Keanu Tanuvasa threw out a bold number earlier this offseason: “We should have around 50 sacks this year.” After one game, BYU still has almost all of them to chase, and that made the pass rush the loudest concern coming out of week one.
On the surface, the numbers were ugly. Against Utah Tech, BYU generated pressure on fewer than 20% of dropbacks, finished with one sack and did not record a QB hit.
That looks especially jarring with Arizona up next and Noah Fifita waiting on the other side. But a closer look changes the picture a bit.
Utah Tech’s quarterbacks weren’t holding the ball. They were firing immediately, often going to the first read whether it was there or not.
On 15 first-half dropbacks, Utah Tech completed only four passes for 30 yards, which worked out to 2 yards per attempt. The ball was coming out in 2.19 seconds on average.
BYU’s average time to pressure for the game was 2.8 seconds, which means the rush was getting there about as quickly as any defense managed last season - Utah Tech just made it a point to get rid of the ball before things could develop.
That game plan also explains why BYU didn’t look especially exotic. Kelly Poppinga was hired with the expectation that he would bring back some of the aggressive, blitz-heavy feel associated with Bronco Mendenhall’s defenses, but Saturday was mostly base looks.
BYU brought five or more rushers only twice on 15 dropbacks, and it got pressure both times. Most of the night was a straight four-man rush with very little blitzing or stunting.
That seemed intentional, almost like a preseason script designed to avoid handing Arizona useful film.
And even with that limited approach, BYU still made Utah Tech uncomfortable. The Trailblazers used an average of 5.8 players in pass protection per dropback, while BYU rushed with 4.1 on average.
Even so, BYU still created some form of pressure on nine of those 15 plays. That’s not nothing.
Personnel mattered, too. Isaiah Glasker did not play.
Nusi Taumoepeau logged just three snaps. Only three players rushed the passer more than eight times, and none of them were starters.
The message was pretty clear: this was about getting players work in a live setting, not emptying the playbook or chasing stats against an overmatched opponent.
There were also some technique issues that showed up on film, especially with the edge rushers. Even when BYU beat Utah Tech’s tackles, some of the rushers stayed too upright and ended up circling the quarterback instead of closing him down.
Jack Kelly’s sack was the clean example of how it should look: stay low, dip the shoulder, shorten the corner and get to the quarterback faster. Nusi Taumoepeau showed the same kind of finish on the play that led to the game-winning interception.
It’s the sort of thing that can be cleaned up, and the staff has players like Hunter Clegg and Tausili Akana who are talented enough and coachable enough to fix it.
So the concern level? Pretty low.
Utah Tech’s approach was built to get the ball out before the rush could fully arrive, and that’s exactly what it did. If anything, BYU did what it needed to do in a game that didn’t ask its defense to show much.
Arizona will be a different test, and BYU knows it. Fifita has been pressured on nearly 40% of his dropbacks in his career against BYU, and when that happened he completed 34% of his passes for 3.3 yards per attempt with no touchdowns and three interceptions. That’s the blueprint BYU needs again.
There are reasons to think the second game will look different from the first. Fifita held the ball longer than all but 20 FBS quarterbacks last season, at 3.05 seconds.
Glasker and Taumoepeau should be fully healthy. And BYU should be more aggressive because it has to be.
The secondary gives the Cougars room to turn up the pressure, and if they sit back and let Fifita operate comfortably, he can punish them in a hurry.
BYU’s pass rush was fine against Utah Tech. Against Arizona, it has to be a lot louder.
In Other News...
BYU's Arizona Rotations Suddenly Come With Two Big Concerns
BYUs snap counts against the Trailblazers offered a pretty clear look at how the Cougars are trying to manage their personnel as they head into Arizona. The offense leaned heavily on tight ends, using two of them as much as its top wide receivers, while the defensive side kept rotating up front in search of fresh legs and a steady pass rush. It was the kind of game that showed both the depth chart and the game plan, especially with certain players being asked to do a little more in key spots.
Legend Glasker appears headed for a bigger role, but the more immediate concern is how BYU covers for the losses and limitations that showed up in that game. Sione Moa left early because of injury, and Nusi Taumoepeau was on a limited snap count, which only adds to the pressure on the Cougars rotation at a time when they need dependable bodies on both sides of the ball. On defense, the challenge is especially clear: BYU needs enough push from the line to bother the quarterback without having to lean too hard on blitzing. [Read more 🡒]
BYU Fans Will Love Who's Behind Saturday's Pregame Flyover
A familiar show of pageantry is coming to LaVell Edwards Stadium on Saturday, and this one carries a personal connection for Jimmy Winegardner. The BYU graduate and KC-135 pilot is set to handle the pregame flyover before the national anthem at the BYU-Arizona game, with kickoff slated for 1:30 p.m. MDT, adding a little extra buzz to a matchup already carrying plenty of interest.
For Winegardner, the moment has been years in the making, a chance to combine his military role with a place that still matters to him. The KC-135 crew will spend time on training flights around Utah Valley before approaching the stadium from the south, and for BYU fans, it should be a memorable arrival even before the first snap. [Read more 🡒]
BYU's Arizona Test Could Raise The Stakes Around Kalani Sitake
BYU heads into its game against Arizona with more than a conference test hanging over the night, even as fans are being urged to turn LaVell Edwards Stadium into a blue-and-white Stripe Out. The matchup offers another chance for the Cougars to show they can handle a meaningful early-season check, but it also comes with a familiar backdrop around the program: a coach who has kept the team competitive while navigating a school and sport in transition.
Kalani Sitakes future at BYU remains a live conversation because of the way he has spoken publicly about resources and support, especially after recent administrative changes around the program. In a college football landscape that keeps shifting under everyones feet, the Arizona game feels like more than a standalone date on the schedule, since performances like this can quietly shape how loudly those bigger questions get asked in the weeks that follow. [Read more 🡒]