BYU puts its magical start to the test against UCLA

— -- If anybody in college football could have used a little divine intervention this first month of the season, it was BYU.

The schedule was already brutal with trips to Nebraska, UCLA and Michigan and a home date with Boise State. And if that September grind wasn't enough, Heisman Trophy hopeful quarterback Taysom Hill went down in the opener at Nebraska with a season-ending foot injury.

But, alas, miracles do happen. Just don't tell the Cougars that their 2-0 start -- which includes a Hail Mary touchdown pass by backup quarterback Tanner Mangum to beat Nebraska and another fourth-down touchdown pass by Mangum in the final seconds to beat Boise State -- is anything other than a team rallying around each other, believing in each other and scrapping until the very end.

"I know some people are saying we're lucky and everything else, but with the time we put in during the offseason and the type of guys we have on this team, we feel like this didn't happen by luck," said BYU senior receiver Mitch Mathews, who was on the receiving end of the 42-yard Hail Mary to beat Nebraska.

"Sure, we're blessed and fortunate to be able to play this game. But guys just want to win. We're hoping to make this a great season, not just a magical one. People may think of it as luck. We think of it as something we deserve."

And, now, the stakes only get higher. BYU, which vaulted to No. 19 in the AP poll this week, travels to the Rose Bowl on Saturday night to face No. 10 UCLA. The Cougars are just 1-12 all time in road games against AP top-10 opponents. They've lost 10 straight, and the only win came during their 1984 national championship season when they won at No. 3 Pittsburgh.

"The mentality of this team is that we're going to make it happen however it needs to happen," Mathews said. "When those last-second throws are floating in the air, what's going through our minds is that one of us has got to come down with it. We promised each other we were going to win more football games this year. We do not want to go 8-5 again. We do not want to collapse and do not want to crumble and have another season of mediocrity.

"We want to show who we are, and if we have guys go down, we can still beat anybody and still play with the best of them. We have a very resilient team. We're not hanging our hat on these first two games, but we do plan on using them as momentum and showing that we can win against anybody, anywhere.".

As crazy as it sounds, the one place the Bruins don't want to be Saturday is leading late and Mangum having one last heave toward the end zone. By now, we know how that turns out.

"In football, there are so many ups and downs, and we've already seen our fair share," said Mangum, who this time a year ago was serving his LDS mission in the Antofagasta region of Chile. "But we're a team that's going to keeping fighting and keep going, and it's a privilege to be a part of a team like that."

Mangum, a 22-year-old freshman, shrugs off his newfound fame. His life has certainly changed over these last few weeks, but he hasn't.

"As a quarterback, you learn to love these situations," said Mangum, who didn't get back from his mission until June. "My whole life, I've enjoyed pressure situations, and this isn't any different. Obviously, it's heartbreaking what happened to Taysom. We're all sad about that. But I knew, as his backup, that I had to be ready to go.

"More than anything, it's been fun to be a part of this, but I've only been a small part, and the best thing is that we can still play a lot better and we'll need to."

With its independent status, BYU has its work cut out for it to crash the College Football Playoff party this season. They would almost certainly have to go unbeaten to have any chance to get one of those top four spots in the selection committee's rankings, but nobody in Provo has dared to look past the Bruins.

"None of this will really mean much if we stop now," said BYU junior safety Kai Nacua, who intercepted three passes last week in the 35-24 win over Boise State, including one he returned 50 yards for a touchdown to seal the game. "We've got enough older guys and enough experience to know that it's what's right in front of you that counts. We'll stay humble and hungry."

Bronco Mendenhall, in his 11th season as BYU's coach, understands the stigma associated with the Cougars not being in a conference. He also understands the unique challenge that exists in trying to crack college football's power structure as an independent.

"I'm not looking to settle, and I get bored easy," Mendenhall said of the Cougars' aggressive scheduling approach, which also includes a November trip to play Missouri in Kansas City's Arrowhead Stadium.

"We're not interested in going backward. We're not interested in being part of a lesser conference. Our ultimate goal remains a national championship, and if we're not going to be invited into a conference, we'll have to play our way in. The players believe that, and I believe that. We're going to play the best teams we can wherever they want to play, and hopefully, we can play our way in."

Even if it takes another Hail Mary ... or two.