that ended Air Force’s season at 7-5. It was No. 19 BYU’s sixth straight victory in the series.
When Hall wasn’t connecting with receivers Dennis Pitta or Andrew George, running backs Harvey Unga and Manase Tonga took turns pounding the Falcons on the ground.
The Cougars still have a game remaining with Utah and the outcome probably will send them to a bowl game in Las Vegas or San Diego. Air Force most likely is on its way to the Dec. 31 Armed Forces Bowl in Fort Worth.
With starting quarterback Tim Jefferson injured and out of the game since late in the first period, Air Force coach Troy Calhoun turned to untested junior Ben Cochran. Cochran had played briefly in four games, but wasn’t any match for the aggressive Cougars.
The Falcons weren’t up to the task in general, turning the ball over four times. Three of the turnovers set up BYU touchdowns on a day the Cougars didn’t need any help. They nhad two touchdowns called back by penalties.
Hall’s big day consisted of 33-of-45 passing for 377 yards and five touchdowns. Early in the game, Unga had the necessary 21 yards to become BYU’s all-time leading rusher as a junior. When Hall and Company finally ended the onslaught, the Cougars had amassed 498 yards of offense.
Cochran took the Falcons to a consolation touchdown by Jonathan Warzeka on a four-yard run with 14:18 left in the game. The Falcons went for two and missed and trailed 31-13.
It became a dire situation for the Falcons with 3:10 left in the first quarter when Jefferson fumbled at the BYU 30-yard line and came out of the pile injured.
The Cougars were leading 3-0 on Mitch Payne’s 49-yard field goal and Hall already had started his carving of Air Force’s defense.
But with Jefferson limping and ineffective when he returned in the second period, it became a one-sided matchup of Hall and the BYU offense against an Air Force defense that seemed to be have a permanent place on the field.
While completing 19-of-24 passes, Hall went for touchdown passes of eight, 16 and nine yards and theCougars went out in front 24-0 with 5:15 left in the half.
Upon his return early in the second period, Jefferson surrendered an interception that led to BYU’s second touchdown. Cochran took over and took Air Force on a 62-yard scoring drive, a 27-yard pass to receiver Josh Cousins, cutting BYU’s lead to 24-7 with 3:15 left in the half.
Both team’s had trouble with field goals. Air Force noise guard Ben Garland blocked a 40-yard attempt by Payne early in the first period, and Air Force’s Erik Soderberg missed a 36 yarder with 7:53 left in the first half.
Irv Moss: 303 954-1296 or imoss@denverpost.com.
