Voice of experience: Former Cougar Trajan Pili believes BYU defense can find its way again
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- BYU defensive end Trajan Pili reacts to a play in a college football game against Utah on Saturday, August 29, 2019.
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- BYU defensive end Trajan Pili reacts to a play in a college football game against Utah on Saturday, August 29, 2019
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- BYU defensive end Trajan Pili looks to make a play against UMass in a college football game on Saturday, November 23, 2019.
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- Former BYU defensive end Trajan Pili (52) poses with his teammates during his final home game against Idaho State on Nov. 16, 2019.
Following one of the worst three-game stretches in BYU football history, coaches, fans and players are looking for some answers on defense.
One former Cougar is pointing at his position group to step up this week against East Carolina.
Trajan Pili was an undersized (6-foot-2, 255 pounds) but effective defensive end for BYU (2013, 2016-2019). Last Saturday, Pili took to social media with some of his ideas about what’s happening on the defensive side of the ball.
“To give perspective and understanding on BYU’s defense,” Pili posted on Twitter, “the entire scheme, regardless of Tuiaki or Kalani calling plays, is based on the DLine DOMINATING the game. If they don’t do that, it doesn’t matter how good the back seven is or what the play is.”
Pili made an appearance with Cougar Sports on ESPN 960 this week, chatting with host Ben Criddle to clarify his comments.
“In any defense, the ultimate equalizer is always the men on the line,” Pili said. “If you have straight up dogs on either side of the line on your team, it’s hard not to win games and you see that at all levels. BYU schemes its defense to give the defensive line opportunities to really showcase what they do.
“The hard part is if you don’t perform, a lot of it falls apart on the back end. The whole defense is based on the defensive line relishing their roles, taking it on and absolutely killing it.”
The BYU defensive line, along with the back end, are allowing 49% on third down conversions (128th out of 131 FBS teams), 203 yards per game rushing and 4.78 yards per carry (both 117th) and produced just nine sacks in eight games (123rd). Notre Dame, Arkansas and Liberty combined for 32 possessions in the past three games and the Cougar defense has come up with just eight true stops (four punts, four turnovers) while allowing 20 scores (15 touchdowns, five field goals).
So what’s going wrong?
“It can be a variety of things,” Pili said. “There is never one true answer or solution. But I can tell you that the defensive line that played well against Baylor is very similar to the defensive line that played against Liberty. They have the potential to ball out and dominate, but it’s up to them to take the opportunity and run with it. I still believe they have the potential to do it if they want it.”
Pili was a part of a 4-9 BYU team in 2017 that struggled mightily on both sides of the ball.
“I played for the 2017 team that went 4-9 and we were horrible,” Pili tweeted last Saturday. “This 2022 team is playing bad but definitely not as bad as we were playing. Don’t mix those seasons up because this team has five times more talent than we did that year. There is still a chance for 8-4.”
Pili added, “The program has shifted in a positive direction since then (2017). I really do believe BYU has a lot of playmakers on the team with NFL talent. If they really want it, then can turn around the season and finish 4-0. They have the players. It’s about coming together to do what they can as players and as leadership to get back on the path. They were there the first few games, but they’ve somehow lost their way.”
Pili said the players who are willing to put in the work and prepare during this short week will be the ones who can make a difference on Friday against East Carolina.
“Whatever your role is, you have to win it,” Pili said. “Whether it’s a four-man front where you need to get off and create havoc or a three-man front where you’re called upon to hold double teams and the line of scrimmage, you have to find a way to win those one-on-one battles. Honestly, that’s what it comes down to, doing you’re 1-11th. Sometimes players are overstretching and trying to do more than that, trying to give 120 percent to make up for it.”
Former defensive coordinator ‘Ilaisa Tuiaki is focusing solely on the defensive line this week since head coach Kalani Sitake has taken over play calling, which should be a positive move for a position group that has underperformed since the Baylor game.
“The No. 1 tool a defensive lineman always has is his hands,” Pili said. “You’ve got to get off the ball as explosively as you can. Your hand placement as a defensive end can help you hold the edge and make sure anything that comes out, you push it back in. You get one hand on the opponent’s heart and one on the outside shoulder and keep him there. It’s all about your initial contact. Our defensive ends are a lot bigger than I was, so I think they have a good shot to do that.”
Pili has two brothers on the current Cougar roster (linebackers Keenan and Logan) and had a cousin, Ifo Pili, who played for BYU in the late 1990s and early 2000s. Trajan Pili and his wife live in Saratoga Springs with their three children and he runs several businesses, including a solar energy product.
He’s adjusting to life as a fan and says he still believes this defense can return to form.
“You’ve got to simplify it and try to figure out how you can beat the man in front of you for 60 minutes,” Pili said. “You just need to decide out how to beat the guy in front of you on every play.”
