“We were in a bracket coverage there, and the quarterback made his initial read to the boundary to his single side receiver,” Wall explained to the media after the win. “So he went back to field (side), and I felt that the slot receiver had kind of beat (his coverage), and was climbing pretty fast, so I just tried to show some color, and by the time I got my head around the ball was already up in the air, and I knew I was just going to go up and get it.”

Did you understand all that football jargon? It’s okay if you didn’t, and it’s really only important if Wall does, seeing he’s mans the critical free safety position which is often referred to as the quarterbacking position of BYU Defensive Coordinator Jay Hill’s system. In order to play the position effectively, you have to see it all, and Wall certainly fits the role well and can subsequently and brilliantly recall just about any play that transpires to the utmost detail when asked.

All of it has led to big plays being made by not only Wall himself, but for the entire Cougar defense, which has proved to be remarkably opportunistic throughout the season.

In Saturday’s win there were multiple examples, from Wall’s interception, to sparsely-used cornerback Tayvion Beasley shedding a block effectively on a wide receiver screen to help force a critical fumble late. Then there was BYU’s defensive redzone efficiency, which kept the Bearcats short of the goal line early in the second quarter, forcing a turnover on downs instead of seeing Cincinnati tie the game up at 7-7.

“They’re one of the top red zone defenses,” said Cincinnati coach Scott Satterfield. “Anytime teams are getting close, they have a hard time scoring. Of course, we did too.”

As for the game’s final outcome, it came largely due to BYU seizing on its opportunities while Cincinnati left too many pass by. Sure, a lot of them were unforced, like the usually reliable Cincinnati kicker Stephen Rusnak, who entered Saturday’s game making 23 of his last 24 field goals attempts, only to see his three attempts just miss. Will Ferrin, on the other hand, booted through both of his field goal attempts, which certainly played a big factor in the final outcome.

Is it luck or is it simply rising to the occasion when the opportunity presents itself?

“A lot of people say we are lucky. I think we are diligent, and I think we expect to win,” said BYU defensive lineman Keanu Tanuvasa, who like Wall, is given to present a very eloquent and detailed overview of what the Cougars are all about on a week-to-week basis.

“We’re going to find a way to win these games,” Wall added. “Throughout the game, there might be some weird plays here or there… But we always find a way to win, and that’s what it is going to take to get us to where we want to be.”

Indeed getting to a gleaming 10-1 mark on the regular season is a monumental task, and there’s only nine other teams in all of the FBS ranks of college football who have managed only one or no losses to this point of the season. How it’s done doesn’t really matter, and BYU has proven to be extremely good at what it does, playing its complementary brand of football that is so often pointed out by its Head Coach Kalani Sitake.

“I’m just really proud of everybody and what they did in all three phases,” Sitake summed up, speaking of his team’s work on offense, defense and special teams in the win. “Defensively it’s hard to just those two scores…We’re in a really good spot right now in all three phases and we just have to finish it next week.”