Estimated read time: 4-5 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
PROVO — With hopes of an undefeated season dashed and starting quarterback Taysom Hill lost for the year, BYU (4-1) travels to Orlando for a Thursday night matchup with UCF (2-2).
Players acknowledged the devastating loss of their signal caller after the 35-20 loss to Utah State but were upbeat when discussing the potential the team has to earn wins without one of the nation’s most acclaimed dual-threat quarterbacks.
In steps Christian Stewart, who was emphatic about the team’s chances with him at the helm following his 10-for-29, 172-yard, three-interception performance in his first real action as a Cougar.
“If there’s a guy that’s ready to step up to the challenge it’s me,” he said. “I’m a leader. I’m a confident guy in my abilities and I know my teammates have that same confidence in me.”
Stewart noted that he wasn’t “in the flow of the game from the get-go” and it affected his ability to hit his receivers on time. Offensive coordinator Robert Anae will need to help Stewart find his groove as he becomes more accustomed to leading an FBS team under center. Short passes and simple reads can often simplify the thought process of an inexperienced passer. Stewart mentioned that “being able to throw with Jordan (Leslie) and Mitch (Matthews) on a consistent basis” would help him find his form. A lot of it will also depend on the time the offensive line affords him and how the rushing attack sets up the pass.
While BYU was experiencing its largest deficit, down 28-14 at halftime, it almost completely abandoned the run against the Aggies despite Stewart’s lack of snaps. Of their 30 first-half plays, the Cougars threw on 11 and ran on 19. In the second half, desperation and a growing margin forced them to pass on 29 of their 44 plays — running on 15.
Sometimes a play-caller has to decide whether the possibility of stopping the clock on incompletions outweighs the likelihood that handing the ball off provides a better rate of reaching and moving the chains. Jamaal Williams had just five carries in the second half and gained 41 yards. His 20-yard carry set up BYU at the Utah State 10 early in the fourth quarter, but then two incompletions and a six-yard completion on third down brought on kicker Trevor Samson for the final three points of the night.
Ten sacks in five games land the Cougars near the nation’s middle of the pack, but with a pass defense that just surrendered 321 yards through the air to a backup quarterback, defensive coordinator Nick Howell needs to find a way to apply a greater amount of pressure on opposing passers. He might have to do it without two starters who suffered ankle injuries in safety Dallin Leavitt and linebacker Alani Fua.
BYU will enter Thursday night third worst in total penalties (53) and penalty yards (482). That means, on average, the Cougars are giving their foes nearly 100 yards every game. Timely mistakes have cost BYU, and it’s starting to look like a significant factor every week — especially when it's turning fourth downs into first downs and reversing turnovers, as was the case versus the Aggies.
Utah State outscored BYU 28-6 over the final 43:06 of last Friday’s contest and turned the Cougars over four times. Stewart could be the most confident backup in the world and it wouldn’t change the fact that an attempt to squeeze a pass into a tight window results in a higher probability of an interception. Stewart needs time and is expected to commit some errors. Golden Knights starter Justin Holman is making just his fourth start and has shown moments of youth in his decision making.
The BYU defense would go a long way in helping the offense get out of the funk that produced an Aggie stranglehold on the outcome by creating more possessions and quality field position for its counterpart.
