No. 10 BYU may be walking into Saturday’s Big 12 showdown with Baylor carrying two opponents at once: the Bears and the weather.
That’s the backdrop for a 1:30 p.m. kickoff at LaVell Edwards Stadium, where wet, cold conditions are expected to hang over the game in Provo. Forecasts vary, but the general read is simple enough - light rain at the start, heavier stuff around halftime, then a gradual fade later in the day.
For BYU, that immediately brings back memories of Bear Bachmeier’s toughest passing day of the season. Before last week’s rough night against Utah, the most uneven outing of the year came at TCU, where a rainy, misty evening in Fort Worth made the football hard to handle and the passing game hard to trust. Bachmeier finished that one 11 of 24 for 62 yards with no touchdowns and no interceptions.
When the Cougars needed a solution, he became it himself. With LJ Martin out after a high ankle sprain in the first quarter and the air game sputtering, Bachmeier ran 15 times for 73 yards and two scores in a 17-10 win.
That matters now because the weather outlook in Provo looks a lot like the kind of night that can turn a game sideways. BYU has also had trouble running the ball over the last few weeks, even with Martin back in the mix.
He returned last Saturday against Utah after missing four games and finished with seven carries for 19 yards and a touchdown, but offensive coordinator Aaron Roderick said Tuesday the reigning Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year was “not even close” to 100%. Martin was listed as probable Thursday, along with linebacker Isaiah Glasker.
The Cougars were also without two other offensive pieces at Rice-Eccles Stadium: running back Preston Rex and tight end Roger Saleapaga. Rex is expected to play against Baylor, while Saleapaga was listed as doubtful Thursday night.
Bachmeier led BYU on the ground against the Utes with eight carries for 59 yards, another reminder that the offense has leaned heavily on his legs when things get messy. Roderick said the missing bodies have limited what BYU can do personnel-wise.
“Those are big losses, by the way,” Roderick said. “We are down some guys.
That’s one of the things (limiting the offense). … One of the things we’ve been good at is personnel groupings.
We do a lot of different things with personnel, and we’ve been pretty limited the last few games. So yeah, it is a challenge.”
The weather piece isn’t being ignored. BYU has spent plenty of time this week throwing wet footballs in practice, and defensive coordinator Kelly Poppinga said Wednesday the Cougars are approaching the game with a “warrior mindset.” He didn’t spell out the details, but he made the message plain.
“We are going to keep it at that (regarding) what that means to us as a team and as individuals,” Poppinga said. “Each individual is a little bit different (with) what type of mindset they want to bring, but we have to come with the right mindset.
It’s not going to depend on the crowd and how many people are there, or the weather, because it is going to be fun. It is going to be football weather.”
The matchup has also become much more dangerous than it looked a few weeks ago. Baylor dropped back-to-back games to TCU, 16-7, and Kansas, 25-24, in mid-October and then fired coach Dave Aranda. Since then, the Bears have ripped UCF 41-9 in Orlando and beaten Iowa State 42-31 in Waco under interim coach Joe Klanderman.
The Bears bring a quarterback who can stress BYU in more than one way. DJ Lagway, a transfer from Florida, has thrown for 1,900 yards and 15 touchdowns with only four interceptions.
At 6-foot-3 and 237 pounds, he has the same kind of size as Bachmeier, though he’s not asked to run nearly as often. Lagway has 161 rushing yards and two touchdowns on 50 carries, and he’s been sacked 14 times.
Poppinga had plenty of praise for him.
“Man, he’s big, he’s strong, he has an arm as good as anybody I’ve seen,” Poppinga said. “He can sit in the pocket and flick his wrist and the ball goes 70 yards, and that’s not an exaggeration.
I mean, he can really rip the ball. … And No.
6 (Gavin Freeman) is as good of a slot receiver as we’ve seen all year.”
Baylor’s defense brings its own problems. The Bears are No. 2 nationally in tackles for loss and No. 2 in sacks, a nasty combination for any offense and especially one that has already been living on the edge in recent weeks.
That’s where the game gets especially interesting. BYU’s offense ranks first nationally in fewest tackles for loss allowed and No. 4 in fewest sacks allowed, so strength will be meeting strength in a hurry.
“This (Baylor) defense is one of the best defenses in the country in terms of efficiency,” Sitake said. “They tackle well, and their front is really strong.
There aren’t many holes in their defense. … As a team, they’ve gone through some adversity, and they’ve found a way to bond together and get victories.
They are not just winning games. They are playing at a high level.”
Roderick pointed to the Bears’ defensive front as the engine behind it all.
“I would put them right up there with Notre Dame, as far as their front goes, the D line,” Roderick said. “They’re really disciplined in the secondary.
They’ve got length back there. They don’t give up big plays.
They are not going to let you throw it over their head. … They’re the No. 2 team in the country right now in red-zone defense.
They keep people out of the end zone.”
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