‘One of the best teams I’ve seen’: BYU needs a supreme effort to stay with No. 7 Texas, Sitake says
BYU football coach Kalani Sitake doesn’t just have a lot of respect for Texas coach Steve Sarkisian, the former BYU quarterback who Sitake hosted on a recruiting visit to Provo in 1995.
Sitake also has a high regard for the football program that Sarkisian has built in Austin, saying the 6-1 Longhorns are “one of the best teams I’ve seen” and so full of talent, speed and athleticism that the Cougars (5-2) will need to play their best game of the season just to stay within striking distance of the No. 7-ranked Big 12 power.
“I think everyone is just really excited (to play Texas). We want to carry our momentum from this past game over to this game. Playing over at Texas, that is an opportunity I am sure we have all dreamed (about) as kids. Everyone is really looking forward to it.” — ” BYU defensive lineman Jackson Cravens
Kickoff is at 1:30 p.m. MDT on Saturday and the first meeting between the Cougars and Longhorns since 2014 will be televised nationally by ABC.
Praise flowed back and forth from Sarkisian and Sitake on Monday as the coaches held their weekly press briefings, with Sark saying “we are playing a really good football team” and acknowledging that Sitake, his former teammate at BYU, “is doing a heck of a job” in his eighth season in Provo.
“These guys are really good coaches,” Sarkisian said, also noting that BYU offensive coordinator Aaron Roderick is a former teammate. “They’ve got really good schemes, they’ve got a veteran football team, and they play extremely hard. They’re hard-nosed, they play the game with a real (strong) mentality, a real effort-first team.”
Texas is coming off a 31-24 win over Houston that Longhorns fans believe should have been more dominant after they got off to a 21-0 lead, while BYU is coming off a 27-14 win over Texas Tech that was not pretty, but still got the Cougars to a much-needed fifth win as the schedule gets even more difficult from here on out.
“I think everyone is just really excited (to play Texas),” said BYU defensive lineman Jackson Cravens. “We want to carry our momentum from this past game over to this game. Playing over at Texas, that is an opportunity I am sure we have all dreamed (about) as kids. Everyone is really looking forward to it.”
Offensive lineman Paul Maile and receiver Kody Epps also spoke to reporters via Zoom on Monday and both stressed the need for the offense to play more consistently if the Cougars hope to avoid getting blown out by the Longhorns, who are favored by nearly three touchdowns.
“I feel like the vibe of the team is everybody is really excited,” said Maile, who also applauded the recent position switch, with he and now-center Connor Pay swapping places. “You know, playing a big time team like Texas, a blue blood, they are always good. I am excited for the opportunity. I know they have a really good defense and a really good squad.”
Maile said the Cougars, 2-2 in Big 12 play, are “going in there with a chip on our shoulder” because they haven’t put together a complete game yet.
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“If we can start early and play our brand of football we can compete with anyone,” the former University of Utah lineman said.
Later Monday, BYU released its depth chart for the matchup, but it is identical to the depth chart it released before the Texas Tech game.
Texas, of course, will likely be without starting quarterback Quinn Ewers, who sustained an injury to his throwing shoulder in the second half of the Houston game. Sarkisian said he is “week to week” but was noncommittal on who will start in Ewers’ place against BYU.
Redshirt freshman Maalik Murphy replaced Ewers against Houston and completed 1 of 2 passes for 7 yards. Another option could be true freshman Arch Manning, the nephew of former NFL quarterbacks Peyton and Eli Manning.
It will almost certainly be the third straight week that BYU faces a backup quarterback, after TCU’s Josh Hoover and Tech’s Jake Strong filled in the past two weeks, Hoover much more effectively than Strong.
“We kinda just treat every quarterback the same,” said Cravens. “At this level I feel like most QBs are pretty good, backup or not. So we will just prep the same (as usual).”
Cougars on the air
BYU (2-2, 5-2)
at No. 8 Texas (3-1, 6-1)
Saturday, 1:30 p.m. MDT
DKR-Texas Memorial Stadium
(Capacity: 100,119)
TV: ABC
Radio: 102.7 FM/1160 AM
Regarding BYU’s injury situation, Sitake said there were no season-ending injuries suffered against Tech. The only player who left the game due to injury and didn’t return was defensive lineman John Nelson, who is still being evaluated and has not been ruled out for the Texas game.
Receiver Keanu Hill and defensive back/gunner Marcus McKenzie missed the game with undisclosed injuries. Roderick said on his “Coordinators’ Corner” show that Hill, who is the nephew of former Texas great Roy Williams, should be able to play this week.
Sitake said safety Talan Alfrey, who hasn’t played since suffering an upper body injury in fall camp, has been practicing the past 10 days or so and is getting close to a return.
