Riley Nelson’s hilarious high-five vs. TCU was actually no laughing matter
Riley Nelson quarterbacked BYU against TCU at Dallas Cowboys Stadium in 2011. The senior had watched Max Hall (2009) and Jake Heaps (2010) come up short against the Horned Frogs as a backup and his one shot at beating them as the starter wasn’t going BYU’s way either.
Cougars on the air
BYU (1-1, 4-1)
at TCU (1-2, 3-3)
Oct. 14, 1:30 p.m. MDT
Amon G. Carter Stadium
(Capacity: 50,000)
TV: ESPN
Radio: 102.7 FM/1160 AM
Late in the game, Nelson drove the Cougars 78 yards in 12 plays. Bryan Kariya’s one-yard touchdown run pulled BYU within 38-26. During the Cougars’ two-point conversion attempt, Nelson scrambled to his left and dove for the end zone.
“My body is horizontal, probably no more than six inches off the ground,” Nelson told the “Y’s Guys” podcast. “As I reached out, I felt the ball hit the pylon before any of my body parts hit the ground. So, I knew I was in, but I also knew I was getting hit at the same time, so it was going to be a messy call.”
The referee signaled a successful attempt. As television cameras rolled, Nelson jumped to his feet and with the official’s hands still in the air, he slapped him an iconic high-five before running off toward the BYU bench. The ESPN game announcers laughed it off as a moment of light-hearted revelry, but there is more to the story.
During the scoring drive, the Cougars were hit with two questionable penalties that didn’t sit well with Riley — offensive pass interference and holding. Not only did the infractions cost BYU field position, but they also chewed up valuable time on the clock.
Related
“So, I was a little mad at the (officiating crew),” Nelson said. “I feel bad, but the truth is the truth and it kind of deflates the story a little bit, but I stand up and give him a quick point (with my finger) and I said, ‘At least get this one right!’ And then, when he put his hands up in the air, I slapped his hand a ‘high-five’ and sarcastically said, ‘Good job!’”
A dozen years later, Riley has redefined the moment of spite thanks to some perspective that only comes with age. “I was reinforcing good behavior,” he laughed. “That’s what I was doing.”
The Horned Frogs won the game 38-28. BYU and TCU meet for the first time since 2011 on Saturday in Fort Worth, Texas (1:30 p.m. MDT, ESPN).
Dave McCann is a contributor to the Deseret News and is the studio host for “BYU Sports Nation Game Day,” “The Post Game Show,” “After Further Review,” and play-by-play announcer for BYUtv. He is also co-host of “Y’s Guys” at ysguys.com.
