Questions abound as BYU prepares for Iowa State with injuries to top players

PROVO — Coming off a gritty win on the road in bad weather conditions, BYU will be back at home to host the Iowa State Cyclones Friday night.

But when the Cougars take the field against Iowa State, they'll likely be without star running back LJ Martin and linebacker Isaiah Glasker. BYU head coach Kalani Sitake announced Monday that both players were "doubtful" to play after sustaining injuries early against TCU on Saturday.

"I'm still evaluating yesterday and today, and I'll probably get more information," Sitake said. "Right now, it looks doubtful for both of them."

Both players exited in the first half of Saturday's win over TCU, with Martin hurting his right ankle and Glasker also suffering a lower-body injury.

Martin has been the Cougars' top offensive player the last couple of seasons and was named the Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year last season. Through four games this season, Martin has run for 344 yards and three touchdowns.

Slot cornerback Cannon DeVries also left early in Saturday's victory but Sitake said his status is "probable."

"We'll see how it looks," he said. "He couldn't go back into the game, but we would anticipate seeing him this weekend."

As for their opponent, BYU will have its hands full despite being at home and with kickoff set for a time that has benefited them in the Sitake era. The Cyclones are coming off a 45-42 win over West Virginia, a week after making things interesting against Utah going into the fourth quarter.

"Jimmy Rogers is a really good coach," Sitake said. "I've been really impressed with him as a coach, with his career as a coach and as a head coach. Seeing the things that he's been able to implement in a short amount of time there in Ames."

The Cougars are going to have their hands full trying to stop Iowa State running back Aiden Flora, who was named Big 12 Offensive Player of the Week for his do-it-all performance against the Mountaineers.

Flora totaled 212 rushing yards and three touchdowns on 22 carries and also had two catches for 48 yards and two touchdowns. Flora has rushed for 594 yards and six touchdowns this season and can also be a threat out of the backfield.

"Jimmy's done a great job putting him in a position where they can utilize his speed," Sitake said. "He's really fast, and he's got great vision, and we'll have to be ready for that. It's going to take all 11 guys on defense doing their job to try to keep Iowa State from having a lot of success on the offensive side."

With BYU down its star running back and second string in Sione Moa, they will have to rely on a committee of guys alongside Bear Bachmeier to keep the run game effective.

"It's not ideal going into the season or the games with possibly having your first and second running back be out, but we feel like we've narrowed the gap quite a bit from one to two to three, and we have a committee of guys that can do it," Sitake said.

Bachmeier led the team in carries with 15 against the Horned Frogs after Martin went down, Preston Rex had eight carries for 21 yards, while Journee Tonga had seven for 28 yards. Legend Glasker also had some carries but Devaughn Eka did not touch the ball.

"I think Preston Rex has done an amazing job, and Journee Tonga's got in there and done some really good things too," Sitake said. "We're going to have to see Devaughn Eka get in there and do some things, but that room is deep."

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