By Mark Brown
online@du2.byu.edu
Jan. 6, 1997 -- After watching the 61st Cotton Bowl in Dallas Wednesday, there is only one question remaining: Is there anyone else who would like to challenge BYU?
After a grueling season that included an NCAA record of 14 victories for one season, BYU walked away from Dallas with a 19-15 victory over 14th-ranked Kansas State.
After defending themselves all season, the Cougars had to do it one more time, and they were ripe for the challenge.
'Obviously it was a great victory,' said head coach LaVell Edwards.
The victory stirred up emotions in even the most stoic of figures. Edwards, who has coached BYU to over 200 victories, was perhaps the most excited of all.
Reporters mobbed him, and for one of the first times in any Cougar fans' recent memory, Edwards beamed with a sense of euphoria.
The Cougars, who finished the year ranked fifth in both The Associated Press and CNN/USA Today polls, played a steady game throughout.
Although most of the 71,928 fans were wearing the purple of the Wildcats, it was the BYU fans who got the last word.
K.O. Kealaluhi caught a 28-yard touchdown pass from Steve Sarkisian with 3:38 left and Omarr Morgan intercepted a Brian Kavanagh pass with less than a minute remaining and the Wildcats driving to seal the victory.
'Uh-huh, that's right baby,' said James Dye, the Cougars' electrifying kick returner and wide receiver. 'Everyone saw it. We won baby. We're the best!'
The first play of the Cougar offensive attack was a quick out to Dye, which he quickly ran upfield to get things going. He also caught a 32-yard touchdown pass from Sarkisian with 10:55 to go when the Cougars were down 15-5.
In a game that most figured would be an offensive shootout, the two teams found trouble scoring.
At half time the score was an unusual 8-5, a score that is usually reserved for an American League baseball game.
The Cougars got on the board first on a defensive play. Shay Muirbrook, the fiery and intense leader of the BYU defense, sacked Kavanagh in the end zone for a safety midway through the first quarter after lineman Daren Yancy blocked back Mike Lawrence out of the way.
Muirbrook, who led the Cougars with 10 sacks during the regular season, had four more during the game.
The Cougars figured to go into the locker room with 5-0 lead until a Kansas State hail mary was answered.
With time running out, Kavanagh heaved up a 41-yard bomb to the end zone, and a gang of Cougars and Wildcats leaped up.
But when the play was over, Wildcat wide receiver Andre Anderson was lying on his back with the ball in his hands.
After calling the teams back out of the locker rooms, the Wildcats were successful on a two-point conversion and momentum had shifted to Kansas State.
With 9:10 remaining in the third quarter, Kavanagh finally achieved success in connecting with his go-to guy, wide receiver Kevin Lockett. Lockett caught the pass, spun away from a Chris Ellison hit, and ran it for a 72-yard touchdown.
Ironically, when the pressure was on, Kavanagh decided to try somebody besides Lockett. He threw to Jimmy Dean, but Dean tipped it right into the hands of Morgan.
'I just knew I could get it,' Morgan said. 'I wasn't going to let go for anything in the world.'
A typical response for a member of the 1996 BYU football team.