BYU left Fort Collins with a statement and a few reminders about just how complete this team can look when it gets rolling.
The No. 11 Cougars handled Colorado State 41-23 on the road, jumping on the Rams early and never really letting them back into the game. BYU set the tone from the opening snaps, absorbed the energy of a hostile crowd, and then turned the night into a showcase for its ground game, defense and depth.
The atmosphere was not friendly from the start. BYU players were met with derogatory chants during pregame warmups, and the Rams’ crowd had plenty of built-up frustration after a 16-year gap since BYU’s last visit to the “Choice City.”
None of it rattled the Cougars. They answered with an early lead after two plays and kept building on it from there.
The biggest hammer was LJ Martin. If there was a player who completely tilted the game, it was him.
Martin became the first BYU football player since Taysom Hill in 2014 against Texas to rush for three touchdowns in one quarter, doing it all in the opening 15 minutes. His night announced itself on the second play from scrimmage, when he ripped off a 56-yard touchdown run.
From there, the reigning Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year kept pounding away, finishing the first half with 173 rushing yards on 14 carries, a staggering 12.4 yards per attempt. BYU didn’t need to lean on him much longer after that; he was done for the night midway through the third quarter.
Martin finished with 176 yards on 15 carries and added one catch for nine yards.
Colorado State’s hopes of keeping pace took a hit when quarterback Hauss Hejny went down with a hamstring issue. Hejny entered the game second in the nation in passing touchdowns with nine through the first two weeks, and after CSU’s opening drive he had already thrown his 10th.
But on the Rams’ second possession, after a third-and-3 pass breakup by BYU cornerback Evan Johnson, Hejny came up limping and headed to the medical tent with his right hamstring being tended to. He did return for CSU’s third drive, but he didn’t look right, and Jim Mora shut him down for the rest of the night in favor of UConn transfer K’saan Farrar.
The Rams lost the arm talent and playmaking edge Hejny brought, and with it, most of their chance to threaten BYU.
BYU’s defense and front seven kept making life miserable, and Cade Uluave was right in the middle of it. The former Cal linebacker, who arrived as the No. 1 transfer portal linebacker in the 2026 portal cycle, lived up to the billing again.
He was everywhere, finishing the first half with five tackles and showing why he’s become such a central figure for this defense. Even as he came off the field, he was lifting up teammates, telling CBS’ Jordan Giorgio that LJ Martin is the best running back in the nation.
That kind of response fits Uluave’s profile: elite production, but also a clear grasp of the locker room around him.
BYU also kept chugging along up front even without a starter. Guard Kyle Sfarcioc was out with an undisclosed injury, and senior Trevin Ostler stepped in without the line missing a beat.
The Cougars’ offensive front controlled the game and created steady movement against a Colorado State defensive line that already showed issues a week earlier against FCS Southern Utah. The lone blemish came in the third quarter, when Colorado native Andrew Gentry was flagged for holding on a play that wiped out a Journee Tonga touchdown run.
That drive ended with Bear Bachmeier’s first interception of the season.
The Cougars’ defense had its own highlight with Hunter Clegg. The sophomore defensive end intercepted a pass from Farrar at the end of the first half, a huge play with CSU moving the ball and set to receive the opening kickoff of the second half. Clegg didn’t just make the pick; he turned it into extra yardage, racing 20 yards on the return.
BYU did get a little loose down the stretch. Back-to-back offensive possessions ended in interceptions, first by Bear Bachmeier in the red zone and then by Treyson Bourguet on a tipped ball.
Those were the Cougars’ first giveaways of the season after opening the year without one through the first two games, the first time that had happened since 2021. Penalties added to the mess, including an unnecessary roughness call on Tausili Akana that helped Colorado State find the end zone in the second half.
Even with the late sloppiness, there were more encouraging signs in the run game beyond Martin. When he exited midway through the third quarter, Preston Rex, Journee Tonga and Devaughn Eka got opportunities.
Rex scored his second touchdown of the season, and Tonga flashed his ability in the fourth quarter with a 38-yard run that featured some shifty work against a defender and moved BYU into Colorado State territory. With Sione Moa still recovering from an MCL/PCL injury, Tonga may be pushing himself into the weekly conversation for carries behind Martin.
BYU is now 3-0 and heads into a bye week before returning on Saturday, October 3, at TCU. Kickoff is expected to be announced on Monday.
In Other News...
BYU Now Faces The Quarterback It Nearly Brought To Provo
Hauss Hejny is back in the spotlight this week as Colorado States starting quarterback, adding a little extra intrigue for BYU fans who followed his transfer recruitment not long ago. Before landing in Fort Collins, Hejny had already spent time at TCU and Oklahoma State, and BYU was among the programs trying to bring him to Provo before he chose another path.
The Cougars ultimately turned to Bear Bachmeier at quarterback after Hejny committed elsewhere, leaving this matchup with a familiar what-if attached to it. Colorado States staff has its own BYU connection too, with former Cougars assistant Matt Mitchell helping recruit Hejny, which only deepens the crossover as BYU gets ready to see the quarterback it came close to adding. [Read more 🡒]
Texas Tech Just Added More Heat To BYUs Big 12 Race
Texas Tech found a way to survive Houston in Lubbock, edging the Cougars 28-26 in a Big 12 game that carried plenty of late tension and even more weight in the conference standings. The Red Raiders had to rally from an early deficit, and they got enough from key moments involving Kenny Johnson and JKoby Williams to stay alive in a game that looked headed for even more drama down the stretch.
For BYU, the bigger takeaway is what this does to the conference chase. Every Texas Tech win in a tight Big 12 race adds another layer of pressure, and this one came with a controversial finish at the goal line on a two-point attempt that left Houston frustrated and the outcome hanging on a razor-thin call. The Cougars are going to feel that ripple, because results like this keep tightening the path to the top. [Read more 🡒]
BYU Revives A Rivalry That Still Means More Than Fans Admit
BYU and Colorado State are set to meet again in Fort Collins, bringing back a rivalry that has been dormant since 2010 but never really disappeared from the memory of people who lived through it. The matchup carries a different feel now, of course, with both programs having spent years navigating conference changes and the shifting economics of college football, but there is still enough history attached to make this more than a routine nonconference date.
Some of the people closest to BYU have firsthand reasons to appreciate what this game used to mean. Current Cougars coaches played in past meetings, which gives this renewal a little extra texture beyond the usual nostalgia, and it also serves as a reminder of how quickly the sport has changed around old regional series. Even with realignment and financial pressures reshaping schedules everywhere, this one has enough legacy to feel like a small piece of something larger returning to the calendar. [Read more 🡒]