BYU has turned turnovers into a team-wide creed, and the early returns have been hard to miss.
Coach Kalani Sitake put it plainly this week when he explained how the Cougars think about the football.
“We talk often about how the ball doesn’t belong to a side of the ball, whether it’s offense, defense, or special teams. It belongs to Cougar Nation, and so you have a responsibility protecting it,” Sitake said.
That idea has shown up in the biggest moments of BYU’s 4-0 start, especially in the games that could have gone sideways fast.
Against Arizona in the second game of the season, the Cougars were getting pushed around on defense and their offense wasn’t offering much help. The Wildcats were threatening to extend a 7-0 lead when linebacker Isaiah Glasker got pressure on Noah Fifita, forcing a bad throw that Cade Uluave intercepted.
Uluave’s return set BYU up inside the 10, and the Cougars scored two plays later to stop the slide. BYU went to halftime down 17-14, then pulled away for a 28-17 win.
The margin mattered. Without that takeaway, the halftime hole likely would have been 17-7 or worse.
Last week against TCU, BYU got an even more pivotal swing. The Horned Frogs were moving deep into Cougar territory in a scoreless game and faced fourth-and-4.
Jaden Craig’s throw ended up in the hands of BYU safety Faletau Satuala, who brought it back inside the TCU 10. Four plays later, Bear Bachmeier scored to give BYU a 7-0 lead.
That touchdown stood for most of the night. BYU didn’t get another one until two minutes remained, and without Satuala’s interception, it likely would have been the Cougars’ only touchdown.
Just as important, BYU took care of the ball on its end in both games and didn’t commit a turnover.
“I think, for us, is to just have it on top of your mind and to know that it matters,” Sitake said regarding the importance of both forcing turnovers and then securing the football. “(It’s) trying to control the stuff that you can control.
Usually that’s with securing the ball in your arms and attached to your body. That being said, it’s not like it’s an exact science, and things do happen.
But we know that we can overcome any of the mistakes with how we play our game and how we play complementary football. But yeah, the emphasis is just try to get the ball and try to create more opportunities for our offense to score by, on defense and special teams, and then when we do have the ball in our possession, it’s trying to make sure that we keep it on our side.”
The numbers back up the message. This season, BYU has thrown just two interceptions and picked off six passes.
One of those interceptions, thrown by Treyson Bourguet against Colorado State in the second half, was relatively insignificant. The Cougars still haven’t lost a fumble, and they’ve forced just one, which came against Utah Tech.
This approach also paid off in BYU’s 12-2 2025 season, when the Cougars intercepted 17 passes and threw seven picks. They lost nine fumbles and their opponents lost seven, giving BYU a +8 turnover margin that helped fuel a run to 12 wins, a Big 12 Conference Championship game berth, and a spot on the doorstep of the College Football Playoff.
“It’s big time,” said BYU edge Nusi Taumoepeau regarding winning the turnover battle and specifically forcing turnovers on the defensive end. “I think flying to the ball is our first thing.
Coach (Kelly Poppinga) always brings up creating havoc, and causing havoc every play. I think that’s a big reason why we get turnovers.
All 11 hats to the ball is a big reason for our success in that field. It’s been big time for us to be able to get those turnovers and flip the field.”
That formula will be under the microscope again Friday against Iowa State, and for the seven games after that. If BYU keeps protecting the ball and keeps hunting takeaways the way it has so far, the Cougars have made clear how they believe the game should be played.
In Other News...
BYU's Biggest Offensive Concern Didn't Go Away In The Iowa State Win
BYU got a much-needed win over Iowa State, and Bear Bachmeier had a hand in just about all of it. The quarterback threw for 329 yards and two touchdowns while adding 109 yards on the ground, giving the Cougars enough juice to control the game even without injured running back LJ Martin in the lineup.
Kalani Sitake liked the result, but the bigger offensive question still lingers. With Martin sidelined, BYU leaned heavily on Bachmeier and did not get the kind of production it usually wants from the rest of the backfield, leaving the Cougars with a familiar development task as they move deeper into the season. [Read more 🡒]
BYU Got The Breakout It Needed Before Notre Dame
Missing its top offensive threat in LJ Martin, BYU still found a way to leave Iowa State with a 21-10 win, and the performance came at a timely moment with Notre Dame looming. The Cougars needed someone else to carry the load, and sophomore quarterback Bear Bachmeier answered with his most complete showing yet, throwing for 329 yards and adding a career-high 109 on the ground.
Walker Lyons and Roger Saleapaga II also became important pieces in the passing game, giving BYU a different kind of balance when it needed it most. For a team trying to sort out its identity heading into a marquee matchup, the bigger question now is whether this kind of all-around production can hold up when the competition level rises again. [Read more 🡒]
BYU's Playoff Path Suddenly Runs Through One Massive Test
With Week 6 arriving, the playoff picture is already starting to take shape, and BYU is firmly tied to it through the kind of test that can redefine a season. The Cougars have played well enough to stay in the conversation, but the next stretch will tell the real story as college footballs biggest conferences keep sorting out contenders and pretenders around them.
This is the part of the calendar when every result seems to carry extra weight, especially for a BYU team watching the wider race while trying to protect its own spot in the mix. The preview of the weekend slate points to injury questions, high-profile matchups and shifting expectations across the SEC, Big Ten and beyond, but for BYU the focus is narrower now: one massive challenge looms, and everything about the playoff path suddenly runs through it. [Read more 🡒]