BYU defense stands in way of potential WAC title for SJSU

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Spartan football will play the biggest game of its season on Saturday against Brigham-Young University. A win could set up a potential and even more monumental final-week showdown between SJSU and Louisiana Tech for a share of the conference title seven days later.BYU (6-4), however, will also be the toughest opponent SJSU (8-2, 4-1 WAC) has faced in 2012. To fit the occasion, the scene has been set for this Saturday and nextESPN2 has picked up both contestsand head coach Mike MacIntyre said the teams goal is still to win the Western Athletic Conference.The first step toward a WAC championship for the Spartans is defeating the Cougars on national television Saturday.Its a big game. Its exciting to have two important, meaningful two weeks in November, MacIntyre said. Our kids understand that weve kind of gone to another level and we need to stay there.You always like to play against the best and Saturday well get to play against truly one of the very best defenses in America.Should Louisiana Tech defeat Utah State this weekend, the Spartans would have a chance to claim a three-way conference title with both schools by beating Louisiana Tech the following week. It would be SJSUs first football WAC title in school history.But before the Spartans can have a chance to call themselves the best in their conference, they need to get through, like MacIntyre said, one of the best defenses in collegiate football. The Cougars rank seventh in the country by allowing just 14.2 points per game.Quarterback David Fales, who ranks first in the nation in completion percentage and fourth in passer rating, said he is not really worried about scoring on the stout BYU defense.Were just going to take it a play at a time and execute what we got, he said. Weve been putting a game plan together for them so it should be good.MacIntyre said the success of his offense will come down to execution.If we execute then well be able to move the ball, he said. Yes, theyre good. We probably wont move the ball as well as we have against other teams because theye good; theyre big; theyre strong; theyre fast.The BYU defense has allowed the team to play tough against every one of its opponents this season. The 42 points it allowed to then-No. 10 Oregon State is the most allowed all season. The other two top-25 opponents BYU has faced have been competitive match-ups because of the effort from the Cougars defense.On Sept. 20, BYU lost to Boise State, the 24th-best team in the nation at the time, by a final score of 7-6. Three weeks ago, BYU took Notre Dame, the second-best team in the country, down to the final minutes before losing 17-14. The Cougars led the Fighting Irish 14-7 late in the second quarter.They should have beat Notre Dame, MacIntyre said. Notre Dame was really lucky to beat them. To me, BYU outplayed them.MacIntyre said he will run a balanced offense of both run and pass plays to throw off BYUs ability to sack the quarterback. The passing game, however, will surely take over for SJSU as the team ranks 108th in the nation in yards per game on the ground and lost back-up running back David Freeman to suspension. They have great outside linebackers that rush the passer so if we pass on every down they can just tee off and that wont be good for us, he said. BYU knows that, we know that and well need to have balance.Offensively, the Cougars are led by quarterback Riley Nelson, who has completed 60 percent of his passes this season for 1,676 yards and 12 touchdowns. MacIntyre said Nelsons ability to get it to the Cougars tall and lanky wide receivers is what makes him successful.He is a playmaker and a competitor, MacIntyre said about Nelson. He can run. He can throw and he has done very well.With that said, though, MacIntyre added that he has had the luxury of being able to say every Saturday that he has the best quarterback on the field in Fales.David is our steady guy, he said. When hes out there, hes hard to stop.Thus, Saturday begins a two-week quest to share the WAC title with Utah State and Louisiana Tech. Lose and the Spartans are out of WAC championship bid.

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