1985 BYU Cougars football team

American college football season

1985 BYU Cougars football

WAC co-champion

Florida Citrus Bowl, L 7–10 vs. Ohio State

Conference| Western Athletic Conference
Ranking
Coaches| No. 17
AP| No. 16
Record| 11–3 (7–1 WAC)
Head coach|

* LaVell Edwards (14th season)

Offensive coordinator| Roger French (5th season)
Offensive scheme| West Coast
Defensive coordinator| Dick Felt (11th season)
Base defense| 4–3
Home stadium| Cougar Stadium

Seasons

<- 1984

1986 ->

1985 Western Athletic Conference football standings

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| Conf. |  |  | Overall

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Team | W |  | L |  | T |  |  | W |  | L |  | T
No. 8 Air Force \+  | 7  | - | 1  | - | 0 |  |  | 12  | - | 1  | - | 0
No. 16 BYU \+  | 7  | - | 1  | - | 0 |  |  | 11  | - | 3  | - | 0
Utah | 5  | - | 3  | - | 0 |  |  | 8  | - | 4  | - | 0
Hawaii | 4  | - | 3  | - | 1 |  |  | 4  | - | 6  | - | 2
Colorado State | 4  | - | 4  | - | 0 |  |  | 5  | - | 7  | - | 0
San Diego State | 3  | - | 4  | - | 1 |  |  | 5  | - | 6  | - | 1
New Mexico | 2  | - | 6  | - | 0 |  |  | 3  | - | 8  | - | 0
Wyoming | 2  | - | 6  | - | 0 |  |  | 3  | - | 8  | - | 0
UTEP | 1  | - | 7  | - | 0 |  |  | 1  | - | 10  | - | 0

* \+ - Conference co-champions

Rankings from AP Poll

The 1985 BYU Cougars football team represented Brigham Young University during the 1985 NCAA Division I-A football season. The Cougars were led by 14th-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 a share of their 10th consecutive conference title with a conference record of 7-1, sharing the title with Air Force. BYU was invited to the 1985 Florida Citrus Bowl, where they lost to Ohio State. The Cougars were ranked 16th in the final AP Poll with an overall record of 11-3\. Their loss to UTEP is considered to be one of the biggest upsets in college football history, with it being tied for the fifth biggest by points spread.[1]

## Schedule

[edit]

Date| Opponent| Rank| Site| TV| Result| Attendance| Source

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August 29| vs. Boston College*| No. 10|

* Giants Stadium
* East Rutherford, NJ (Kickoff Classic)

| Raycom| W 28–14| 51,227| [2]
September 7| No. 20 UCLA*| No. 8|

* Cougar Stadium
* Provo, UT

| ESPN| L 24–27| 65,455| [3]
September 14| Washington*| No. 16|

* Cougar Stadium
* Provo, UT

| ABC| W 31–3| 65,476| [4]
September 21| at Temple*| No. 13|

* Veterans Stadium
* Philadelphia, PA

| KSL (1 hour tape delay)| W 26–24| 31,085| [5]
October 5| at Colorado State| No. 15|

* Hughes Stadium
* Fort Collins, CO

| | W 42–7| 26,881| [6]
October 12| San Diego State| No. 11|

* Cougar Stadium
* Provo, UT

| | W 28–0| 65,407| [7]
October 19| at New Mexico| No. 9|

* University Stadium
* Albuquerque, NM

| KSL| W 45–23| 20,918| [8]
October 26| at UTEP| No. 7|

* Sun Bowl
* El Paso, TX

| | L 16–23| 22,121| [9]
November 2| Wyoming| No. 17|

* Cougar Stadium
* Provo, UT

| | W 59–0| 65,243| [10]
November 9| at Utah State*| No. 18|

* Romney Stadium
* Logan, UT (rivalry)

| KSL| W 44–0| 29,024| [11]
November 16| No. 4 Air Force| No. 16|

* Cougar Stadium
* Provo, UT

| KSL| W 28–21| 65,393| [12]
November 23| Utah| No. 11|

* Cougar Stadium
* Provo, UT (Holy War)

| | W 38–28| 65,473| [13]
December 7| at Hawaii| No. 9|

* Aloha Stadium
* Halawa, HI

| | W 26–6| 47,482| [14]
December 28| vs. No. 17 Ohio State*| No. 9|

* Citrus Bowl
* Orlando, FL (Florida Citrus Bowl)

| NBC| L 7–10| 50,920| [15]

* *Non-conference game
* Homecoming
* Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

[16]

## Personnel

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1985 BYU Cougars football team roster

Players  | Coaches
Offense | Pos. | # | Name | Class

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QB | `` | Robbie Bosco
RB | `` | Bruce Hansen | Jr
WR | `7` | Glen Kozlowski
Defense | Pos. | # | Name | Class

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OLB | `42` | Darin Nelson
LB | `53` | Cary Whittingham | Sr
Special teams | Pos. | # | Name | Class

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Head coach

* LaVell Edwards

Coordinators/assistant coaches

* * *

Legend

* (C) Team captain
* (S) Suspended
* (I) Ineligible

* Injured
* Redshirt

## Game summaries

[edit]

### Vs. Boston College (Kickoff Classic)

[edit]

See also: 1985 Boston College Eagles football team

No. 10 BYU Cougars vs. Boston College Eagles (Kickoff Classic) – Game summary

Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3| 4| Total

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No. 10 Cougars | 0 | 14 | 7| 7| 28
Eagles | 0 | 7 | 7| 0| 14

at Giants Stadium, East Rutherford, New Jersey

* Date: August 29
* Game time: 6:00 p.m. MDT/8:00 p.m. EDT
* Game weather: Partly cloudy, 80 °F (27 °C)
* Game attendance: 51,227
* Box score

Game information

First quarter

* No scoring plays

Second quarter

* BYU – Mark Bellini 6-yard pass from Robbie Bosco (kick failed), 13:11. Cougars 6–0.
* BYU – Lakei Heimuli 1-yard run (Robbie Bosco pass to Kelly Smith), 9:34. Cougars 14–0.
* BC – John Mihalik 1-yard run (Tim George kick), 5:40. Cougars 14–7.

Third quarter

* BC – Troy Stradford 5-yard run (Tim George kick), 5:33. Tied 14–14.
* BYU – Mark Bellini 12-yard pass from Robbie Bosco (Gary Webster kick), 3:38. Cougars 21–14.

Fourth quarter

* BYU – Glen Kozlowski 22-yard pass from Robbie Bosco (Gary Webster kick), 8:32. Cougars 28–14.

Team | Category | Player | Statistics

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BYU | Passing | Robbie Bosco | 35/53, 508 yards, 3 TD, 4 INT
Rushing | Vai Sikahema | 7 rushes, 27 yards
Receiving | Glen Kozlowski | 10 receptions, 241 yards, TD
Boston College | Passing | Shawn Halloran | 18/37, 159 yards, 3 INT
Rushing | Troy Stradford | 21 rushes, 101 yards, TD
Receiving | Scott Gieselman | 9 receptions, 78 yards

### No. 20 UCLA

[edit]

See also: 1985 UCLA Bruins football team

No. 20 UCLA Bruins at No. 8 BYU Cougars – Game summary

Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3| 4| Total

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No. 20 Bruins | 10 | 3 | 3| 11| 27
No. 8 Cougars | 3 | 14 | 0| 7| 24

at Cougar Stadium, Provo, Utah

* Date: September 7
* Game time: 5:45 p.m. MDT
* Game weather: Partly cloudy, 76 °F (24 °C)
* Game attendance: 65,455
* Box score

Game information

First quarter

* UCLA – John Lee 25-yard field goal, 8:57. Bruins 3–0.
* BYU – Gary Webster 24-yard field goal, 3:23. Tied 3–3.
* UCLA – Craig Rutledge 65-yard interception return (Gary Webster kick), 1:26. Bruins 10–3.

Second quarter

* BYU – Mark Bellini 10-yard pass from Robbie Bosco (Gary Webster kick), 13:47. Tied 10–10.
* UCLA – John Lee 35-yard field goal, 6:28. Bruins 13–10.
* BYU – Glen Kozlowski 7-yard pass from Robbie Bosco (Gary Webster kick), 3:29. Cougars 17–13.

Third quarter

* UCLA – John Lee 20-yard field goal, 5:29. Cougars 17–16.

Fourth quarter

* UCLA – John Lee 25-yard field goal, 9:01. Bruins 19–17.
* BYU – Robbie Bosco 1-yard run (Gary Webster kick), 2:57. Cougars 24–19.
* UCLA – Gaston Green 2-yard run (Gaston Green run), 1:02. Bruins 27–24.

Team | Category | Player | Statistics

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UCLA | Passing | Matt Stevens | 6/11, 113 yards
Rushing | Marcus Greenwood | 13 rushes, 71 yards
Receiving | Mike Sherrard | 6 receptions, 98 yards
BYU | Passing | Robbie Bosco | 29/41, 340 yards, 2 TD, 2 INT
Rushing | Vai Sikahema | 6 rushes, 54 yards
Receiving | Vai Sikahema | 8 receptions, 129 yards

### At UTEP

[edit]

See also: 1985 UTEP Miners football team

No. 7 BYU Cougars at UTEP Miners – Game summary

Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3| 4| Total

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No. 7 Cougars | 10 | 0 | 6| 0| 16
Miners | 10 | 10 | 3| 0| 23

at Sun Bowl, El Paso, Texas

* Date: October 26
* Game weather: Clear, 75 °F (24 °C)
* Game attendance: 22,121
* Box score

Game information

First quarter

* BYU – Scott Norberg 11-yard pass from Robbie Bosco (Gary Webster kick), 11:29. Cougars 7–0.
* UTEP – Clarence Seay 52-yard pass from Sammy Garza (Hugo Castellanos kick), 9:33. Tied 7–7.
* BYU – Gary Webster 45-yard field goal, 6:03. Cougars 10–7.
* UTEP – Hugo Castellanos 50-yard field goal, 1:08. Tied 10–10.

Second quarter

* UTEP – Danny Taylor 100-yard interception return (Hugo Castellanos kick), 5:52. Miners 17–10.
* UTEP – Hugo Castellanos 31-yard field goal, 0:13. Miners 20–10.

Third quarter

* BYU – Lakei Heimuli 1-yard run (kick failed), 9:44. Miners 20–16.
* UTEP – Hugo Castellanos 29-yard field goal, 6:00. Miners 23–16.

Team | Category | Player | Statistics

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BYU | Passing | Robbie Bosco | 15/34, 151 yards, TD, 4 INT
Rushing | Lakei Heimuli | 30 rushes, 154 yards, TD
Receiving | Kelly Smith | 7 receptions, 60 yards
UTEP | Passing | Sammy Garza | 8/16, 147 yards, TD, 2 INT
Rushing | John Harvey | 25 rushes, 112 yards
Receiving | Larry Linne | 3 receptions, 56 yards

### No. 4 Air Force

[edit]

See also: 1985 Air Force Falcons football team

No. 4 Air Force Falcons at No. 16 BYU Cougars – Game summary

Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3| 4| Total

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No. 4 Falcons | 14 | 7 | 0| 0| 21
No. 16 Cougars | 0 | 7 | 14| 7| 28

at Cougar Stadium, Provo, Utah

* Date: November 16
* Game weather: Cloudy, 35 °F (2 °C)
* Game attendance: 65,393
* Box score

Game information

First quarter

* AFA – Randy Jones 22-yard pass from Bart Weiss (Tom Ruby kick), 12:29. Falcons 7–0.
* AFA – Tom Rotello 25-yard interception return (Tom Ruby kick), 12:09. Falcons 14–0.

Second quarter

* BYU – Mark Bellini 22-yard pass from Robbie Bosco (Gary Webster kick), 12:46. Falcons 14–7.
* AFA – Dwan Wilson 58-yard interception return (Tom Ruby kick), 8:36. Falcons 21–7.

Third quarter

* BYU – Vai Sikahema 72-yard punt return (kick failed), 12:47. Falcons 21–13.
* BYU – Mark Bellini 25-yard pass from Robbie Bosco (Robbie Bosco pass to Lance Lindley), 4:42. Tied 21–21.

Fourth quarter

* BYU – Vai Sikahema 69-yard pass from Robbie Bosco (Gary Webster kick), 5:41. Cougars 28–21.

Team | Category | Player | Statistics

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Air Force | Passing | Bart Weiss | 9/18, 101 yards, TD, INT
Rushing | Pat Evans | 18 rushes, 65 yards
Receiving | Randy Jones | 2 receptions, 25 yards, TD
BYU | Passing | Robbie Bosco | 29/49, 343 yards, 3 TD, 4 INT
Rushing | Tom Tuipulotu | 3 rushes, 15 yards
Receiving | Mark Bellini | 9 receptions, 143 yards, 2 TD

Robbie Bosco wore number 7 in honor of injured teammate Glen Kozlowski.

### Vs. No. 17 Ohio State (Florida Citrus Bowl)

[edit]

See also: 1985 Ohio State Buckeyes football team and 1985 Florida Citrus Bowl

1985 Florida Citrus Bowl
No. 9 BYU Cougars vs. No. 17 Ohio State Buckeyes

Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3| 4| Total

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No. 9 Cougars | 0 | 7 | 0| 0| 7
No. 17 Buckeyes | 0 | 3 | 7| 0| 10

at Citrus Bowl, Orlando, Florida

* Date: December 28
* Game time: 12:30 p.m. MST/10:30 p.m. EST
* Game weather: Clear, 63 °F (17 °C)
* Game attendance: 50,920
* Referee: Vincent Price
* TV announcers (NBC): Jay Randolph, Dave Rowe, and Tom Hammond
* Box score

Game information

First quarter

* No scoring plays

Second quarter

* OSU – Rich Spangler 47-yard field goal, 10:32. Buckeyes 3–0.
* BYU – David Miles 38-yard pass from Robbie Bosco (Gary Webster kick), 0:52. Cougars 7–3.

Third quarter

* OSU – Larry Kolic 14-yard interception return (Rich Spangler kick), 13:52. Buckeyes 10–7.

Fourth quarter

* No scoring plays

Team | Category | Player | Statistics

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BYU | Passing | Robbie Bosco | 26/50, 261 yards, TD, 4 INT
Rushing | Tom Tuipulotu | 9 rushes, 43 yards
Receiving | Mark Bellini | 5 receptions, 87 yards
Ohio State | Passing | Jim Karsatos | 19/35, 196 yards
Rushing | John Wooldridge | 25 rushes, 109 yards
Receiving | Cris Carter | 6 receptions, 85 yards

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "The 30 Biggest College Football Point Spread Upsets Since 1980 | The Action Network". Action Network. November 14, 2021. Retrieved May 13, 2023.
2. ^ "BYU wins a showcase for QB star". The Record. August 30, 1985. Retrieved April 13, 2025 - via Newspapers.com.
3. ^ "UCLA beats BYU, ending Cougars' win streak at 25". Lexington Herald-Leader. September 8, 1985. Retrieved April 13, 2025 - via Newspapers.com.
4. ^ "BYU 'embarrasses' Huskies". The Columbian. September 15, 1985. Retrieved April 13, 2025 - via Newspapers.com.
5. ^ "BYU foils Owls' upset bid 26–24". Sunday News Journal. September 22, 1985. Retrieved April 13, 2025 - via Newspapers.com.
6. ^ "Bosco, BYU tear apart Colorado State, 42–7". The Des Moines Register. October 6, 1985. Retrieved April 13, 2025 - via Newspapers.com.
7. ^ "Bosco leads Cougars over Aztecs 28–0". The Sacramento Bee. October 13, 1985. Retrieved April 13, 2025 - via Newspapers.com.
8. ^ "Lobos give BYU tough time in 45–23 loss". Albuquerque Journal. October 20, 1985. Retrieved April 13, 2025 - via Newspapers.com.
9. ^ "Miners close down BYU offense". The Daily Herald. October 27, 1985. Retrieved April 13, 2025 - via Newspapers.com.
10. ^ "Bosco bombs Wyoming". The Greenville News. November 3, 1985. Retrieved April 13, 2025 - via Newspapers.com.
11. ^ "BYU beats Utah St. 44–0 in snow storm". South Idaho Press. November 10, 1985. Retrieved April 13, 2025 - via Newspapers.com.
12. ^ "BYU stuns No. 4 Air Force". Courier-Post. November 17, 1985. Retrieved April 13, 2025 - via Newspapers.com.
13. ^ "BYU beats state rival Utah". The Times-News. November 24, 1985. Retrieved April 13, 2025 - via Newspapers.com.
14. ^ "BYU wins another WAC title with win in Hawaii". The Salt Lake Tribune. December 8, 1985. Retrieved April 13, 2025 - via Newspapers.com.
15. ^ "Ohio State defense peels Brigham Young in Citrus". The Charlotte Observer. December 29, 1985. Retrieved April 13, 2025 - via Newspapers.com.
16. ^ College Football @ Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved 2014-Dec-24.

* v
* t
* e

BYU Cougars football

Venues|

* LaVell Edwards Stadium (1964–present)

Bowls & rivalries|

* Bowl games
* Utah: Holy War (Beehive Boot)
* Utah State (Beehive Boot, The Old Wagon Wheel)

Culture & lore|

* Cosmo the Cougar
* "The Cougar Song"
* BYU Cougar Marching Band
* Mormons vs. Mullets

People|

* Head coaches
* NFL draftees
* Statistical leaders

Seasons|

* 1922
* 1923
* 1924
* 1925
* 1926
* 1927
* 1928
* 1929
* 1930
* 1931
* 1932
* 1933
* 1934
* 1935
* 1936
* 1937
* 1938
* 1939
* 1940
* 1941
* 1942
* 1943–1945
* 1946
* 1947
* 1948
* 1949
* 1950
* 1951
* 1952
* 1953
* 1954
* 1955
* 1956
* 1957
* 1958
* 1959
* 1960
* 1961
* 1962
* 1963
* 1964
* 1965
* 1966
* 1967
* 1968
* 1969
* 1970
* 1971
* 1972
* 1973
* 1974
* 1975
* 1976
* 1977
* 1978
* 1979
* 1980
* 1981
* 1982
* 1983
* 1984
* 1985
* 1986
* 1987
* 1988
* 1989
* 1990
* 1991
* 1992
* 1993
* 1994
* 1995
* 1996
* 1997
* 1998
* 1999
* 2000
* 2001
* 2002
* 2003
* 2004
* 2005
* 2006
* 2007
* 2008
* 2009
* 2010
* 2011
* 2012
* 2013
* 2014
* 2015
* 2016
* 2017
* 2018
* 2019
* 2020
* 2021
* 2022
* 2023
* 2024
* 2025

National championship seasons in bold

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Western Athletic Conference football champions

I-A/FBS|

* New Mexico (1962)
* Arizona State (1963)
* Arizona, New Mexico & Utah (1964)
* BYU (1965)
* Wyoming (1966)
* Wyoming (1967)
* Wyoming (1968)
* Arizona State (1969)
* Arizona State (1970)
* Arizona State (1971)
* Arizona State (1972)
* Arizona & Arizona State (1973)
* BYU (1974)
* Arizona State (1975)
* BYU & Wyoming (1976)
* Arizona State & BYU (1977)
* BYU (1978)
* BYU (1979)
* BYU (1980)
* BYU (1981)
* BYU (1982)
* BYU (1983)
* BYU (1984)
* Air Force & BYU (1985)
* San Diego State (1986)
* Wyoming (1987)
* Wyoming (1988)
* BYU (1989)
* BYU (1990)
* BYU (1991)
* BYU, Fresno State & Hawaii (1992)
* BYU, Fresno State & Wyoming (1993)
* Colorado State (1994)
* Air Force, BYU, Colorado State & Utah (1995)
* BYU (1996)
* Colorado State (1997)
* Air Force (1998)
* Fresno State, Hawaii & TCU (1999)
* TCU & UTEP (2000)
* Louisiana Tech (2001)
* Boise State (2002)
* Boise State (2003)
* Boise State (2004)
* Boise State & Nevada (2005)
* Boise State (2006)
* Hawaii (2007)
* Boise State (2008)
* Boise State (2009)
* Boise State, Hawaii & Nevada (2010)
* Louisiana Tech (2011)
* Utah State (2012)

I-AA/FCS|

* Sam Houston (2021)
* Abilene Christian & Stephen F. Austin (2022)

National championships in bold

This college football 1985 season article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.

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*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template
*[Conf.]: Conference record
*[W]: Wins
*[L]: Losses
*[T]: Ties
*[No.]: Number