Head Coach: Kalani Sitake is entering his 9th season as the head coach of the BYU Cougars with a 61-41 record. It’s been a very up and down tenure highlighted by a strong 2020 season where their only loss was the incredible game scheduled last moment against Coastal Carolina and in 2021 they went 5-0 against the Pac-12 but they were weighted down by their strange inability to play in the rain that year they lost to Boise State when the game fell apart for them during a random rainstorm, lost the bowl game to UAB in a monsoon their only other loss was to a Baylor team that won the Sugar Bowl. Last season was only his 2nd season without a bowl game so he will be hoping to right the ship.
Program Outlook: BYU as an independent was a fun time, it wasn’t easy for the Cougars but they ultimately made it work and now they’re in the Big 12. This has always felt like a program that belonged in a big conference they have one of the largest stadiums in the conference already and massive support, there’s championship history here too because the Cougars won the 1984 National Title. Now it’s time for an adjustment period as they get used to their new home.
How does the 2024 Roster look?: BYU has a lot to sort out. Generally we aren’t ever going to see the Cougars loaded with tremendous athletes, but this is a program that’s been competitive by priding itself on playing a bruising, physical style of ball. The last couple seasons has seen that fall away, now they need to find their way back to it. The offense struggled immensely most of last season. They started out ok passing it but once Kedon Slovis got hurt they couldn’t do much, they couldn’t run the ball either. They are bringing in a former Big 12 and Sugar Bowl winning QB to step in…ok it’s Gerry Bohannon, he’s somehow in his 7th year we know what he can do at this point he’s limited as a passer but he is mobile which is something BYU hasn’t had at the position in a while. If it’s not Bohannon they will start Jake Retzlaff who stepped in for Slovis last season and really took his lumps, he wasn’t successful but there wasn’t a lot of help. BYU just couldn’t keep any of their top receivers healthy all season guys were mostly in and out of games but now it results in a slew of veteran options back this year. The Cougars couldn’t run the ball at all last season, it’s been very strange to see Sitake’s best BYU teams were extremely physical at the line of scrimmage but they’ve severely lacked that the last couple years. Oddly enough they were actually good in pass protection they just didn’t make any running lanes. There’s a new Oline coach this year so we’ll see if they can get back to being physical up front. The defense looked like it was going to get back on track early last season but it capsized during their late season collapse. A major culprit is once again they weren’t physical enough, the pass rushers couldn’t get to opposing QBs and they were getting pushed around by opposing ground attacks. There was another culprit too and that was seeing a lot of key guys go down. They have a pass rushing stud from the FCS ranks in Jack Kelly coming in from Weber State which is why BYU’s DC is from so there’s familiarity in the scheme. Linebacker Ben Bywater is one of the best in the conference when healthy but he suffered a shoulder injury last season and there’s fears he won’t be ready for the season. A lot of the best players in the secondary kept getting hurt last season so having those guys back and staying healthy this time would help. It all comes down to staying healthy and getting back to being a physical team.
Screenshot from fbschedules.com1
2024 Schedule Thoughts: This schedule is rough with hardly any true breaks. I really don’t understand BYU’s opener against Southern Illinois, it’s not at all a regional game and an unnecessary risk. Last season the Salukis beat Northern Illinois a team that finished with a winning record, in 2022 they beat Northwestern, and even in 2021 they lost by only 8 to Kansas State so this is a very dangerous opener. BYU then faces SMU who will be a tough challenge in a classic Big 12-ACC battle and they face Wyoming on the road, crazy things happen in Laramie so that won’t be easy either. Most of BYU’s first 6 Big 12 games are against contenders. If there’s one piece of good news it’s that BYU faces a lot of the toughest teams at home, this is a very different team in Provo compared to on the road so BYU could mess up a season for a contender. The last 2 games are a little easier which could help if BYU is still in the running for bowl eligibility.
Vegas Projection: BYU’s win total is set at 4.5 with the odds geared toward the over. This is not a surprise since just about every outlook is pessimistic on the Cougars.
2024 Best Case: BYU gets their physicality back. The Cougars bully SIU, and make a statement by going on the run and running all over SMU for a huge win. They out muscle Wyoming in Laramie. The Cougars open conference play strong by taking down Kansas State at home behind a strong defensive effort and they manage to beat Baylor on the road. BYU continues to defend their home field by winning 1 of the next 2 challenges. The Cougar hype is at a fever pitch but facing UCF on the road proves to be too much but they still recover by out muscling Utah for a huge victory in the Holy war. BYU wins 2 of the next 3 to wrap up a huge 9-3 rebound season. They don’t make the Big 12 championship but at least they can look down and see Utah below them in the standings. The Cougars close the season strong with a bowl win.
2024 Worst Case: BYU still can’t get anything going on offense and the defense continues to get pushed around. They get off to a nightmare start to the season being stunned by Southern Illinois and it doesn’t get better against SMU, Wyoming or Kansas State. In fact, it really never gets better BYU enters the Holy War winless and gets trounced 56-0 by Utah. They finish the season 1-11 with no path or direction in what to do next. Meanwhile all they can do is watch as Utah makes a run to the national title.
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