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BYU linebacker Isaiah Glasker reacts during a Big 12 football game against Kansas at LaVell Edwards Stadium on Saturday, Nov. 17, 2024.

Courtesy BYU Photo

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Here’s what’s going on inside Darnell’s head.

The undefeated season is no more.

There are many BYU football fans who woke up Sunday morning and realized the world didn’t end with one loss.

True, but those who believe the Cougars will recover and beat Arizona State on the road next Saturday probably number a lot fewer.

On Saturday, the BYU defense held Kansas to season lows in a half-dozen categories and was particularly good in the second half. The Jayhawks only score came after the luckiest of bounces on a pooch kick.

Offensively, well, that’s another story. A horror story. Chase Roberts said there were struggles in practice this week by the offense and that obviously carried over to the game against an average Kansas defense. There didn’t seem to be any urgency or confidence in the red zone. Getting the ball into the hands of the Cougars playmakers was a puzzling mystery.

Those who said BYU was lucky in earlier wins saw that luck turn against the Cougars on Saturday. Even with some bad breaks, BYU had plenty of opportunities to win the game and couldn’t make the play.

Now it’s time for Perfectly Rational Overreactions (PROs).

PRO No. 1: All of BYU’s issues against Kansas were self-inflicted.

Sure, a lot of them seem to be all about the Cougars lack of execution. You have to give credit to Kansas, though, for simply out-scheming and out-executing BYU at critical times in the game. Too many times we only think about what the Cougars are doing but need to remember that there is an entire coaching staff preparing the other guys. On Saturday, the Jayhawks better executed their game plan, especially on defense, to counter whatever BYU was trying to do in the red zone. On the final play, Jake Retzlaff didn’t have time to get the ball past the sticks because Kansas’ four-man rush beat BYU’s five-man protection and he had to throw it or be sacked.

It’s true you can’t control what the other guy does, so the Cougars need to be better in executing their game plan.

PRO No. 2: The fade play should be thrown out of the playbook.

The past two weeks, Retlzaff’s fade throws have been dreadful, both times resulting in interceptions. When done correctly, the fade is difficult to defend and at worst should result in an incompletion. Instead, Retlzaff threw absurdly short and to the inside right where the defender was playing. I really didn’t like the matchup, either: BYU’s back-up tight end against one of the Big 12’s top corners in Melo Dotson. I think Kansas coaches love that matchup in any situation.

PRO No. 3: The offense is broken and can’t be fixed.

The numbers are pretty dismal: Two touchdowns on the past 22 offensive possessions. Against Utah, the Cougar offense scored a TD once in 11 possessions, which was explained away because Utah’s defense is pretty good. Yet the Utes gave up 49 points in a loss to Colorado (less seven points from a punt return for a TD) on Saturday. Kansas had surrendered 29 points or more in five games this season and BYU managed just 13.

So, yeah, that’s not very good. I see a lot of calls for the head of offensive coordinator Aaron Roderick. Right now, the problems are both play-calling AND execution. It has to be both. However, Roderick seems to have lost that delicate balance between what the right offensive play call might be and what the offense is capable of at any given moment. Especially in the red zone. The Cougars were on the Kansas 5-yard line at the end of the first half, the KU 17-yard line on the opening possession of the third quarter and at the Jayhawks 15-yard line in the game’s final moments.

All of those trips to the red zone resulted in three points.

Can it be fixed? Sure. Every week is a new opportunity. But the clock is ticking.

Finally, PRO No. 4: BYU football is a fraud and the season is lost.

No more fraudulent than any other team that has been ranked in the Top 10 that has lost a game, and there are plenty: Notre Dame, Alabama, Miami, etc. It just seems as if BYU (and by extension, the Big 12) gets dinged a little bit more for losing because of long-time biases in favor of traditional powerhouses. National media that doubted the Cougars over the past few weeks now has plenty of ammunition to say BYU never deserved the national accolades and rankings after losing to a 3-6 Kansas team.

In past years, one loss removed the Cougars from the national discussion. Not so anymore. However, the margin for error is very, very slim. An 11-1 BYU team that wins the Big 12 Championship would likely be in the College Football Playoffs but probably not a 10-2 team that lost the Big 12 title game. So the Cougars need to beat Arizona State on the road, Houston at home and whoever it would play in the Big 12 Championship Game. Not impossible, but the loss to Kansas is troublesome because it reveals some serious problems on the offensive side of the ball.

I also have seen references from fans about the Kansas loss acting as a catalyst to get the player to focus more and play better against Arizona State on Saturday. To be honest, I have my doubts. Ten games into the season, the Cougars are who they are. Will they suddenly figure things out and play better? Have other teams in the Big 12 that struggled early passed BYU by?

Who Carried the Boats and the Logs?

The defense gave up a touchdown drive on the Jayhawks’ opening possession and still has a habit of surrendering third-and-long plays. However, Kansas was pretty much shut down the whole second half and this was an offense that hung 45 points on Iowa State last week.

I thought Saturday’s game was going to be an offensive slugfest but both teams were committed to running the ball, which shortened the game and limited possessions. Kansas made the most of theirs and BYU did not.

No, slower

Here’s a possible solution to the substitution issue in college football.

You know, where the defense is allowed to make a substitution if the offense does, then has their 300-pound defensive linemen jog slowly on and off the field to waste time? If the referee is required to stand over the football to let the defense sub, the game and play clock should be stopped until they are in place. Nobody gains an advantage and we get more football out of that 20 or so seconds that gets saved every play.

No, do it this way

Also, BYU defensive end Tyler Batty needs to take some acting lessons from pro soccer players. His flops are not very convincing.

Respect

After Santa Clara’s 1-0 victory at BYU in the NCAA women’s soccer first round match on Friday, Broncos coach Jerry Smith was effusive in his praise for Jennifer Rockwood and the Cougars program in the post-game news conference.

He said his team was really hoping not to see BYU in its bracket when the NCAA announced matchups because of how good the Cougars and that he has modeled his defense on what Rockwood does. He said BYU plays really hard and is a great example to follow.

I never know what to make of it when an opposing coach praises an opponent, especially after pulling off a win. Is it sincere or just coach-speak?

I do know that Smith and Rockwood have been run their respective programs for 30-plus years. They know each other and have plenty of mutual respect.

I also know that while Smith was praising BYU, players Tori Powell and Marlee Nicolos, who were sitting on either side of him at the news conference, were nodding their heads in unison to everything their coach was saying.

That’s why I think he was sincere in his praise.

Evaluate it

It was good to see BYU men’s basketball made 13 of 14 from the foul line in the second half against Idaho after making just 6 of 16 in the first. What remains, however, is a very leaky perimeter defensive effort. Teams are getting wide-open looks from the 3-point line and seem to be able to take the Cougars one-on-one to the basket without a lot of resistance. It would seem with a new coach and new players, getting the defense on the same page is a little more difficult than doing it on offense.

That’s all for now, but for this: After consecutive BYU football games starting at 8:15 p.m. and getting home super late, I would have to say that my bed is like a wireless charger for a human. No matter how much sleep I get, I feel better in the morning.

Have a great week and be kind to each other, even when the other person is begging for an insult. Or a Ute fan.