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BYU 1-on-1: OK, so the Cougars have a quarterback. Now what?

By Darnell Dickson and Jared Lloyd - | Aug 26, 2021

BYU Photo

BYU quarterback Jaren Hall throws a pass during the first day of 2021 spring camp at the indoor practice facility in Provo on Monday, March 1, 2021.

The Daily Herald’s BYU sports experts Jared Lloyd and Darnell Dickson weigh in on five of the biggest questions facing the Cougars this week:

1. BYU has named sophomore Jaren Hall as the starting quarterback for the Arizona game on Sept. 4. Thoughts?

DICKSON: During his interview on Wednesday, Hall said he’s heading into his fourth year in the program. There’s probably no one other than the coaches that know more about this offense than Hall. It’s the same playbook and pretty much the same offense he’s been running for three years. That makes me pretty confident he’ll be able to move the chains against Arizona. He has a lot of weapons and an offensive line that should be pretty good and he’s an explosive athlete. If BYU doesn’t score at least 30 points against the Wildcats, I’ll be disappointed.

LLOYD: Hall was the odds-on favorite as soon as Zach Wilson announced his decision to go pro and nothing ever really changed that, although Baylor Romney and Jacob Conover deserve a ton of credit for pushing the competition until the end of fall camp. I’ve watched Hall since he was starring at Maple Mountain High and I have complete confidence in his physical abilities. The kid is an incredible athlete who loves the game and will put in the work like Wilson did. Now I need to see two things from him: 1. He needs to show on gameday that he can consistently make good decisions and 2. He has to stay healthy. I think the time he took to recuperate in 2020 at least gives him a chance to start fresh. Now we will see how he does.

2. Who will score the first touchdown of the game for the Cougars against the Wildcats?

LLOYD: As you look all over the field, you find a ton of candidates for this one. Will Isaac Rex continue his run of TDs? Maybe Tyler Allgeier or Lopini Katoa will break a big run. Or could it be a wide receiver like Neil Pau’u, Gunner Romney, or Samson or Puka Nacua? I’m going to call my shot be laying out a scenario that happened multiple times in 2020: Romney will catch a deep pass but get dragged down at the 1-yard line, so Hall can fake a handoff to Allgeier and walk around the end for the first TD. How’s that for going into detail to answer the question?

DICKSON: Remember in Kalani Sitake’s first game (also against Arizona) in Phoenix back in 2016? No one would have guessed that it would be fullback Brayden El-Bakri that would put the first six pointer on the board for the Cougars. I’m going to give the first BYU touchdown of 2021 to another fullback/tight end/h-back in Masen Wake. And I will add that he will knock over at least one defender on his way to the end zone.

3. What’s the biggest area of concern for BYU heading into Game 1?

DICKSON: Has to be defense. I know the linebackers are very strong, but there are still some questions on the defensive line. BYU may go with a platoon system but is there an alpha dog, someone who can get into the backfield and put some pressure on Arizona’s freshmen quarterbacks? Same holds true for the secondary. Lots of guys under consideration but who’s the leader? Who will be able to make a play 1-on-1 with a receiver?

LLOYD: Darnell is right to point to the defensive side of the ball, since I think we are both pretty confident in the way the Cougar offense is setting up. I think the platoon system that the Cougars have used over the past couple of seasons means that a lot of the guys up front know what they are getting into, even if they weren’t the starters. I’m going to look at the safety position specifically, since I think that’s one spot that might have gone under the radar a little bit. There is no Zayne Anderson or Troy Warner back there now, guys who played a lot of snaps during their careers. The challenge is for Chaz Ah You, Hayden Livingston, Malik Moore, Jared Kapisi, George Udo and others to fill that void and be the guys who keep opponents from getting big chunks of yardage.

4. There has been a lot of talk this summer about conference realignment but very little movement. How hard should BYU be trying to get into a conference?

LLOYD: I think BYU should be trying really, REALLY hard to do the one thing that I believe will give them the best positioning for realignment … win. Win a lot. If the Cougars can back up their excellent 2020 campaign by being in the Top 25 or make a run at the Top 10 with a schedule loaded with Power-5 opponents, the power brokers will have to take notice. Everything is in flux right now with no sure path moving forward for college football. That means there might be opportunities and BYU is uniquely positioned athletically (and uniquely disadvantaged politically). But BYU has made its current situation work and was one of the most talked about teams in the country last year. It can have a huge impact as an independent program, if that is the route it ends up needing to continue to take.

DICKSON: I saw BYU AD Tom Holmoe rush out of the Smith Fieldhouse on Saturday during the BYU women’s volleyball blue and white scrimmage, cell phone pressed tightly to his ear. I’m not saying he was taking a call about realignment but I’m not NOT saying that, either. BYU is in a good place right now because they have figured out (mostly) how to survive in independence. Would it be great to be in a conference, have eight or nine ready-made games and access to the college playoffs? Sure it would. But the Cougars shouldn’t rush headlong into any old conference that calls. Their relationship with ESPN puts them in a spot where they can be patient and make sure it’s the right opportunity. I’m skeptical that right opportunity will come along this year.

5. OK, call your shot: How many wins for the Cougars in 2021 to call it a successful season?

DICKSON: Its got to be at least eight wins in the regular season. I know that the Cougars lost a ton of talent and many of those guys are auditioning for NFL teams. Sitake’s goal has been to create more depth in his program and each year it’s gotten better. I think the schedule lines up for BYU to be successful in 2021 and getting eight wins in the regular season is a must. It could create some momentum for 2022 when the Cougars return virtually its entire roster.

LLOYD: This is the type of question that can make any expert or analyst pull their hair out because there are so many unforeseen variables. I look at the 2021 slate and I see a lot of teams BYU will face that have big question marks. Some like Utah and USC are getting a lot of hype without that much to base it on, since they were so limited last year. How good will Baylor, Virginia, Boise State and Arizona State be? If those teams are Top 15-caliber squads this fall, then an eight-win season would definitely be considered successful. But I don’t think they will be. That’s why I’m saying this BYU squad needs 10 wins to call 2021 successful, since it would mean it maintained its level of play and reloaded from 2020 instead of rebuilding. I think anything less would be disappointing for this group of athletes and coaches.

BYU PhotoBYU tight end Masen Wake hurdles a defender during the 27-20 Cougar win over UTSA at Lavell Edwards Stadium in Provo on Saturday, Oct. 10, 2020.

 

BYU PhotoBYU director of athletics Tom Holmoe talks during the “State of the Program” show at Cougar football Media Day at the BYU Broadcasting Building in Provo on Thursday, June 17, 2021.

 

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