BYU Cougars @ TCU Horned Frogs
Bear Bachmeier runs for 2 TDs as No. 10 BYU overcomes loss of LJ Martin to beat TCU 17-10
FORT WORTH, Texas -- — BYU quarterback Bear Bachmeier ran for two touchdowns, including a clinching 21-yarder with 2:06 left and the No. 10 Cougars survived without injured running back LJ Martin for a 17-10 victory over TCU on a rainy Saturday night.
Martin had two carries for 16 yards in the first quarter, but that was it because of an apparent lower leg injury. The AP Big 12 offensive player of the year last season was averaging 109.3 yards rushing while the Cougars were scoring 44 points a game.
Both teams had trouble moving the ball, with 72 of the 216 total yards by BYU (4-0, 2-0 Big 12) coming of the late drive. Bachmeier bounced off one of his teammates at the line, then ran through several TCU defenders inside the 10 to make it 17-7.
TCU (2-3, 0-2) got a 44-yard field goal from Nate McCashland with 32 seconds left, but was then unable to recover an onside kick.
Matthias Bunn kicked a 49-yard field on the Cougars' first drive after halftime to put them ahead to stay. Bachmeier twice converted third down with runs, one an 8-yard gain after a fumbled snap.
TCU had only 259 total yards. Jaden Craig, the Harvard transfer who was averaging 303.3 yard passing per game, completed 18 of 25 passes for 187 yards with a touchdown and a costly interception that was the game's only turnover.
The Cougars had to go only 16 yards in six plays after Faletau Satuala had a fourth-down interception and returned it 59 yards midway through the second quarter. That set up Bachmeier's 9-yard keeper when he lunged into the end zone on third-and-goal.
On the play before the TD, Bachmeier had to chase down a bad snap that got by him, then was able to throw the ball out of bounds to avoid a huge loss.
TCU tied the game when Craig threw a 13-yard TD pass to Kari Ashley with 27 seconds left in the half. That was an 8-play, 76-yard drive after the Frogs had only 75 total yards on their 22 plays in the game before that.
BYU: Without Martin in the backfield with him, Bachmeier gutted this one out for the Cougars. He finished with 66 yards rushing on 15 carries while completing only 11 of 24 passes for 62 yards.
TCU: The Horned Frogs are 0-2 in Big 12 play for the first time since 2013, which was their second year in the league. They went 2-7 in the Big 12 and 4-8 overall, still their only eight-loss season since a 1-10 record in 1997.
BYU is home for a Friday night game against Iowa State (3-2, 1-1)
TCU has an open date before playing at instate rival Baylor on Oct. 17.
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