Connor wants 1 more Pay Day Saturday vs. Houston – Deseret News

After spending four years defending LaVell Edwards Stadium, Connor Pay is in his final 60 minutes and he knows exactly how he wants it to go.

“I want to win and I want us to play well on offense,” Pay said on BYUtv’s “GameDay” pregame show. “I know when I leave this field for the last time it will be an emotional experience.”

The 6-foot-5, 315-pound former Lone Peak High star is among 20 Cougars scheduled to play their final home game Saturday night against Houston (8:15 p.m., ESPN) — and they have a lot to play for. The Cougars need a win and help from Arizona or Kansas State to reach next week’s Big 12 championship game, where the winner advances to the College Football Playoff.

“The whole season is based on a good performance in this match,” Pay said. “It’s unfortunate that we put ourselves in this position where we no longer control our own destiny, but (the Big 12 title game) is still in the cards. If we want to have a chance at winning a conference championship, (we) have to win this game.

Back-to-back losses to Kansas (17-13) and Arizona State (28-23) dropped BYU (9-2, 6-2) from No. 6 in the College Football Playoff rankings to No. 19. a lesson to the Cougars.

“You have to play for 60 minutes,” Pay said. “Last week we had great practices (before ASU). We were quite surprised by the slow start. I think it’s fixable, because we saw how we can execute our offense in the second half and now we have to start (Saturday’s) game that way. It’s definitely fixable – and it should be.

During his time on the offensive line, mostly at center, Pay protected Zach Wilson, Jaren Hall, Baylor Romney, Kedon Slovis and Jake Retzlaff — and he won plenty of games. BYU is 43-18 since his arrival and the Cougars are one win away from Pay’s third 10-plus win season and his first chance at a conference championship.

“We have to start fast on offense, control the line of scrimmage and score points in the first half,” Pay said. “We have to attack every moment like a championship is on the line – because it is.”

Convinced his days at BYU were over, Pay participated in senior farewell activities last year. However, after TJ Woods was hired as offensive line coach and running game coordinator, he decided to stay.

Pay followed in his father’s footsteps at BYU. Garry Pay played on the offensive line in the late ’80s and early ’90s. Connor’s younger brothers, Trevor and Austin, would follow him. Trevor joined the team this season after completing his church mission. Austin, a 6-foot-7 national prospect, committed to BYU earlier this month, choosing the Cougars over Oregon and Texas A&M.

“I can attribute a lot of positive things in my life to this university,” said Pay, who will graduate next month from the Marriott School of Business. “This is where my parents (Garry and Jeana) met. This is where my father earned his law degree to support our family. The life that I had and that of my brothers and sisters, it was all thanks to BYU.

Pay served a tour of duty in Washington, D.C., before settling in Provo. The team captain is tenacious in the trenches, but Pay’s overall outlook on life is framed by his faith and that’s what drove him to play football for BYU.

“Faith is the most important thing in my life. For me and my family that’s probably the biggest draw, is just the fact that it’s a faith-filled institution and being a private institution we can infuse that into every aspect of college – in the classroom, on the football field and in team/position meetings,” Pay said. “You can have God with you every step of the way at this university, which is a pretty special thing. It’s not that you can’t have that elsewhere, but it’s kind of fun to be able to get it from both sides, where it’s not just from me and my personal life, but also from the university which reinforces this.

With the future of Country to come, tonight won’t be the family’s last “Pay Day” at LaVell Edwards Stadium. But for Connor, it will be his final race that he hopes will take him and his teammates to next week’s Big 12 championship game.

Dave McCann is a sports editor and columnist for the Deseret News, as well as a play-by-play announcer and show host for BYUtv/ESPN+. He co-hosts “Y’s Guys” at ysguys.com and is the author of the children’s book “C is for Cougar”, available on desertetbook.com.