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BYU safeties Raider Damuni, left, and Tanner Wall talk before the first fall camp football practice in Provo on Wednesday, July 30, 2025.

Jaren Wilkey, BYU Photo

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BYU offensive linemen work the blocking sled during the first day of fall camp in Provo on Wednesday, July 30, 2025.

Jaren Wilkey, BYU Photo

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Daily Herald sports reporters Darnell Dickson and Brandon C. Gurney use their sports expertise to riff on the hot BYU sports topics of the moment.

1. Yeah, it was only 20 minutes, but is there anything significant you learned watching BYU football’s first fall camp practice?

DICKSON: First, that all of the media in attendance were very glad to be watching live football again, even if it was just a taste. We’re kind of fools that way, I guess. I also felt like despite losing a couple of starters, the offensive line looks big and imposing for 2025. It was good to see Michigan transfer tackle Andrew Gentry out there after missing spring with an injury. He’s all of 6-foot-8 and 315 pounds, and BYU head coach Kalani Sitake raved about him in post-practice comments. If Isaiah Jatta continues his progress at left tackle, he and Gentry will make two very good bookends on the offensive line.

GURNEY: Darnell nailed it, and in doing as much stole my chief observation regarding the significance of Andrew Gentry’s presence. The fact that he was out there on Day 1 taking a full set of reps at right tackle with the first-team offense is a very good omen for the offense. My non-Darnell observation here is that almost everything was late on the offensive side of the football. Sure, that’s to be expected somewhat at the start of most practice sessions, but also underscores how behind the offense is currently without Jake Retzlaff at the helm. Can any of the three quarterbacks catch up in time for the start of the season with regards to delivering the ball on time with the right reads? Sure, but it’s far from a given.

2. We only saw maybe a dozen reps with the quarterbacks, but did you come to any conclusions about the battle?

GURNEY: Nothing really surprised me about either McCae Hillstead or Treyson Bourguet, but I did come away very impressed with Bear Bachmeier. I’ve observed many practice sessions in my time covering BYU football and often is the occasion when true freshmen quarterbacks are absolutely overwhelmed when taking initial reps. That was not the case with Bear, at all. He was far from perfect, and was late on several throws, but he showed to be ahead of the curve. A lot of Bear’s progress can be attributed to his completing a full practice session with Stanford, but still, he looked relatively very good, all factors considered.

DICKSON: We got a chance to talk to all three candidates after practice and I was struck with how different their body types are. Treyson Bourguet looks, talks and moves like a typical college quarterback at 6-2, 205. McCae Hillstead is small (5-10) but compact at 195 pounds. I know from watching him at Skyridge High School that he can really move in the open field. Bear Bachmeier (6-2, 220) looks like a linebacker who may have wandered into the quarterback room by mistake. If you watched any of his high school game video, he’s physical and leaves defenders lying crumpled on the ground. We’re told all three guys can “spin it,” slang for being able to make all the throws. But I think offensive coordinator Aaron Roderick is intrigued by what each of the three quarterbacks bring to the table.

3. Which position coach has the biggest job to improve his group during fall camp?

DICKSON: Jernaro Gilford has earned a reputation as not only a great recruiter but a top-notch cornerback coach. His challenge this season is only replacing his two starters from last season (Jakob Robinson and Marque Collins). The two guys with the most experience are senior Mory Bamba and junior Evan Johnson, with sophomores Therrian Alexander, Jonathan Kabeya and Marcus McKenzie showing potential. Mix in San Diego State transfer Tayvion Beasley and Gilford has some tough decisions to make for two of the most difficult positions to play in college football.

GURNEY: Kelly Poppinga has his work cut out given the mass of inexperience he has to develop in forming quality edge play this season. The good news is that a lot of that inexperience comes with highly-regarded talent, most notably Tausili Akana, who transferred from Texas and Hunter Clegg, who transferred from Utah. The lone player returning with ample experience is Logan Lutui, who will be asked to take on a lot this season with both his play and leadership. Overall the volatility of this group looks to be relatively high with regards to overall production in forming quality edge play.

4. It’s pretty much a given that senior Chase Roberts is the Alpha in the receiver room. Among the rest of the group, who do you think could have a breakout year?

GURNEY: I’m very high on Cody Hagen. I simply covered too many games of his in high school not to regard him as a potential star for the Cougar receiving corps. The former Corner Canyon standout was beset with injury last season, but if he can prove healthy, then the sky is the limit. As for the small window of observation we were granted during the first day, it was JoJo Phillips who stood out. The 6-foot-5 sophomore has a load of potential and if he continues to develop then he could rise to the No. 2 option on the passing tree when considering his extraordinary abilities.

DICKSON: I think the two most likely candidates are sophomores Cody Hagen and Jojo Phillips, but you can’t overlook junior Parker Kingston and redshirt freshmen Tei Nacua and Pokai Haunga. Then there’s Snow College transfer Reggie Frischknecht (who at 6-4 reminds me of former Cougar Mitch Mathews or maybe Nick Kurtz) and Stanford transfer Tiger Bachmeier. There’s a good variety of receiver types in that group. Whoever wins the starting quarterback job may develop a good connection with any one of those guys and that could influence who is No. 2 as well.

5. OK, a BYU men’s basketball question: Is it too much pressure to expect this team to reach the school’s first Final Four? Do you believe that could happen?

DICKSON: Man, the hype has been on full blast for most of the offseason and we’re still nearly four months from the start of the season. There’s no question Kevin Young has gathered what is probably the best talent Provo has ever seen. The nonconference schedule will have some really good tests and the Big 12 will be tough. I think we still need to find out if there’s a perimeter defensive stopper amongst the new guys and the Cougars will miss Fousseyni Traore’s low post presence. But I believe enough in the talent and in Young’s coaching ability to if there ever was a year BYU could make it to the Final Four, this would be the year.

GURNEY: It’s sort of weird to say, but I still maintain that AJ Dybantsa is being underrated with regards to the level of impact he’ll provide this season. He’s absolutely the top prospect entering college basketball this season and I think he’s going to validate that status with some high level play that has rarely been seen in the Marriott Center. I also believe the impact of Richie Saunders opting to stick around for another season is also a very big thing. So I guess what I’m saying is that I’m all-in on this team. The potential is through the roof and Kevin Young seems to have made a habit of exceeding expectations since arriving in Provo.