Oct. 27, 2012
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ATLANTA (AP) — Jamaal Williams scored four touchdowns, quarterback Riley Nelson accounted for two TDs and Brigham Young snapped a two-game losing streak with a 41-17 victory over Georgia Tech on Saturday.
The Cougars (5-4) recovered from last week’s three-point loss at No. 5 Notre Dame by holding Georgia Tech’s triple-option attack without a rushing touchdown for the first time in two years and without an offensive touchdown for the first time since 2008.
Georgia Tech (3-5) has lost three of four. The Yellow Jackets’ offense failed on all 10 of its third-down attempts while their defense was gouged for 411 yards.
BYU, which began the afternoon with the nation’s fourth-ranked defense, finally got a break on the road after losing its last three away games by a combined seven points.
The Cougars never trailed after opening with a 17-play, 75-yard drive that ended with Williams converting a fourth-and-goal from the 6.
Their lead grew to 38-17 on the first snap of the fourth quarter when Nelson and Williams hooked up for a 39-yard TD.
Georgia Tech’s Jamal Golden returned a second-quarter kickoff for a 97-yard touchdown, but the Yellow Jackets otherwise struggled on special teams before halftime.
Justin Moore missed a 35-yard field goal wide left that would’ve cut the lead to four, and Ryan Rodwell had a punt blocked by Kyle Van Noy that set up Nelson’s 10-yard TD run and gave the Cougars a 21-7 lead.
Williams ran 28 times for 107 yards. Nelson completed 19 of 28 passes for 204 yards and helped BYU’s offense convert nine of 16 third-down attempts.
The Cougars held the ball almost 18 minutes more than Georgia Tech, which began the game with nation’s No. 3 rushing attack.
The Jackets finished with just 117 yards rushing, nearly 223 under their average.
David Sims led Georgia Tech with 32 yards on 11 carries. Quarterback Tevin Washington, who was benched late in the second half as coach Paul Johnson sent in Vad Lee, was just 1-for-5 passing for nine yards.
Washington was picked off by Daniel Sorensen late in the third, and Williams scored from the 1 two snaps later.
