BYU football notes: Cougar defense shines at UCF after struggles against OSU
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- BYU linebackers Aisea Moa (58) and Isaish Glasker make a tackle during the Big 12 game against UCF at FBC Mortgage Stadium in Orlando on Saturday, Oct. 26, 2024.
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- BYU senior defensive lineman Blake Mangelson gets a sack during the Big 12 game against UCF at FBC Mortgage Stadium in Orlando on Saturday, Oct. 26, 2024.
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- BYU senior defensive lineman Tyler Batty hypes up the Cougars before the Big 12 game against UCF at FBC Mortgage Stadium in Orlando on Saturday, Oct. 26, 2024.
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- BYU players celebrate with the Cougar fans after the Big 12 game against UCF at FBC Mortgage Stadium in Orlando on Saturday, Oct. 26, 2024.
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- BYU head coach Kalani Sitake and players celebrate with the Cougar fans after the Big 12 game against UCF at FBC Mortgage Stadium in Orlando on Saturday, Oct. 26, 2024.
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- BYU junior quarterback Jake Retzlaff dodges a tackle during the Big 12 game against UCF at FBC Mortgage Stadium in Orlando on Saturday, Oct. 26, 2024.
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- BYU junior wide receiver Chase Roberts scores a touchdown during the Big 12 game against UCF at FBC Mortgage Stadium in Orlando on Saturday, Oct. 26, 2024.
One of the oddest betting lines in college football this last weekend was the fact that undefeated No. 11-ranked BYU was put as an underdog to a 3-4 UCF team that had lost four straight games.
“We know what we are capable of and seeing that we were the underdog, we knew we needed to come out here and fight,” BYU sophomore linebacker Isaiah Glasker said. “We knew they are a good team, so we prepared how we usually prepare. And we came back on top.”
Maybe those setting the lines were looking at the rushing matchup. The Cougars had just surrendered nearly 300 yards on the ground to Oklahoma State and were facing a Knight squad that was No. 3 in the nation at running the ball.
“Last week, Ollie Gordon had a good day for sure,” Glasker said. “Coming into this week, we knew we needed to show people that we can stop the run. That’s what we did.”
Leading the way for UCF was running back RJ Harvey, who averaged more than 127 yards per game. He hit that mark against the Cougars, but BYU felt like they did a decent job overall.
“He is so dangerous,” Sitake said. “You have to be really assignment-sound to be able to contain him. He’s dangerous because his ability to stop and go is very unique. I think he’s a next-level player. You don’t see that style, so it’s hard to simulate it in practice with your scout team. When you see the speed in person, you can appreciate it. I’m glad we were able to minimize his impact even though he had his yards.”
The key was forcing Harvey to spend more time moving laterally than getting up field.
“It was us compacting the middle and making him bounce out,” Glasker said. “He had a couple of big runs, but our game plan was to have him bounce out of the box and we made plays from there.”
The Cougars have also had a tough time against quarterbacks who can run and UCF freshman Jacurri Brown showed at Iowa State he is very capable. BYU, however, held Brown to nine total yards on 6 carries.
“We knew he was a runner,” Mangelson said. “We prepped as if we were facing an option offense and I thought we shut him down well.”
Cougar head coach Kalani Sitake did say that the defensive effort and energy was good, but there was room for improvement.
“I liked it but there were some things I didn’t like about it,” Sitake said. “You have to give them a lot of credit. They have a lot of talent at a lot of positions. We knew that would be a tough task. It’s the chunk yardage that we gave up that concerns me. I think a lot of that is fixable, but the question is why are we making those mistakes?”
BYU senior defensive lineman said the key to making plays was getting the job done at the point of attack.
“The biggest thing the coaches emphasized was dominating the front,” Mangelson said. “The defensive tackles and defensive ends did a phenomenal job. That was the main thing.”
He also credited the Cougar offense for moving the ball well and limiting the amount of time the defense had to be on the field.
“Forty minutes of time of possession is insane,” Mangelson said. “The biggest thing it does is allows our defense to not get tired. It gives us time to recover and perform at our highest level.”
The outcome was another BYU win, despite what the doubters expected.
“People can do what they want,” Sitake said. “They can doubt us. It’s OK. We know what we are made of and how hard we worked in the offseason. I’m not really worried about who is favored or any of that stuff. This is the result we wanted.”
Sitake said that he doesn’t worry too much about being the underdog.
“We’ve said all along that we want to prove ourselves right more than anything, but it doesn’t hurt to prove some people wrong too,” Sitake said. “That’s a byproduct of doing it right but that is not our drive. Our drive is that we know how good we can be. And I really believe we can play better. Every week we can keep getting there. If we can put it all together, then I think we will like the result.”
Home away from home
UCF media couldn’t help but be impressed by the amount of fans BYU had in attendance for Saturday’s Big 12 game against the Knights. One fan estimated early in the game that 30% of the crowd was supporting the Cougars, with that percentage increasing dramatically as the Cougars built a big lead.
Chants of “B-Y-U, B-Y-U” could be heard on the television broadcast and a UCF photographer reportedly said that he’d never seen anything like it in 15 years covering the Knights.
Cougar players and coaches, however, smiled when asked about it but clearly see it as being something they’ve gotten accustomed to.
“We have the best fans in the nation,” BYU junior quarterback Jake Retzlaff said.
Sitake said: “”I’m really, really proud of the fans who showed up. It was amazing to see all of our fans here and that much royal blue. It was so cool. I just want to tell our fans thank you so much for being there.”
Poll movement
BYU finally got moved into the Top 10 in the Associated Press poll, slotting in at No. 9 after winning their eighth-straight game.
The Cougars, however, didn’t get as much respect in the US LBM Coaches Poll, remaining at No. 12 following the win over UCF.
Putting up points
BYU scored 37 points, its sixth consecutive game with 34 points or more for the first time since 1996.
The Cougars have scored 34 or more in every Big 12 game this year (only accomplished twice in 2023. BYU entered the game leading the Big 12 in scoring during conference play at 37.8 points per game.
Extra points
BYU lost the coin toss and UCF deferred their decision to the second half. The Cougars scored a touchdown on their first possession, then forced the Knights into a three-and-out to start the third quarter … BYU’s team captains for the game were DE Tyler Batty, S Talan Alfrey, WR Chase Roberts and RB Hinckley Ropati … The Cougar alumni flag bearers were Tom Hopkins (LB, 1980-82), Gary Webster (K/P, 1984-85) and Daniel Gerber (LB, 1992, 95) … The BYU team flags were brought out by WR Cody Hagen (American), TE Ryner Swanson (Florida), CB Therrian Alexander III (cancer awareness) and Director of Recruiting (and Florida native) Brandon Bradley (Big 12) … The announced attendance at the game was 42,144.
