PROVO, Utah -- Bear Bachmeier threw for 236 yards and a touchdown to lead No. 8 BYU to a 27-20 victory over Arizona State on Saturday.

The Cougars (7-1, 4-1 Big 12) shut down the Sun Devils (4-4, 2-3) in the fourth quarter to pull away for the win. After Matthias Dunn put BYU ahead for good on a 45-yard field goal, Sione Moa punched it in from a yard out to seal the victory with 2:09 left.

Bachmeier converted two fourth downs before Moa’s second TD to keep the drive alive.

“We’re not playing to lose,” Bachmeier said.

Cardae Mack totaled 170 all-purpose yards to lead Arizona State. Jake Fette threw for 166 yards and two touchdowns. The Sun Devils lost to a Top-10 opponent on the road for the third time this season.

This latest setback ended up being much closer than the previous two.

“They made things difficult for us and made it interesting, especially at the end,” BYU coach Kalani Sitake said. “That third quarter was tough. A lot of plays for our defense.”

Fette threw a pair of third-quarter touchdown passes to help Arizona State erase a 14-point deficit. The Sun Devils converted three third downs on the first scoring drive, culminating in Omarion Miller’s 20-yard TD catch. Then they converted two fourth downs on the next drive before Anthony Miller Jr.’s 1-yard scoring catch made it 17-17.

Adrian Wilson recovered a fumble by Kyler Kasper at the BYU 39 to set up Arizona State’s second touchdown drive.

“We really simplified in the second half for him and I thought that was a positive,” Sun Devils coach Kenny Dillingham said. “You always want to do that with a young quarterback.”

Fette got off to a turbulent start in his first career start.

He fumbled on the third play of Arizona State’s opening drive. Isaiah Glasker pounced on the ball at the Sun Devil 29, setting up BYU’s first touchdown.

Ironically, the Cougars scored following another fumble. Moa scooped up the ball after Bachmeier coughed it up inside the ASU 1 and scampered over the goal line to put BYU up 7-0.

The Big 12 Conference released a statement after the game saying that an officiating error gave BYU a touchdown on the play and the Cougars should have been given the ball at the spot where Moa made the initial fumble recovery.

“Replay was incorrect in awarding a score,” the statement read. “The correct ruling should have been BYU ball for a third and goal attempt from the 2-yard line.”

Bachmeier threaded a ball through traffic to Kyler Kaspar on a 13-yard touchdown pass to extend the Cougars’ lead to 17-3 before halftime.

Arizona State’s strong third quarter made the Sun Devils look back at a first half where they gained only 93 total yards as a missed opportunity.

“I need to come out better in the first half,” Fette said. “A quarterback can’t start that slow in the first half in a big game like this. So if I come out (strong) in the first half, like we did in the second half, I think we win this game.”

A lack of a consistent passing game made Arizona State’s offense one-dimensional and kept the Sun Devils from completing a second-half comeback.

BYU clamped down on defense early, registering six sacks and forcing a turnover before halftime. It helped the Cougars weather an inconsistent offense in the second half.

BYU converted a pair of fourth downs on its final scoring drive. Bachmeier threw a 5-yard pass on fourth-and-4 from the ASU 6 to set up Moa’s second 1-yard TD run a play later. But Bachmeier’s 2-yard first-down run earlier in the drive was a bit more unconventional.

Bachmeier and the offense stayed on the field on fourth-and-1 at the BYU 14-yard line with the Cougars holding a 3-point lead. He plowed ahead and got the first down with a yard to spare.

“The team was all for it,” Sitake said. “That was a good moment for us. There was no hesitation from anyone: offense, defense, special teams, and even the sideline. They were all for it. I can be convinced pretty easily.”

The fourth down gamble paid off. Bachmeier hit Legend Glasker on a 53-yard pass on the next play and the Cougars eventually drove 95 yards in 11 plays to seal the win.

Reed Harris finished with four yards on one catch for Arizona State. Harris entered the week as the Big 12 leader in receiving yards (800) and receiving yards per game (114.3). He had four 100-yard games through the Sun Devils first seven games this season.

Arizona State hosts Colorado next Saturday.

BYU is at Utah next Saturday.

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