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PROVO — The BYU football team won't be at full strength when they host rival Utah at 8:15 p.m. MT Saturday, with suspensions and possible injuries to keep an eye on.
Head coach Kalani Sitake confirmed during Monday's press conference in the BYU student-athlete building that safety Micah Hannemann will miss the first half of the annual rivalry game after a being ejected for targeting in the second half of the Cougars' 27-0 loss to No. 13 LSU.
Because the ejection followed a review from the booth, the Cougars are unable to appeal the ruling, per NCAA rules. Sitake didn't defend the hit much, either, while players accepted the consequence — even while bemoaning the seeming inability of defensive players to adequately adjust according to targeting rules.
"I guess I don’t understand all the rules, because I thought it looked like a normal tackle to me," BYU linebacker Matt Hadley said of Hannemann's hit on LSU running back Derrius Guice. "(The coaches) put a big emphasis on it, but it’s difficult in those types of situations.”
Regardless of the clarity (or lack thereof) of the targeting rule, Hannemann's loss is substantial. The three-year starter will miss his second half of the 2017 season, after also sitting out part of the Cougars' season opener against Portland State due to targeting in last season's Poinsettia Bowl.
“It obviously hurts. He’s one of the best DBs, a three-year starter, and one of our guys," Hadley said. "But we’ve talked a long time about the depth we have at safety, and we feel confident about the guys we have come in to get the job done. It’s going to be awesome for us (when he comes in at halftime).”
Beyond Hannemann, BYU's running back corps also took several shots during the loss to the Tigers in New Orleans. Kavika Fonua limped off the field with an apparent knee injury, and KJ Hall came off following a special teams collision clutching his arm.
Offensive coordinator Ty Detmer said during Monday's coordinator radio show that Hall's injury was to the elbow, and Sitake hinted that the coaches are cautiously optimistic about a return this weekend.
“I think we’ll wait and see on KJ," Sitake said. "I think Kavika will be fine. I’m not a doctor, but they’re not out.”
Regardless of missing players, the Cougars have plenty of other reasons to worry after the loss in the Bayou, which came with just 97 yards of total offense. BYU did not cross midfield against the 13th-ranked Tigers, and ran just 38 plays against the stout SEC defense.
“Having that experience last week is not something we like," Sitake said. "But hopefully we can learn from it and try to improve and get better for this weekend. It’s not so much a focus on the rivalry; we know the proximity and everything involved with this game. But there are other things to focus on right now.”
The offensive no-show comes in the second-straight week, following a less-than-inspiring performance in a 20-6 home win over FCS Portland State in the season opener. The Utes, meanwhile, broke in a new offensive coordinator and quarterback with a 37-16 home win over FCS North Dakota last Thursday.
“There’s something missing, obviously," wide receiver Jonah Trinnamnn said. "That’s what we’re trying to figure out. Every day we are working hard to try to get better.”
Don't expect Detmer to be throwing chairs at his quarterbacks, running backs and receivers, though; that's not his style — and it wouldn't do him much good if it were, Trinnaman said.
“He’s not about yelling; that won’t do much for us," the senior receiver from American Fork said. "He just goes back, looks at what we did wrong, and we try to fix it. He’s not a yeller or a screamer.
“I don’t think yelling and screaming does much. Most people shut that off. He just talks to us one-on-one, we understand it better, and fix things.”
Whatever the fix is, the Cougars need to do it quickly. After the Utes, ranked 25th nationally in the USA Today Coaches' Poll, comes a home date with 10th-ranked Wisconsin. The Badgers scored 59-unanswered points in a 59-10 win over Utah State on Saturday.
“This week means more than any week, coming off the game we had," BYU linebacker Fred Warner said. "I feel like we have more fire than any other. We want to prove ourselves.”
