Down by 14 points? That's no matter for No. 11 BYU.
For the fourth time this season, the Cougars came from behind in the second half to get the win, beating Iowa State on the road 41-27 on Saturday in Ames, Iowa.
BYU is now 8-0 on the season, and with freshman quarterback Bear Bachmeier finding his groove at the perfect time, the Cougars are just that much closer to reaching a conference championship game for the first time since 1998.
It only took one play for Iowa State to jump out to a lead. On the first play from the line of scrimmage, Cyclone quarterback Rocco Becht found a streaking Brett Eskildsen for a 75-yard touchdown.
It was that type of quarter for Becht and the Cyclones, as they almost reached 200 offensive yards and scored 17 points in the first 15 minutes of play.
Up 17-7, it looked like Iowa State was about to extend its lead. Back-to-back plays of 20-plus yards put the Cyclones at the BYU 23-yard line, poised to score.
That's when Becht tried to throw the ball out of bounds, but instead threw it to BYU's Logan Lutui.
From that point on, the Cougars outscored the Cyclones 34-10, and Bachmeier looked like a seasoned vet along the way.
Bachmeier, the true freshman quarterback, who just led the Cougars to possibly the biggest win of his life last week against Utah, finished with 307 passing yards and three total touchdowns — two passing and one rushing.
His feel for the pocket, and his touch while passing on the run was better than some of those playing on Sundays.
He consistently found BYU's two leading receivers, Chase Roberts and Parker Kingston, for big gains, hitting both of them for 45-yard receptions.
Kingston had a career game, hauling in seven receptions for 133 yards and two touchdowns. Roberts recorded eight receptions and 128 yards.
The Cougars' prolific passing attack was a surprise necessity, as star running back L.J. Martin went out of the game in the first quarter with an injury and did not return. Outside of Bachmeier, the rushing game never got going for BYU, making Bachmeier's performance even more special.
Tied 27-27 in the final seconds of the 3rd quarter, BYU punted the ball away, with the Cyclones gifted a chance to take the lead late. That's when disaster struck in Ames.
With BYU's punting unit waiting for the ball to stop rolling so they could down it, Iowa State's Beni Ngoyi inadvertently — and unknowingly — kicked the ball, giving it back to the Cougars in scoring territory.
Three plays later, Bachmeier aired one up for Kingston, who made an acrobatic grab that just missed his defender for the score. BYU led 31-24.
On the following Cyclone possession, Becht threw a regretful pick-6 to BYU's Faletau Satuala, sealing a Cougar victory.
Learn this man’s name: Faletau Satuala. Sophomore safety plays like Polamalu. Speed. Aggression. Always downhill.pic.twitter.com/B9f0n4qErE
— Jake Lee (@JakeLeei) October 25, 2025
BYU is in the midst of its hardest five-game stretch on the schedule. It has now beaten the first two tests of the gauntlet, Utah and Iowa State, and will have a bye week before facing Texas Tech in Lubbock on Nov. 8.
Saturday's win marks the first time in program history that BYU has started the season 8-0 in consecutive seasons.