This is one of those Saturdays when the Big 12 gets dragged into the spotlight whether it wants it or not. The league has two of its ranked teams in the mix, with No.
20 Utah lined up against Arkansas and No. 15 BYU set to host Arizona, and both games carry enough intrigue to tell us something real about where these teams stand.
The BYU-Arizona matchup brings the sharpest quarterback duel on the board. On one side is senior Noah Fifita, the Big 12’s top returning passer.
On the other is Bear Bachmeier, the sophomore BYU is building around. Bachmeier isn’t the same quarterback who beat Arizona in Tucson last year in a double-overtime BYU win.
He’s stronger throwing the ball, more accurate, better at reading coverages, and he’s slimmer and faster too.
Arizona coach Brent Brennan called Fifita the best story in college football. He’s back to lead the Wildcats, and Brennan pointed to his leadership and arm strength despite the size disadvantage. The game may come down to which quarterback sees the cleaner picture and gets defended less.
That’s where BYU might have the edge. Kelly Poppinga’s defense brings back two of the country’s best corners, Evan Johnson and Tre Alexander, along with an NFL-caliber safety in Faletau Satuala. Arizona, meanwhile, has to replace five defensive backs who moved on to the NFL from last season’s standout unit under Danny Gonzales.
Still, Gonzales is not walking into this thing empty-handed. He engineered the biggest defensive turnaround in FBS last season with what he described as the best secondary in the nation, and his 3-3-5 scheme is built to muddy reads and make quarterbacks uncomfortable. BYU knows the answer there is to stay on schedule, lean on the run game, and control the ball.
“They had one of the best defenses in the country last year,” BYU offensive coordinator Aaron Roderick told reporters this week. “I don’t see a great drop-off with their defense this year. They are really well coached and play hard.”
Arizona did get All-Big 12 corner Jay’vion Cole back, and Gonzales added eight transfers from the portal to help fill out the defense. But if BYU can own time of possession and keep Fifita on the sideline, it would move the Cougars a long way toward their first Big 12 win of the season.
That job now falls more heavily on returning Big 12 offensive player of the year LJ Martin. BYU will be without his top backup, Sione Moa, whose knee injury in the opener against Utah Tech is season-ending. That opens the door for Preston Rex, Devaughn Eka and Journee Tonga to get work Saturday.
The Cougars also have the kind of front seven that can make life miserable for Fifita, with Isaiah Glasker, Cade Uluave, Siale Esera, Keanu Tanuvasa, Justin Kirkland, Bodie Schoonover, Tausili Akana and Hunter Clegg all part of the pressure package. In a rematch of last year’s thriller, BYU has more bodies to rotate and chase.
Utah’s game against Arkansas carries a different feel, but the outlook is just as strong for the Big 12 side. Morgan Scalley has already sparked Utah’s fanbase, and his first game in charge brought the expected result against Idaho while also showing off the variety in the Utes’ offensive looks. The point was clear: make defenses sort through everything.
Arkansas comes to Salt Lake City without a road win in 680 days and with an offense that has struggled to control games on the ground. That is a dangerous setup against Utah’s explosive attack led by Devon Dampier.
The Razorbacks do have SEC size and athleticism, and they can hang around if they force turnovers or shut down the run early. A clean game with better rushing could keep it respectable.
But Utah’s offensive pop, defensive steadiness and the night setting in Salt Lake City make this one look heavily tilted toward the Utes. If a Big 12 team has to draw an SEC opponent, Arkansas at home is your Huckleberry.
The rest of the week’s board also leans hard in a few directions, with Missouri over Kansas, Oregon over Oklahoma State, Iowa over Iowa State and several other picks scattered across the schedule. The full set: Pitt over UCF, Missouri over Kansas, Oregon over Oklahoma State, Texas A&M over Arizona State, Oklahoma over Michigan, Penn State over Temple, Alabama over Kentucky, Tennessee over Georgia Tech, Houston over Southern, Texas over Ohio State, Texas Tech over Oregon State, Iowa over Iowa State, Utah over Arkansas, Washington over Utah State and BYU over Arizona.
Last week: 15-1 (.875).
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