No. 6 BYU botches punt return, helps Kansas pull upset

Devin Neal rushed for two touchdowns and a fluke occurrence on a punt led to the go-ahead score as Kansas notched a 17-13 upset of No. 6 BYU in Big 12 play on a chilly Saturday night at Provo, Utah.

Jalon Daniels completed 12 of 19 passes for 169 yards and one interception, but his biggest contribution was a fourth-quarter punt that struck a member of the Cougars and was recovered by the Jayhawks at the BYU 3-yard line. Neal scored the winning points on the next play, and Kansas protected the lead.

The setback is a major blow for the Cougars (9-1, 6-1 Big 12), who dropped into a first-place tie with Colorado and will slip downward when the next College Football Playoff rankings are unveiled on Tuesday.

BYU’s Jake Retzlaff completed 18 of 28 passes for 192 yards, one touchdown and one interception. Hinckley Ropati had a scoring reception for the Cougars.

Neal extended his school record to 45 rushing touchdowns, and his 52 yards rushing made him the first player in program history to top 4,000 on the ground. His total sits at 4,003.

Kansas had a drive stall at the BYU 36-yard line early in the fourth quarter before the pivotal sequence.

Daniels delivered a 26-yard pooch punch that caromed off the head of BYU’s Evan Johnson, who had his back to the punt and was running downfield. Jakob Robinson of the Cougars dove to collect the ball, but it escaped his grasp and it was recovered by Kansas’ Quentin Skinner at the Cougars’ 3.

Neal’s touchdown came with 13:19 left in the contest.

BYU later took over on its own 21-yard line with 4:47 remaining and recorded four first downs in five plays to reach the Kansas 15.

But the Cougars netted just 4 yards on three running plays, and a false start made it fourth-and-11 from the 16. Retzlaff hit Chase Roberts for 8 yards — 3 yards shy of a first down.

Kansas took over with 46 seconds left and ran out the clock.

Will Ferrin booted a 35-yard field goal with 4:30 left in the third quarter to give BYU a 13-10 lead.

Earlier, Kansas went 84 yards on 10 plays to start the game, with Neal finishing the drive with an 8-yard run.

Ferrin kicked a 33-yard field goal 49 seconds into the second quarter, and BYU moved ahead 10-7 when Retzlaff tossed a 30-yard touchdown pass to Ropati with 8:48 left in the half.

Tabor Allen of Kansas kicked a 25-yard field goal with 1:46 left to knot the score.

–Field Level Media