Big play defense keys turnaround season for No. 14 BYU

PROVO, Utah — Making life miserable for quarterbacks has grown much easier for BYU’s stingy defense.

The No. 14 Cougars (5-0, 2-0 Big 12) head into Saturday’s showdown with Arizona as one of two unbeaten Big 12 teams largely because of their newfound knack for disrupting offenses and putting quarterbacks under pressure drive after drive.

Through five games, the Cougars have tallied 10 sacks and 27 tackles for loss. Jack Kelly leads the way with three sacks while he and Isaiah Glasker have a team-high five TFLs apiece. Last season, BYU ranked last in the Big 12 in both sacks (11) and tackles for loss (51).

“It’s nothing new from what we ran last year,” senior defensive end Logan Lutui said. “We are just more urgent and able to execute our calls and that’s what happens when we execute. We find success getting to the QB.”

Disruption has extended well beyond sacks. BYU ranks third in the Big 12 in turnovers gained (10). Seven different players have intercepted a pass for the Cougars so far this season. Opponents are gaining just 16.0 first downs per game against BYU.

“The guys are really understanding it more,” BYU coach Kalani Sitake said. “We’re making bigger plays. Not just sacks but getting some hurries and creating some difficult throws. We’ve gone up against some really good quarterbacks that can make some accurate throws, but we’ve made it difficult for them.”

Arizona (3-2, 1-1 Big 12) has the right sort of offensive weapons to really test the Cougars’ growing ability to make disruptive defensive plays.

The Wildcats feature Tetairoa McMillan, the league’s top receiver. McMillan leads the Big 12 with 664 receiving yards and has tallied at least 100 yards in seven of his last nine games dating back to last season.

Noah Fifita is also a dangerous quarterback who has thrown for at least 200 yards in 12 of his last 14 games. Although Fifita has struggled at times this season compared to his breakout performances from a year ago, he still commands confidence from his team with his ability to make big plays in big moments.

“He’s such a competitor,” Arizona coach Brent Brennan said. “He’s such a great leader and he’s also one of those guys that always wants to take accountability for not getting the job done, which is why I think the team loves him, why we all love him and why we would do anything for him.”

Backfield reloaded

Injuries plagued BYU’s running backs through the first month of the season. Neither LJ Martin nor Hinckley Ropati have played since the Cougars beat SMU in Week 2. Sione Moa had a breakout game against Kansas State, rushing for 76 yards and a touchdown against the Wildcats. But then an injury sidelined Moa against Baylor.

All three backs are healthy and available to go on Saturday, bolstering a running attack that's seen only quarterback Jake Retzlaff tally more than 100 rushing yards on the season.

“We got back our depth chart,” Sitake said.

Red zone troubles

Arizona’s struggles to finish drives came to a head against Texas Tech. The Wildcats scored one touchdown in four trips to the red zone against the Red Raiders. It ultimately proved costly in a 28-22 loss.

“When we’re down there, we got to make people pay and we didn’t,” Brennan said.

A lack of red zone production has declawed the Wildcat offense since Arizona put up 61 points against New Mexico in the season opener. The Wildcats are averaging just 17.3 points per game against other Big 12 teams — ranking ahead of only Houston in the league.

Perfect record

BYU has won three straight games against Arizona in a series that dates to 1936. Sitake made his head coaching debut against the Wildcats in the 2016 season opener. The Cougars edged Arizona 18-16 on a 33-yard field goal from Jake Oldroyd with four seconds left.

BYU and Arizona were both founding members of the Western Athletic Conference and played against one another in the WAC from 1962 to 1977.