# 1984 BYU Cougars football team

The 1984 BYU Cougars football team represented Brigham Young University (BYU) in the 1984 NCAA Division I-A football season. The Cougars were led by 13th-year head coach LaVell Edwards and played their home games at Cougar Stadium in Provo, Utah. The team competed as a member of the Western Athletic Conference, winning the conference for the ninth consecutive year. The Cougars finished the regular season as the only undefeated team in Division I-A, and secured their first ever national title by defeating Michigan in the 1984 Holiday Bowl.
A number of pollsters and coaches were reluctant to name the Cougars as national champion, partly because they believed BYU's schedule was too weak. Only two of BYU's opponents won at least seven games. They had played only one ranked opponent all season, preseason #3 Pittsburgh, a team that would finish 3–7–1 and unranked. No other team in the WAC was even close to being their equal; the Cougars were the only team in the league with fewer than four overall losses. In the end, BYU was ranked number one in both major final polls, the AP Poll and the Coaches Poll. The team was named national champion by NCAA-designated major selectors of AP, Billingsley, Football Research, FW, National Football Foundation, Poling, UPI, and USA/CNN, while named co-champion by both National Championship Foundation and Sagarin (ELO-Chess).
To date, the 1984 Cougars are the last team from outside a "power conference" to win a national title. It is widely believed that the various systems devised over the years with a view toward deciding the national championship on the field, with their emphasis on strength of schedule, make it extremely difficult for a team outside the power conferences to be considered for championship contention.

## Schedule

| Date | Opponent | Rank | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
| September 1 | at No. 3 Pittsburgh* | | Pitt StadiumPittsburgh, PA | ESPN | W 20–14 | 40,263 |
| September 8 | Baylor* | No. 13 | Cougar StadiumProvo, UT | | W 47–13 | 63,705 |
| September 15 | Tulsa* | No. 8 | Cougar StadiumProvo, UT | | W 38–15 | 64,237 |
| September 22 | at Hawaii | No. 6 | Aloha StadiumHalawa, HI | | W 18–13 | 50,000 |
| October 6 | at Colorado State | No. 7 | Hughes StadiumFort Collins, CO | | W 52–9 | 28,671 |
| October 13 | Wyoming | No. 5 | Cougar StadiumProvo, UT | | W 41–38 | 64,839 |
| October 20 | at Air Force | No. 7 | Falcon StadiumColorado Springs, CO | ABC | W 30–25 | 30,469 |
| October 25 | at New Mexico | No. 5 | University StadiumAlbuquerque, NM | ESPN | W 48–0 | 19,227 |
| November 3 | UTEP | No. 4 | Cougar StadiumProvo, UT | | W 42–9 | 62,530 |
| November 10 | San Diego State | No. 4 | Cougar StadiumProvo, UT | | W 34–3 | 64,050 |
| November 17 | at Utah | No. 3 | Robert Rice StadiumSalt Lake City, UT (Holy War) | KUTV | W 24–14 | 36,110 |
| November 24 | Utah State* | No. 1 | Cougar StadiumProvo, UT (rivalry) | | W 38–13 | 65,580 |
| December 21 | vs. Michigan* | No. 1 | Jack Murphy StadiumSan Diego, CA (Holiday Bowl) | ESPN | W 24–17 | 61,243 |
| *Non-conference gameHomecomingRankings from AP Poll released prior to the game |||||||

## Rankings

Ranking movements Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking — = Not ranked ( ) = First-place votes :
| | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week |
| Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | Final |
| AP | — | 13 | 8 (1) | 6 | 8 | 7 | 5 | 7 | 5 (3) | 4 (4) | 4 | 3 (11) | 1 (40) | 1 (34) | 1 (33) | 1 (38) |
| Coaches | — | 12 | 6 (1) | 4 | 8 | 6 | 5 | 5 (1) | 4 (1) | 3 (5) | 4 (4) | 3 (12) | 1 (30) | 1 (21) | 1 (24) | 1 (28) |

## Game summaries
### At No. 3 Pittsburgh

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| • Cougars | 0 | 3 | 6 | 11 | 20 |
| No. 3 Panthers | 0 | 0 | 14 | 0 | 14 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| BYU | Passing | Robbie Bosco | 25/43, 325 yards, TD, 2 INT |
| BYU | Rushing | Lakei Heimuli | 8 rushes, 44 yards, TD |
| BYU | Receiving | Adam Haysbert | 9 receptions, 141 yards, TD |
| Pittsburgh | Passing | John Congemi | 17/32, 171 yards, 2 INT |
| Pittsburgh | Rushing | Marc Bailey | 14 rushes, 40 yards, TD |
| Pittsburgh | Receiving | Bill Wallace | 7 receptions, 68 yards |

### Baylor

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Bears | 7 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 13 |
| • No. 13 Cougars | 21 | 13 | 7 | 6 | 47 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Baylor | Passing | Cody Carlson | 15/25, 198 yards, 2 INT |
| Baylor | Rushing | Ron Francis | 13 rushes, 32 yards |
| Baylor | Receiving | Glenn Pruitt | 6 receptions, 129 yards, TD |
| BYU | Passing | Robbie Bosco | 28/43, 363 yards, 6 TD |
| BYU | Rushing | Robert Parker | 11 rushes, 131 yards |
| BYU | Receiving | David Mills | 6 receptions, 115 yards, 2 TD |

### Tulsa

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Golden Hurricane | 0 | 6 | 3 | 6 | 15 |
| • No. 8 Cougars | 14 | 7 | 3 | 14 | 38 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Tulsa | Passing | Steve Gage | 5/15, 66 yards, 2 INT |
| Tulsa | Rushing | Gordon Brown | 16 rushes, 120 yards |
| Tulsa | Receiving | Ronnie Kelley | 4 receptions, 56 yards |
| BYU | Passing | Robbie Bosco | 22/33, 314 yards, TD |
| BYU | Rushing | Robbie Bosco | 7 rushes, 21 yards, TD |
| BYU | Receiving | Mark Bellini | 6 receptions, 141 yards |

### At Hawaii

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| • No. 6 Cougars | 3 | 9 | 0 | 6 | 18 |
| Rainbow Warriors | 0 | 10 | 0 | 3 | 13 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| BYU | Passing | Robbie Bosco | 18/33, 264 yards, TD, INT |
| BYU | Rushing | Lakei Heimuli | 16 rushes, 86 yards |
| BYU | Receiving | Glen Kozlowski | 9 receptions, 156 yards, TD |
| Hawaii | Passing | Raphel Cherry | 8/24, 74 yards, INT |
| Hawaii | Rushing | Nuu Faaola | 11 rushes, 51 yards |
| Hawaii | Receiving | Kyle Mosley | 1 reception, 62 yards |

### At Colorado State

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| • No. 7 Cougars | 21 | 17 | 7 | 7 | 52 |
| Rams | 3 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 9 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| BYU | Passing | Robbie Bosco | 16/21, 246 yards, 2 TD |
| BYU | Rushing | Lakei Heimuli | 19 rushes, 87 yards, TD |
| BYU | Receiving | Kelly Smith | 6 receptions, 93 yards, 2 TD |
| Colorado State | Passing | Tom Thenell | 9/28, 98 yards, INT |
| Colorado State | Rushing | Kurt Lichty | 6 rushes, 24 yards |
| Colorado State | Receiving | Todd Tyrell | 4 receptions, 37 yards |

### Wyoming

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Cowboys | 7 | 13 | 18 | 0 | 38 |
| • No. 5 Cougars | 14 | 7 | 12 | 8 | 41 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Wyoming | Passing | Scott Runyan | 10/13, 179 yards, TD |
| Wyoming | Rushing | Kevin Lowe | 9 rushes, 93 yards, TD |
| Wyoming | Receiving | Allyn Griffin | 6 receptions, 148 yards, 2 TD |
| BYU | Passing | Robbie Bosco | 29/44, 384 yards, 5 TD |
| BYU | Rushing | Kelly Smith | 13 rushes, 92 yards, TD |
| BYU | Receiving | David Mills | 7 receptions, 136 yards, 3 TD |

### At Air Force

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| • No. 7 Cougars | 7 | 7 | 13 | 3 | 30 |
| Falcons | 7 | 2 | 10 | 6 | 25 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| BYU | Passing | Robbie Bosco | 28/41, 484 yards, 4 TD, INT |
| BYU | Rushing | Lakei Heimuli | 18 rushes, 65 yards |
| BYU | Receiving | David Mills | 10 receptions, 225 yards, TD |
| Air Force | Passing | Bart Weiss | 6/10, 152 yards, TD |
| Air Force | Rushing | Pat Evans | 20 rushes, 103 yards |
| Air Force | Receiving | Kevin Fleming | 1 reception, 57 yards, TD |

### At New Mexico

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| • No. 5 Cougars | 7 | 17 | 24 | 0 | 48 |
| Lobos | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| BYU | Passing | Robbie Bosco | 19/29, 227 yards, 3 TD |
| BYU | Rushing | Lakei Heimuli | 19 rushes, 141 yards, 2 TD |
| BYU | Receiving | Kelly Smith | 3 receptions, 54 yards |
| New Mexico | Passing | Billy Rucker | 5/8, 69 yards, INT |
| New Mexico | Rushing | Willie Turral | 13 rushes, 48 yards |
| New Mexico | Receiving | Kenne Whitehead | 5 receptions, 37 yards |

### UTEP

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Miners | 0 | 3 | 0 | 6 | 9 |
| • No. 4 Cougars | 14 | 7 | 21 | 0 | 42 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| UTEP | Passing | Kevin Ward | 6/13, 60 yards |
| UTEP | Rushing | James Rose | 22 rushes, 102 yards |
| UTEP | Receiving | Larry Linne | 3 receptions, 41 yards |
| BYU | Passing | Robbie Bosco | 19/31, 237 yards, 4 TD, INT |
| BYU | Rushing | Kelly Smith | 4 receptions, 106 yards, TD |
| BYU | Receiving | Glen Kozlowski | 3 receptions, 75 yards, TD |

### San Diego State

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Aztecs | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| • No. 4 Cougars | 14 | 10 | 3 | 7 | 34 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| San Diego State | Passing | Todd Santos | 7/19, 65 yards, 3 INT |
| San Diego State | Rushing | Mike Waters | 17 rushes, 66 yards |
| San Diego State | Receiving | Webster Slaughter | 6 receptions, 44 yards |
| BYU | Passing | Robbie Bosco | 24/44, 326 yards, 2 TD, 2 INT |
| BYU | Rushing | Kelly Smith | 7 rushes, 61 yards, TD |
| BYU | Receiving | Glen Kozlowski | 6 receptions, 108 yards, 2 TD |

### At Utah

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| • No. 3 Cougars | 7 | 3 | 7 | 7 | 24 |
| Utes | 7 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 14 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| BYU | Passing | Robbie Bosco | 27/44, 367 yards, 3 TD, 3 INT |
| BYU | Rushing | Lakei Heimuli | 17 rushes, 117 yards |
| BYU | Receiving | Glen Kozlowski | 8 receptions, 162 yards, TD |
| Utah | Passing | Mark Stevens | 12/24, 152 yards, TD |
| Utah | Rushing | Eddie Johnson | 14 rushes, 61 yards |
| Utah | Receiving | Don Woodward | 2 receptions, 53 yards |

### Utah State

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Aggies | 0 | 7 | 6 | 0 | 13 |
| • No. 1 Cougars | 10 | 7 | 7 | 14 | 38 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Utah State | Passing | Gym Campbell | 18/54, 274 yards, TD, 2 INT |
| Utah State | Rushing | Marc White | 7 rushes, 53 yards |
| Utah State | Receiving | Solomon Miller | 4 receptions, 92 yards |
| BYU | Passing | Robbie Bosco | 28/52, 338 yards, TD, INT |
| BYU | Rushing | Vai Sikahema | 5 rushes, 59 yards, 2 TD |
| BYU | Receiving | David Mills | 7 receptions, 92 yards |

### Vs. Michigan (Holiday Bowl)

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Wolverines | 0 | 7 | 7 | 3 | 17 |
| • No. 1 Cougars | 0 | 10 | 0 | 14 | 24 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Michigan | Passing | Chris Zurbrugg | 7/14, 82 yards, TD, INT |
| Michigan | Rushing | Bob Perryman | 13 rushes, 110 yards |
| Michigan | Receiving | Vincent Bean | 3 receptions, 46 yards |
| BYU | Passing | Robbie Bosco | 30/42, 343 yards, 2 TD, 3 INT |
| BYU | Rushing | Lakei Heimuli | 16 rushes, 82 yards |
| BYU | Receiving | David Mills | 11 receptions, 103 yards |

## Draft picks

The following were selected in the 1985 NFL draft.
| Player | Position | Round | Overall | NFL Team |
| Trevor Matich | Center | 1 | 28 | New England Patriots |
| Kyle Morrell | Cornerback | 4 | 106 | Minnesota Vikings |
| Louis Wong | Guard | 5 | 131 | St. Louis Cardinals |
| Lee Johnson | Punter | 5 | 138 | Houston Oilers |
| Jim Herrmann | Defensive end | 7 | 184 | Dallas Cowboys |

## Awards and honors

* Robbie Bosco, Sammy Baugh Trophy
* LaVell Edwards, Paul "Bear" Bryant Award