# 1988 BYU Cougars football team

The 1988 BYU Cougars football team represented Brigham Young University during the 1988 NCAA Division I-A football season. The Cougars were led by 17th-year head coach LaVell Edwards and played their home games at Cougar Stadium in Provo, Utah. The team competed as members of the Western Athletic Conference, finishing tied for third with a record of 9–4 (5–3 WAC). BYU was invited to the 1988 Freedom Bowl, where they defeated Colorado.

## Schedule

| Date | Opponent | Rank | Site | Result | Attendance |
| September 1 | at Wyoming | | War Memorial StadiumLaramie, WY | L 14–24 | 28,847 |
| September 8 | No. 19 Texas* | | Cougar StadiumProvo, UT | W 47–6 | 64,249 |
| September 17 | UTEP | | Cougar StadiumProvo, UT | W 31–27 | 64,099 |
| September 30 | Utah State* | | Cougar StadiumProvo, UT (rivalry) | W 38–3 | 65,702 |
| October 8 | Colorado State | | Cougar StadiumProvo, UT | W 42–7 | 65,281 |
| October 15 | TCU* | | Cougar StadiumProvo, UT | W 31–18 | 64,103 |
| October 22 | at Hawaii | | Aloha StadiumHalawa, HI | W 24–23 | 50,000 |
| October 29 | New Mexico | | Cougar StadiumProvo, UT | W 65–0 | 63,424 |
| November 5 | at San Diego State | No. 20 | Jack Murphy StadiumSan Diego, CA | L 15–27 | 21,825 |
| November 12 | at Air Force | | Falcon StadiumColorado Springs, CO | W 49–31 | 40,218 |
| November 19 | at Utah | | Rice StadiumSalt Lake City, UT (Holy War) | L 28–57 | 34,216 |
| December 3 | at No. 2 Miami (FL)* | | Miami Orange BowlMiami, FL | L 17–41 | 59,367 |
| December 29 | vs. Colorado* | | Anaheim StadiumAnaheim, CA (Freedom Bowl) | W 20–17 | 35,941 |
| *Non-conference gameRankings from AP Poll released prior to the game ||||||

## Game summaries
### Texas

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Texas | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| BYU | 10 | 10 | 7 | 20 | 47 |
at Cougar Stadium, Provo, Utah
* Date: September 8, 1988
* Game time: 6:00 p.m.
* Game weather: Clear, 87 °F (31 °C)
* Game attendance: 64,249
* Referee: Pat Sweeney
* TV: ESPN
* Box Score, Box Score
Game information :
First quarter
BYU – Bryce Doman 89-yard pass from Sean Covey (Earl Kauffman kick), 11:30. BYU 7–0.
BYU – Earl Kauffman 31-yard field goal, 7:41. BYU 10–0.
UT – Wayne Clements 41-yard field goal, 1:35. BYU 10–3.
Second quarter
BYU – Chuck Cutler 52-yard pass from Sean Covey (Earl Kauffman kick), 14:18. BYU 17–3.
BYU – Earl Kauffman 51-yard field goal, 12:38. BYU 20–3.
UT – Wayne Clements 55-yard field goal, 10:47. BYU 20–6.
Third quarter
BYU – Rodney Rice 70-yard interception return (Earl Kauffman kick), 2:16. BYU 27–6.
Fourth quarter
BYU – Fred Whittingham 20-yard run (Earl Kauffman kick), 10:03. BYU 34–6.
BYU – Chuck Cutler 20-yard pass from Ty Detmer (Earl Kauffman kick), 6:59. BYU 41–6.
BYU – Eric Mortensen 17-yard run (kick failed), 4:54. BYU 47–6.
Top passers
UT – Shannon Kelley – 11/32, 137 yards, 2 INT
BYU – Sean Covey – 14/38, 323 yards, 2 TD, INT
Top rushers
UT – Darron Norris – 14 rushes, 49 yards
BYU – Fred Whittingham – 7 rushes, 63 yards
Top receivers
UT – Tony Jones – 6 receptions, 107 yards
BYU – Bryce Doman – 3 receptions, 124 yards, TD :

### At Air Force

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| BYU | 7 | 14 | 14 | 14 | 49 |
| Air Force | 10 | 7 | 14 | 0 | 31 |
at Falcon Stadium, Colorado Springs, Colorado
* Date: November 12, 1988
* Game weather: 44 °F (7 °C)
* Game attendance: 40,218
* Box Score
Game information :
First quarter
AFA – Steve Yarborough 44-yard field goal. Air Force 3–0.
AFA – Greg Johnson 3-yard run (Steve Yarborough kick). Air Force 10–0.
BYU – Fred Whittingham 3-yard run (Jason Chaffetz kick). Air Force 10–7.
Second quarter
BYU – Sean Covey 1-yard run (Jason Chaffetz kick). BYU 14–10.
AFA – Dee Dowis 4-yard run (Steve Yarborough kick). Air Force 17–14.
BYU – Tyler Anderson 41-yard pass from Sean Covey (Jason Chaffetz kick). BYU 21–17.
Third quarter
BYU – Matt Bellini 21-yard run (Jason Chaffetz kick). BYU 28–17.
AFA – Dee Dowis 6-yard run (run failed). BYU 28–23.
AFA – Dee Dowis 15-yard run (run good). Air Force 31–28.
BYU – Tony Crutchfield 79-yard kickoff return. BYU 35–31.
Fourth quarter
BYU – Sean Covey 2-yard run (Jason Chaffetz kick). BYU 42–31.
BYU – Mike Salido 5-yard run (Jason Chaffetz kick). BYU 49–31.
Top passers
BYU – Sean Covey – 10/16, 159 yards, TD
AFA – Dee Dowis – 3/8, 97 yards, 2 INT
Top rushers
BYU – Matt Bellini – 21 rushes, 138 yards, TD
AFA – Greg Johnson – 15 rushes, 112 yards, TD
Top receivers
BYU – Mike Salido – 4 receptions, 47 yards
AFA – Albert Booker – 2 receptions, 58 yards :