Cougars seniors get warm-weather farewell – Deseret News

Connor Pay and Tyler Batty took a little more time leaving the field on Saturday evening, and it wasn’t because of the nice weather – quite the opposite. But after defeating Houston 30-18, the two seniors knew that as they left the frozen tundra of LaVell Edwards Stadium, an exciting chapter in their lives would come to an end.

Despite the frigid 28-degree air, the two Utah County high school products signed autographs, took photos, shook hands, conducted interviews – anything they could think of to avoid those farewell steps after the home finale.

Both left everything they had on the field. Pay and his group of offensive linemen went toe-to-toe, if not helmet-to-helmet, against the strength of the Houston roster – the top seven. Batty and the defense forced four turnovers, including his second career interception.

With a 10-2 record and a share of the Big 12 regular-season championship, the two 6-foot-1 team captains earned the right to stay longer, and after ending the last three seasons in inclement weather, They also qualified for a warm finish.

Outside of Saturday’s Big 12 championship game, the Cougars are awaiting a bowl invite with the possibility of playing indoors at the Alamo Bowl in San Antonio or outdoors at Florida Sunshine in the Pop Tarts Bowl. There’s even an outside perspective for a return to the Holiday Bowl in San Diego, where BYU last competed in 1993.

That must be music to Pay and Batty’s ears or heat in their socks.

The 2021 season began in the cold, pouring rain in Shreveport, Louisiana at the Independence Bowl. Tyler Allgeier set BYU’s single-season rushing record with 192 yards, but the Cougars lost on offense 31-28.

Colder conditions favored BYU’s 2022 season finale at the New Mexico Bowl in Albuquerque. In temperatures around 20 degrees, Jakob Robinson’s game-saving tackle at the goal line secured a 24:23 win against SMU.

Last season it was cloudy and 40 degrees when the Cougars played Oklahoma State. BYU needed a win in the finale to qualify for the bowl, and their 24-6 halftime lead had the Cowboys skating on thin ice.

However, conditions on the field and on the scoreboard deteriorated in the second half. Oklahoma State eked out a 40-34 double overtime win, leaving Batty, Pay and the Cougars out in the cold with nowhere to go.

They have to go somewhere this December. Somewhere warm.

The Cougars’ expected game will be their first post-Christmas Bowl game since 2013 and the payout will dwarf any of BYU’s previous 40 bowl games, including the 1997 Cotton Bowl where they earned $2 million. As a member of a Power Four conference, a trip to the Alamo Bowl is worth $8.25 million. The Pop-Tarts Bowl will pay $6 million.

For Batty, Pay and the Cougars, who dodged a late Houston rally and frostbite on Saturday, a warmer day awaits their final hit at BYU – a day the squad has been preparing for four years and 100 years was working for the program.

Dave McCann is a sportswriter and columnist for the Deseret News and a play-by-play announcer and show host for BYUtv/ESPN+. He co-hosts “Y’s Guys” on ysguys.com and is the author of the children’s book “C is for Cougar”, available at desertbook.com.