BYU sports experts Darnell Dickson and Jared Lloyd address five of the big questions facing Cougar athletics this week:

1. What do you like most about the hire of former Weber State head coach Jay Hill as BYU’s new defensive coordinator?

DICKSON: I thought it was interesting to see that Hill has a masters degree in exercise sports science AND sports psychology. I think it’s critical for today’s college coaches to understand the mental and emotional aspects of the game. Connecting with your players is more than just getting in touch with the teenager in you. When you add the transfer portal and NIL to the mix, a coach has to figure out what makes a college football player tick and what he wants. It’s complicated. I also like his aggressive approach to defense. We’ll see if he can find the players he needs to make it work.

LLOYD: Before I give my answer, let me give the universal answer for all disgruntled college football fans about what they like most when their team makes a coaching change: They love that the new guy has never allowed a touchdown or even a first down against their team … and that makes him great, right? The harsh reality is that the landscape of the sport is littered with the wreckage of dreams of head coaches and coordinators who were supposed to be “the right guy” for their respective jobs. I don’t know Hill but I’ve admired the work he has done at Weber State. Will he be a great defensive coordinator for the Cougars? We’ll find out over the next few years. The two things that stood out to me as Hill comes on board for BYU is his experience (both in various coaching roles and with Cougar head coach Kalani Sitake) and his energy and passion. I think those are good signs, but the bottom line comes down to whether his defenses will be successful on the field.

2. BYU football has lost six players to the transfer portal so far (Dallin Holker, Jacob Conover, Tate Romney, Campbell Barrington, Terrence Fall, Logan Fano). Who is the biggest loss and do you expect more players to leave?

LLOYD: His announcement came back in September, so most of us are used to the fact that Dallin Holker decided to transfer. But I don’t know if many truly recognize how much it hurt the BYU offense. Many opposing defenses focused heavily on keeping Holker under wraps, which opened up opportunities for other guys. Personally I don’t think it was pure coincidence that it wasn’t long after Holker’s departure that the Cougar offense wasn’t able to score enough points in four straight disappointing losses in October. I look at the other five players who announced their transfer intentions and — other than perhaps at quarterback — I think BYU has some solid athletes in those positions to fill in. I’m not sure the Cougars have anyone who could be as dynamic as Holker at the tight end position, so that’s why I think that is the biggest loss.

As for other BYU players leaving, I wouldn’t be surprised if a couple do but I don’t think it will be very many. Most guys jumped in quickly to get their names in the portal and get opportunities. The longer players wait, the more spots will be filled on other teams.

DICKSON: I would say Conover, the backup quarterback, but it was pretty obvious the coaching staff didn’t have any confidence in him so I will say Barrington. He started six games in 2021 and was named a freshman All-American. He was hurt much of this year but I expected him to be a starter next season. BYU is losing some good linemen and experience is always a good thing to have. I know a lot of people would say Fano because of his potential, but he never played a down in a Cougar uniform. Hard to miss what never was, isn’t it?

3. What area on the football team needs the biggest off-season upgrade heading into the Big 12?

DICKSON: I know a lot of fans would say defensive line and I couldn’t argue with that choice. There are thousands of players in the transfer portal and there has to be some guys that could help upgrade the Cougars on the D-line. They need some run stuffers in the middle and some edge rushers, who will be at a premium in the portal. I would also say BYU needs to look ahead and find some quarterbacks. We still don’t know if Jaren Hall is coming back and with Conover headed to Arizona State, the Cougars need to look very hard and experienced quarterbacks in the portal.

LLOYD: I think Darnell did a good job of zeroing in on a couple of specific units, so I’m going to go the opposite direction and point to a high-level aspect that needs to be better: Consistency. There were moments in just about every game where it looked like BYU was a very good team. Then all too frequently things would fall apart for a while as the offense couldn’t score points and the defense struggled to make stops. Against good opponents, that almost always results in losses. There are good teams in the Big 12 and most will make the Cougars pay for the lapses, so BYU has to do better at minimizing those miscues and do much better at playing well for longer stretches. That comes with confidence, trust in each, knowledge and putting in the work.

4. Should BYU men’s basketball fans hit the panic button after a convincing loss at home to Utah Valley on Wednesday?

LLOYD: Frankly the proverbial panic button probably should’ve been pushed after the loss to South Dakota last Saturday. No, UVU isn’t truly a great team yet but it is a veteran squad with plenty of playmakers. It wasn’t surprising to see the young, struggling Cougars lose to the Wolverines, despite what illusions of comparative program status some BYU fans might still harbor. Mark Pope and the Cougar coaching staff don’t currently have any choice but to soldier onward and attempt to improve. And there is certainly plenty to work on.

DICKSON: Things look pretty grim right now. Mark Pope seems pretty sure the Cougars will get better. I know they can’t get much worse. They don’t do anything well right now, other than cutting back on turnovers. They can’t shoot the ball accurately from anywhere and can’t defend the perimeter or the paint. The last time I felt this down on the men’s basketball team was the last game of Dave Rose’s career in the WCC Tournament, where BYU fell behind San Diego by 44 points midway through the second half and lost 80-57. This is a young team and Pope’s biggest challenge is keeping their confidence and hearts out of the dumps. You have to give Utah Valley credit for playing well but the Cougars were dreadful after taking an 11-point lead, getting outscored 61-35 the rest of the way.

5. What aspect of the men’s basketball team needs the most work before the start of West Coast Conference play on December 29?

DICKSON: I think this team has some talent and ability. We’ve seen flashes of it at San Diego State and in the Battle 4 Atlantis. But right now they are not mentally tough. I would say the player that is most mentally tough is Spencer Johnson, but he’s sitting on the bench with an injury and we don’t know when he’ll be back. Gideon George has been in foul trouble the past two games and that hasn’t helped because the rest of the roster is still finding their feet.So I think more than just shooting or defense, this team has to get their minds right and learn how to respond to adversity. I really thought the Cougars could break into the top three or four in the WCC but right now they look like a ninth or tenth-place team.

LLOYD: The most glaring issues for BYU right now in my opinion are the lack of mental toughness that Darnell pointed out and the plentitude of poor decisions. I’ll focus on the second aspect for my response. Take for example the first half against UVU on Wednesday. The Cougars came out and got a really good start from sophomore Fousseyni Traore who was aggressive and successful inside. So what did BYU do from there? The other players almost never had the patience to get the ball to Traore. Most of the rest of his 18 points came when he went and got offensive rebounds for putbacks. Traore was 8-of-10 shooting (80%) while the rest of the team was 12-of-46 (26%). It doesn’t take a genius to think that maybe Traore should’ve gotten more shots instead of all of the contested 3-pointers the Cougars chose to launch. If BYU could cut their bad decisions in half or even by 25% and play smarter basketball, I think you would see a vastly improved Cougar team on the floor.

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