HONOLULU David Lauder pulled his left hamstring in practice on Monday. He hadn’t kicked at all since Tuesday.
But Lauder, Brigham Young University’s junior placekicker, wasn’t using his injury or inactivity as an excuse for missing three field goals in the Cougars’ 23-20 Aloha Bowl loss to Kansas on Friday at Aloha Stadium.
“It felt fine in the game. It feels fine right now,” the left-footed kicker said, referring to his hamstring. “I’m not going to use that as an excuse.”
Lauder, who converted 13 of 20 field goals during the regular season, misfired from 36 yards in the first quarter. At that point, KU led, 9-7.
He missed from 31 yards in the third quarter, when his attempt hit the left upright. At that point, BYU led, 20-12.
Finally, Lauder missed a 42-yarder in the fourth quarter, again with the Cougars up by eight.
“I couldn’t tell you why I missed them. You have good days and bad days. Today was the worst of all days,” Lauder said.
Cougar coach LaVell Edwards acknowledged that the missed kicks played a big role. “On the field, I was thinking, ‘I don’t know how many times we had opportunities to score and didn’t.’ Ultimately it comes back to haunt you,” Edwards said.
“That’s what happened. We should have had more points in the third quarter. The missed field goals…that’s not like David,” Edwards added. “He’s been an outstanding placekicker all year.”
The missed field goals were glaring errors, but they were not the only reasons the Cougars finished the season 8-5.
KU’s defense pressured BYU quarterback Tom Young all day. The Jayhawks had six sacks for minus-49 yards. Tackle Dana Stubblefield, named the Jayhawks’ MVP by the media, had three sacks for minus-22 yards. He also forced Young to hurry several throws, including a pass that Charley Bowen picked off at the KU 29 with just 2:11 left.
“I don’t know who I’d compare him to. He ranks up there with any I’ve seen,” Edwards said of Stubblefield. “He stayed with it for a full 60 minutes. That’s why you’ve got to be impressed with him.”
Young, a sophomore who started the season as BYU’s No. 4 quarterback but took over because of injuries to the top-stringers, completed 15 of 31 passes for 262 yards and one touchdowna 10-yarder to Otis Sterling in the third quarter that upped a 14-12 Cougar lead to 20-12. The extra point try following that score failed because of a bad snap.
“All I remember is big guys coming at me,” Young said. “I was relaxed. I thought I played a solid game, but a good quarterback gets victory at the end.”
The play that may haunt the sophomore for a whileBYU is traditionally loaded with talented quarterbacks, and Young may not even start next yearis Bowen’s interception. Facing a second-and-10 call at KU’s 34, Young threw over Stubblefield to tight end Byron Rex. The ball sailed past Rex to Bowen, a senior who played his prep ball at Lawrence High.
“I dropped back and somebody was coming over center,” Young said, referring to Stubblefield. “I scrambled out and tried to force the ball. I was knocked down when I threw it. I didn’t see the play. Too bad it happened.”
Sterling, a wide receiver who caught two passes for 36 yards and a touchdown, said he could understand why Young forced that toss.
“Their defensive line was getting in there,” Sterling said. “They were awesome. We couldn’t get into our routes. We didn’t have time. Their defensive line didn’t give Tom any time.”
Early on, it looked like high-scoring BYU might score a bundle on the Jayhawks. Freshman Hema Heimuli returned the opening kickoff 94 yards for a score.
KU, however, scored on its second play from scrimmage, when receiver Matt Gay hit Rodney Harris on a 74-yard option pass just 1:01 into the game.
KU went up 9-7 when Chris Maumalanga tackled halfback Jamal Willis (52 yards, 11 carries) in the endzone for a safety with 6:28 remaining in the first period.
“There were a lot of unusual playsthe kickoff return, the long pass, the safety,” said Edwards. “After the first few possessions, it settled down to be the type of game I though it’d behard-hitting, physical. You’ve got to credit Kansas for a couple of nice drives in the fourth quarter.”
