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PROVO — For all the changes available to the BYU football program as the Cougars opened spring practices this week, one stood out more than arguably any other.
No, this isn't a reference to the increased size of the BYU offensive line, where an enhanced focus on the weight room and more strength and conditioning staff has led to 11 players in the position group that tip the scales at 300 pounds or more, including the returning of Keanu Saleapaga.
The 6-foot-6, 310-pound native of Lakewood, California, has returned to Provo after spending last season back home — much to the surprise of many.
But the biggest difference isn't who was available after Monday's practice, like starting quarterback Jaren Hall, defensive star Tyler Batty, and a host of Cougars, but who wasn't there.
Coming off a 10-3 season and the first back-to-back Associated Press Top 25 rankings since 2006 and 2007, BYU has a gaping hole in the backfield in trying to replace Tyler Allgeier. The 5-foot-11, 220-pound tailback ran for over 1,000 yards in each of the past two seasons, including a career-high 1,606 yards and 23 touchdowns in 2021.
That Allgeier wasn't there isn't a surprise; he declared for the NFL draft following BYU's 31-28 loss to UAB in the Independence Bowl, when Allgeier averaged 7.1 yards per carry for 192 yards and three touchdowns — as he should. Nobody on his former team blames him for making the best life decision and cashing in on his NFL draft stock.
But the hole was noticeable.
"I don't know if there's a place to replace a guy like that," Hall admitted after the first day of practice, "but next man up. All our running backs looked good today. Who will it be (to start the season opener at South Florida)? You never know because that's how good of a running back room we have.
"Every day, day-by-day through spring ball, is how you replace him, continuing to get better and find who the next man up is."
Just two years ago, that same Allgeier was re-introducing himself to the running back room after spending time at linebacker. If there were expectations for the Fontana, California, native prior to the 2020 season, he certainly blew them out of the water with 1,130 rushing yards and 13 scores in an 11-1 campaign otherwise dominated by the likes of Zach Wilson, Dax Milne and Khyiris Tonga.
So who's expected to come out of the running back room this year? The odds-on favorite may be Christopher Brooks, the graduate transfer from Cal who averaged 5.2 yards per carry for 607 yards and four touchdowns a year ago with the Golden Bears. In four years at Cal, Brooks totaled 1,734 yards and 14 touchdowns on the ground.
The 6-foot-1, 235-pound Brooks took snaps with what seemed like the top-flight players during limited media viewing available to end Monday's practice — at least, it was the lineup that also included Hall, center Connor Pay (who is expected to replace departed junior James Empey) and wide receiver Puka Nacua.
And for a hefty 235 pounds packed inside his 6-foot-1 frame, the chiseled Oceanside, California, native looked almost surprisingly "light on his feet today," Hall quipped. The same with returning incumbent Lopini Katoa, the returning senior who initially considered graduating but opted to return after running for 260 yards and two touchdowns a year ago..
"Brooks and Lopini looked really good today," BYU coach Kalani Sitake said, unintentionally enumerating a depth chart at tailback.
"I am really excited about our depth," he later added. "The game-ready talent that I am seeing from the offensive line is looking great. Our defensive line is young but strong and they will grow up a lot in the next few months before fall camp."
In the plug-and-play offense entering the second season under coordinator Aaron Roderick, Brooks has hit the ground running, pushing Katoa, rising running back Jackson McChesney, and Sione Finau, who returned to the running back room after briefly flirting with a move to defensive back.
That's a good speed for a player who still remembers the date BYU first contacted him about transferring — Dec. 28 — and who initially committed to Purdue before enrolling at BYU just over a week later when classes began Jan. 5.
"I think it just encompassed me as a person, not only as an athlete but off the field as well," Brooks told BYUtv of his decision to join his new teammates at BYU. "It was just the right fit at the right time. That made the decision quick for me, and separated itself from everybody else."
But Brooks also isn't Allgeier; he hesitates to compare himself to even an NFL running back, saying he has his own style and mostly does his own thing, with consistency being his mantra.
And CB isn't looking to be TA.
"I'm just me. I'm gonna be me," Brooks said. "I'm a team guy, and I just love to win. I'm going to be me, and that's all I'm going to do."
Whether BYU plays a workhorse running back like it did with Allgeier or takes a committee approach around a group that also features Stanford transfer Houston Heimuli and Masen Wake at fullback is yet to be seen, Sitake said.
But either way, the offense is expected to be better, anchored by a deep line, the second year of Hall, and the return of wide receivers like Puka Nacua and Gunner Romney — in addition to newcomers like Brooks.
"Better by leaps and bounds," Hall said of the offense. "We return most of our guys, as opposed to a lot of skill position guys last year not having a ton of experience. The quarterback position was the same deal. When we return a big majority of our starters and a lot of our playmakers, it showed in practice where we were at."
