Dana Holgorsen is 3-0. He’s still not clear on the three-second rule, though. That was my question. A while later, he and I spoke, and I mentioned that the three-second rule applies to a stopped clock. He said the official told him that and that he disagreed with the official. I’m pretty sure the official was right and that, despite reputations, the officials handled the entire ordeal properly. (Hickman!)

Now, this doesn’t mean the rule itself is not flawed. That was Holgorsen’s issue. It didn’t seem to me that he believed the justification of the decision to allow the play, which is that you can spike the ball on a running clock and not on a stopped clock.

“See, why would you clock it if the clock stops?” he said. “If the clock is stopped, why would you clock it?”

Good point. Easy counter. Say the Taysom Hill pass to Mitch Juergens was good or a first down and that BYU was still without timeouts. BYU would have spiked — “clocked,” if you must — that ball and brought its field goal team on the field. It’s too hard to do a line change there. Use the spike.

But it seems there’s a problem with that rule. How is two seconds not enough time in one instance, but one second is enough in another? The rule book is due for some changes in the offseason. (That said, I repeat that it appears the officials got it right. The rule, no matter what you think of it, was interpreted properly. The replay clearly showed the spiked ball hitting the turf with 1 second to go. I now look forward to the Big 12 conference call Monday when we learn the [SEC] officiating crew screwed it all up and either misinterpreted the rule or reviewed something they’re not allowed to review or something else.)

We’ve got a few takeaways to consider and discuss. Let’s begin!

• When Justin Crawford’s right, he’s exactly right for this offense. He had some big-time runs in the second half, and while it was odd that he didn’t get a touch on the back-to-back three-and-outs, it wasn’t a coincidence he was in after that. His 19-yard run before the Orlosky-Howard fumble was excellent.
• Who can run with Shelton Gibson?
• WVU has a short-yardage issue, not solely because of play calls, which matter, but because of personnel. Not having tight ends is a problem, and the run possibilities are trending toward one-dimensional when they get close to the yard marker or goal line. When your personnel is limited, your options for play calls are limited.
• Red zone! Four chances, four touchdowns before the bad snap … and WVU scored like seven times on the first drive. The play calls were creative, too.
• No stacks, but if we’re being honest, Ka’Raun White was kind of right. The receivers didn’t have much trouble getting open.
• Not sure about the nature or severity of the Antonio Crawford injury, but that’s one WVU can’t afford as it enters the Big 12 and will need more nickel packages. Backup free safety Toyous Avery didn’t play, either. That explained all the Khairi Sharif PT.
• Skyler Howard’s dealing. I thought he was great up until the not-so-great interception, and he picked it up right after that. Apart from the interception, not one pass was in danger. Am I right?
• This is going to be a long week for Mark Scott. He’s the special teams boss, and not only is Josh Lambert back, which will necessitate some consideration and some changes, but WVU’s kickoff and kickoff return teams were bad. The next opponent is always excellent on special teams.
• WVU’s defense is quite likely going to have issues with some of these Big 12 brand offenses, but BYU was a handful, and Kansas State is similar, if not more talented and cohesive.
• Streaks end! BYU was 10-for-15 on third down. The last 27 opponents were at or below 50 percent. The Mountaineers also gave up a sack. They were one of five teams that hadn’t allowed one. I think the one was a Howard scramble when he stepped out of bounds for a loss of 1. Ron Crook was not happy to hear that.

Hey, 3-0 is 3-0. No one has to tell the Mountaineers they aren’t perfect or that they would have lost on the same day to different teams. But they’re 3-0.

“I’m going to remind myself what I just told our team,” said coach Dana Holgorsen, who’s now 17-4 in September and 19-5 in non-conference play. “Never, ever, ever take for granted a victory. There were a lot of things that happened that put that victory in jeopardy, but due to us playing as a team, we figured out a way to win.”

“We talk about it every single day in practice,” Gibson said. “We have the best receiving corps in the nation. Every single day we try to prove it. Every step.”

And yet, the story of the game was the defense, even with all the things it didn’t do right or well. The rush defense was, according to Justin Arndt, “terrible.” Several of the third downs BYU converted were long ones. WVU looked too laid back once it went up 35-19.

But four turnovers was double what happened in the first two games — and as many as BYU had in its first three games. BYU running back Jamaal Williams had 568 career carries without losing a fumble, and then he lost one that WVU followed with Howard’s TD run. The other three were interceptions. One as a gift Rasul Douglas saw coming. He recognized the play, baited Hill’s throw and pounced. The other two were tip drills, and the Mountaineers were delighted about that.

Now with the ball in the air, he was hoping Kyeremeh could survive the play. The fifth-year senior ended up batting the ball into the air, and cornerback Maurice Fleming, defending a receiver to Hifo’s left, intercepted it at the 2 to clinch the outcome.

WVU played man-to-man defense and was fortunate Fleming was alert enough to shift his attention from his receiver to Kyeremeh’s, but he had a hunch he’d be involved, too. The scout team ran that play in practice throughout the week, but there was more.

“BYU was known for a lot of tipped passes,” Fleming said. “We knew if we got a tipped pass, we needed to catch it.”

The Mountaineers had the benefit of an open weekend and no game last week, and that allowed for more preparation than normal for the Cougars. When cornerbacks coach Blue Adams schooled his players on what to expect, he repeatedly mentioned one thing that loomed large during WVU’s 35-32 victory.

“Wide receivers not catching the ball,” Fleming said.