Embrace the nightmare: BYU humiliated 45-13 by Iowa State

Say what you want about this BYU football team, but you can’t deny that the Cougars are improving.. in their ability to find creative new ways to embarrass themselves on a weekly basis.

If on-field ineptitude is an art form, BYU painted its “Sistine Chapel” Saturday night in a hysterically hapless 45-13 blowout loss to Iowa State in Provo. The cringeworthy Cougars have shown — once again — that they aren’t anywhere near ready to be taken seriously at the Power 5 level.

Sitake’s squad has become the team its opponents salivate over upon spotting on the upcoming schedule. Iowa State now joins TCU, Texas and West Virginia in the not-so-exclusive “looked like the second coming of the 2001 Miami Hurricanes against BYU” club.

It’s hard to determine what’s more shocking: the fact that BYU has been outscored 117-26 over the past three weeks, or that the Cougars were sitting at 5-2 before these past three catastrophes.

Prior to Saturday’s smackdown, Iowa State boasted the second-worst offense among all Big 12 teams (only ranking ahead of BYU, unsurprisingly). The Cyclones were averaging 23.6 points and 117.5 rushing yards per game, 3.8 collective yards per carry, 5.4 yards per play and converting just 36.4% of their third down tries.

Against BYU? 45 points, 234 rushing yards at 6.3 yards a pop, 7.1 yards per play and 8-14 on third down, including six straight conversions to close out the first half. Jay Hill’s defense isn’t just a punching bag, it’s a punchline.

The Cougars now have two remaining chances to sneak into bowl eligibility, beginning next week against No. 17 Oklahoma.