Flames rising: Riding 'funk' of 2-game skid, BYU travels to motivated Liberty with changes in mind

PROVO — On paper, the trajectory of Liberty's football program and BYU appear to be headed in opposite directions.

The Flames, who have won three-straight bowl games, are one of 16 teams nationally that are already bowl eligible, while the Cougars suffered their second-straight loss in one of the worst defensive performances of a 52-35 home loss to Arkansas.

Under the surface, though, those trajectories may require a bit more context.

Liberty's 6-1 record is filled with wins over the likes of UAB, Old Dominion and UMass and a 1-point road loss to Wake Forest. BYU's schedule, meanwhile, includes losses to Oregon, Notre Dame and the Hogs — a slight change in competition, or so Liberty coach Hugh Freeze would choose to believe.

"They're a Power Five team that probably plays a harder schedule than a lot of Power Five conference teams because of where they are currently," said Freeze, the former head coach of Ole Miss who will lead Liberty into Conference USA next year. "It is a tall, tall challenge. They're physically much larger than we are; they've got some full-grown men, and obviously, they know what they're doing."

Don't think that leaves the Cougars underestimating their hosts Saturday in Lynchburg, Virginia (1:30 p.m. MDT, ESPNU). Quite the contrary, head coach Kalani Sitake is quick to point out.

"They've had some injuries, even at the quarterback position, and for them to be 6-1 right now is great," Sitake said. "Their only loss is to a ranked team, and I think it's because they went for 2 at the end. It's a really well-coached team, and a tough matchup this week. I'm looking forward to our team correcting some things from last week.

"We're kind of in a funk right now," Sitake added. "We're going through some adversity right now … but we'll get through this."

The matchup between two retiring FBS independents will also feature several strength-on-strength matchups, particularly with Jaren Hall and the Cougars' offense against Liberty's defense.

The Flames have one of the most active defenses in the country, including the No. 1 team nationally in turnovers gained (18) and No. 3 in interceptions (11). Liberty allows just 22.6 points per game thanks in large part to a stingy third-down defense, with opponents converting on just 30.5% of attempts — a top-20 third-down defense nationally.

"They're great on third downs," BYU offensive coordinator Aaron Roderick said. "They're stopping people on first and second down, getting them to third and long, and getting off the field. They're a very good defense, and they present a big chance."

Defense is an area that has been in turmoil for back-to-back weeks at BYU, notably after the second-worst defensive performance last week in a loss to Arkansas. The Cougars are giving up an average of 404.4 yards and 30.3 points per game, which has led to some admitted changes on defense.

Defensive coordinator Ilaisa Tuiaki wouldn't say what changes have been made, other than to confirm that head coach Kalani Sitake has been more involved with the defense in recent days. He also said that some backup offensive linemen have begun rotating on the defensive line, largely to provide competition in practice and spark other changes among the players.

"It's really difficult to change things midseason," Tuiaki said. "It may be something that fans are looking for, but it's hard on the players.

"If the roles are changed for us, we've got to be better. We've got to have all hands on deck. Kalani's a lot more involved, which is great, and we're just trying to win more games."

That's to be expected from the former defensive coordinator at Utah and Oregon State before Sitake took his first head coach job at his alma mater prior to the 2016 season.

"The way that we played, the way that we lost," Tuiaki added, "demands more attention from the head coach."

Liberty is expected to bring back former Utah quarterback Charlie Brewer, who suffered a broken hand in the Flames' 29-27 season-opening win over Southern Miss. The injury required surgery, when Brewer had two pins placed in below the thumb to repair the damage.

He practiced sparingly last week, but did not dress or play in the 21-20 win over Gardner-Webb on Saturday. That brought Brewer back to this week, where he's been spotted in practice by local reporters in Lynchburg, Virginia.

If Brewer is unable to play, the Flames will likely turn to backup quarterback Johnathan Bennett, who is completing 50% of his passes for 692 yards with six touchdowns and six interceptions in six games of relief.

But Liberty coach Freeze admitted Thursday that Brewer "wants to play badly," and has been hopeful to play against a BYU team that beat him 26-17 last September before he transferred from Utah.

"He's not ready today, in my opinion, but he wants to play badly," Freeze said, according to the Sea of Red blog covering Liberty. "It wouldn't shock me for us to try him if things aren't going well. I've just got to see how he improves.

"He doesn't have enough flexibility in his hand to make me feel confident he can make every throw he needs to make for us to win this game, but I'm hopeful that it gets better before Saturday."

The Cougars are dealing with their own injuries, as well. Linebacker Payton Wilgar is unlikely to play Saturday after sustaining an injury against Arkansas — Sitake didn't rule him out for the season with an undisclosed injury, but said a return in the next week is improbable — and reserve running back Jackson McChesney will miss the rest of the season with an injury.

Good news, though: Lopini Katoa and Miles Davis will return after dropping the Cougars to only two reserve running backs, Hinckley Ropati and Mason Fakahua, behind starter Chris Brooks against the Hogs.

"They're both playing," Roderick said definitively of Katoa and Davis.

Regardless of who plays, Freeze believes that BYU's road trip will be the "biggest home game in program history" for Liberty.

The Cougars, then, need to match that energy.

"It should be a great environment," Roderick said. "I've heard it's sold out. (BYU offensive line coach Darrell) Funk has played there before, and he said it's a great environment, a great college football stadium. They've got a good team, and it's going to be electric."

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