Estimated read time: 3-4 minutes
PROVO — Tyler Batty still thinks about that moment every day.
In the final game of BYU football's inaugural Big 12 campaign, the Cougars had No. 21 Oklahoma State on the ropes with a 24-6 halftime lead in Stillwater and a shot at winning their sixth game of the year and clinching a bowl berth for the fifth consecutive year and the sixth time in seven years under head coach Kalani Sitake.
But you already know what happened next. Mike Gundy did Mike Gundy things, and the Pokes outscored BYU 21-3 in the second half before winning 40-34 in overtime to hand the Cougars a fifth straight loss to end the season.
And Batty thinks about that season-ending moment every day.
"It made me sick, and I think it made a lot of guys sick," the senior told the KSL.com Cougar Beat podcast. "It was a brutal way to end the season. We had so many close calls, that to end it with another one was kind of a gut-check. That is a big part of motivation for us; we feel like we have a championship culture here, a championship locker room. It's just about putting all the pieces together to put the best team possible on the field in the fall."
Adding to the complexity of that game was that it could have marked the final game of Batty's collegiate career. The former Payson High star played four seasons at BYU, earning PFF All-Big 12 preseason honors a year ago after being rated the system's fourth-best pass rusher in the conference.
With a career that included 165 tackles, 15 sacks and three forced fumbles in 40 games, including 32 starts, Batty could have opted to start his pro career. Many expected him to do just that.
But that wasn't what Batty wanted, in the end. So a few weeks after that game, Batty fired up Instagram and posted a video. He quickly tagged BYU, and sent out a brief statement.
He was running it back.
BYU's heartbreaking loss in Stillwater led to a massive gain for the program as Jay Hill enters his second season as defensive coordinator (and first full offseason). Batty will have a shot at the NFL later.
But he didn't want to leave the program that raised him in the condition he saw at Boone Pickens Stadium.
"Shoot man, it was a tough decision. It was super difficult," Batty said of that moment. "Talking with some close advisors, mentors, my wife, other family and all that; it was a hard decision to make. But what it came down to is, I love BYU. I love our coaching staff, I love this defense we are running, and the biggest thing was that I had another year of eligibility to burn, and I didn't want to go out like that, a 5-7 season.
"We've had a lot of success in the past couple of years, and I wanted to do my part and try to give the next generation of guys the best program to move forward. If I could stick around and help out for one more year to build a championship program at BYU, I'm all-in on that."
Sitake said Batty had "a lot of people in his ear" about the NFL, with many saying he could be drafted in April. But the Cougars welcomed him back with open arms to a defensive line group that has "potential" while breaking in former Utah State coach Gary Andersen and former UCLA defensive line coach Chad Kauha'aha'a as analysts under defensive ends coach Kelly Poppinga and tackles coach Sione Pouha.
"The truth is, we need him to help that defense run," Sitake said of Batty. "We lost a lot of bulky defensive tackles from last year, and it helps to have a senior who has been around, who knows our culture and our defense — even if it is still his second year in our defense."
Listen to the full conversation with Batty on the Cougar Beat podcast feed.
