Isaiah Glasker delivers again as BYU beats Colorado in Alamo Bowl rematch

Headlined by Glasker’s play, BYU’s defense hung in long enough for quarterback Bear Bachmeier to find himself on the road.

Boulder, Colo. • In the Alamo Bowl a year ago, Isaiah Glasker strutted, shuffled and sauntered in Deion Sanders’ face.

BYU’s middle linebacker intercepted Shedeur Sanders as the Cougars routed the Colorado Buffaloes 33-7. So Glasker pulled out “Prime Time’s” old touchdown dance to add insult to injury.

As he geared up for the rematch this week, Glasker joked about doing it again.

“I wish,” Glasker said. “My coach got mad at me. I don’t know if we will be seeing ‘The Deion’ this year.”

So after Glasker’s game-sealing interception this weekend, there was no dancing. But it nevertheless ended in the same result.

BYU again beat Colorado, 24-21. It wasn’t the defensive masterclass that coordinator Jay Hill put on display in San Antonio, but it was enough to keep BYU’s top 25 season on track.

“Just trying to get out of the game [this time],” Glasker said.

Either way, Glasker and his unit dug in to allow just seven points after the first quarter, giving their freshman quarterback enough time to find himself on the road. And in doing so, the Cougars showed a side of themselves they haven’t all year: a team that can win in multiple ways, and be balanced on both sides of the ball.

“It’s a huge step for our players and our program. A great, great step for this team,” head coach Kalani Sitake said.

Through the first three games, BYU’s defense carried a struggling offense into the national spotlight. It allowed just one touchdown in 180 minutes and, against East Carolina, had a pick-six to ease the offensive load too.

But to open Big 12 play, Hill’s unit looked shockingly vulnerable as the Buffs drove up and down the field with ease. Colorado rolled up 138 yards in the first quarter alone.

The most stunning part was the bulk of Colorado’s work was done on the ground, the place where Hill amassed his most talented playmakers: Glasker, Jack Kelly, Keanu Tanuvasa.

Colorado averaged 5.3 yards a carry in the first half as a bevy of running backs found gaps. Glasker hinted the Buffs would pose a threat on the ground, but nothing like this.

“Last year, they were more of a throwing team. This year, I feel like they got some good running backs. It is going to be a fun inside run game,” Glasker.

This was hardly fun for BYU.

“I think maybe the defense had it a little too easy the first three games,” Sitake said.

For the BYU team that showed up in the first month of the season, a two-score deficit with the defense on the ropes might have been too much to overcome.

Yet the Cougars slowly climbed their way back. Glasker and his linebacking corps got after the quarterback and ground the running back to a halt. Colorado averaged just 3.1 yards per carry in the second half and Glasker added a 22-yard sack to snuff out a fourth-quarter drive.

While Glasker was busy shutting the Buffs down, Cougars quarterback Bear Bachmeier led two scoring drives to give BYU just enough offense.

On the first, he marched BYU down to the four-yard line and found Chase Roberts open on fourth down for a touchdown. The second time, he used his legs to eventually set up the Cougars for a Cody Hagen rushing touchdown. For an offense where Bachmeier’s experience was the biggest question, he accounted for over 70 percent of the production and 277 yards.

He was efficient through the air — going 19-of-27 — and added 15 carries and 98 yards on the ground. It was the most rushing yards by a freshman quarterback at BYU since Taysom Hill.

“Seeing him progress, it’s a wonderful thing,” Glasker said.

“Complimentary football, that’s huge,” added fellow linebacker Kelly. “It’s awesome the offense is making those strides and becoming more comfortable.”

The underlying message: It is nice for the defense not to have to do everything.

Of course, the strength of this team is still on that side of the ball. When BYU’s offense couldn’t quite close it out in the fourth quarter, giving Colorado the ball back with under two minutes to go, Glasker came up with the interception again in front of Deion.

Instead of dancing, he made a beeline for the sideline and soon after the locker room.

“I couldn’t do [the dance] two years in a row. It wasn’t the same,” he joked.

But one thing that might be the same is that BYU is steadily shaping into a contender like it was a year ago.

Glasker will take that back to Provo — and another interception for good measure.