BYU football: Will home turf or turnovers determine outcome vs. Ducks?
Smoke hangs in the air over Autzen Stadium during game between Eastern Washington and Oregon on Saturday, Sept. 10, 2022, in Eugene. Saturday BYU will pay Autzen a visit.Andy Nelson, Associated Press This article was first published in theCougar Insiders newsletter. Sign up to receive the newsletter in your inbox each Tuesday night.BYU climbed from No. 21 to No. 12 in the Associated Press Top 25 rankings after a thrilling double overtime 26-20 win over No. 9 Baylor and now head coach Kalani Sitake prepares for another huge game against Oregon in Eugene this Saturday.Here are some links for some of our coverage of the win over Baylor:What we learned about BYUs prep for Big 12 (Dick Harmon)How BYU beat a top-10 team at home for the first time since 1990 (Jay Drew)Heres a moment between Hall and kicker Oldroyd after game (Aaron Shill)3 Takeaways from BYUs win over Baylor (Brandon Judd)Twitter reacts to Cougar win over Bears (Ryan McDonald)Cougar Insiders predictions Predict the BYU-Oregon game results and score in Eugene this Saturday and explain your reasoning.Jay Drew: I think BYU is the more talented team, but home-field advantage means a lot in college football as we saw last week in BYUs 26-20 win over Baylor. I saw where the game ball was given to defensive coordinator Ilaisa Tuiaki, but the LaVell Edwards Stadium crowd was also as responsible for the win as BYUs defense was. It was incredibly impressive.For that reason, Im picking Oregon to outlast the Cougars Saturday at Autzen Stadium. Oregon has a lot of players from Utah on its roster about 10 and the Ducks will be out to salvage some Pac-12 pride after what happened last year at the hands of BYU. I see another close one going back and forth, but in the end I see the Ducks pulling it out. Along with the home crowd, the difference will be Oregons speed.Prediction: Oregon 38, BYU 35.Dick Harmon: I believe BYU has a lot of momentum and confidence, and the way the defense played against Baylor in the second half, you have to believe Sitake has a real chance at a special season. Defeating Oregon in Eugene would push that train forward.I do think this road game could prove very tough, however. This is one of those 40-60% chance games that BYU should be considered the underdog on the road in Pac 12 territory.I think Oregon will be able to pass the ball more effectively on BYU than Baylor did but I think BYU may be able to run the ball better than they did against Baylor.What will be the big difference in this game is turnovers.If BYU wins the turnover battle, they can pull off the victory.Ill go with momentum and BYU gaining the turnover advantage.Prediction: BYU 34, Oregon 31.Cougar Tales In BYUs 2-0 start, there is myriad storylines emerging, including the play of freshman Chase Roberts, who caught the most passes/yards for a freshman since Cody Hoffman in 2010.Here is a more in-depth look at how captain Jaren Hall handled a dejected kicker Jake Oldroyd after he missed two game-winning field goals in regulation and overtime.In general, Baylor fans were very impressed with LaVell Edwards Stadium and BYU fans as explained in this piece by Brandon Judd.Ryan McDonald breaks down how AP voters polled BYU after the win in this analysis.Here is what national experts said about BYUs win over Baylor. The Cougars climb big time in power rankings in this story by Brandon Judd.From the archives Related Will Saturdays game at Oregon be a defining moment for Cougars in 2022? From the Twitterverse Still trying to understand how absolutely zero BYU fans ran up to me after they won & yelled in my face/talked trash. 1st time ever experiencing that on the road. Not sure how to feel about it lol. Like did the game actually happen? Was I really there? Is life all a lie? T-REX (@T_REX1991) September 13, 2022 . @jbecktwelve on Jaren Hall's touchdown pass to Chase Roberts. "That was my favorite throw of the game. For me, it was the things that we've worked on... This is the step forward and improving the things he's worked on. That would be one of the throws." PC: @BYUphoto pic.twitter.com/zducacHqdE Benjamin Criddle (@CriddleBenjamin) September 12, 2022 Ive seen college football games in dozens of stadia across the U.S., and I can say without reservation that BYUs fans and game presentation are the best Ive ever experienced. Massive home field advantage. Hats off, Cougars. Youre a class act. cfadal (@cfadal) September 11, 2022 Our future is bright #Big12From @ESPNPR: The #BAYvsBYU game on Saturday was ESPN's best late-night game since 2016 with 2.4 million viewers (via https://t.co/uOukmZfnHU) pic.twitter.com/aaw3PujW6S Big 12 Conference (@Big12Conference) September 13, 2022 Extra points BYU, Oregon State late-night antics (Yahoo Sports)BYU owed apology over volleyball hoax (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)Is BYU good enough to be King of B12? (Salt Lake Tribune)Fanalyst Comments from Deseret News readers: This is a major accomplishment and is significant in several ways.1. The overtime showed great conditioning and stamina. The TV clearly showed Baylor sucking wind and BYU ready to go faster with less recovery time needed. That bodes well for the future.2. BYU wasnt intimidated. Well, except at the beginning of the game the O-line took a couple series to get it that they were going to be able to go toe to toe with Baylor D and win the trench for a whole game. Another boding well confidence.3. Brooks isnt all that, and Katoa looks faster this year.4. The receiving corp is deeper than thought and better individually than thought. Ah, nothing like depth at key positions. Key for late in the year.5. And here is the big one. Recruiting rankings are as fake as margarine and miracle whip. The games at Texas, Texas A&M, ND, others and BYU prove that.Im cautiously optimistic about the schedule, taking no team for granted, but I think BYU may have just put their marker on a New Years Six bowl game. Lets see now if the spin of the wheel delivers. Dimitry Kudos to Tuiaki and his defense who caught Baylors offense completely off guard. They DID NOT expect the pressure that BYU imposed on their QB. He was clearly rattled in the first half. This game was a prime example of how defensive domination starts with putting pressure on the quarterback. Well done BYU defense! Stepping up in overtime after 2 missed FGs was quite the defining moment that this fan wont forget. idablueUp next Sept. 15 | 5 p.m. | Soccer | vs. Utah State | @LoganSept. 15 | 7 p.m. | Womens volleyball | vs. Utah | @Salt Lake CitySept. 17 | 1 p.m. | Rugby | vs. Air Force | @ProvoSept 17 | 1:30 p.m. | Football | vs. Oregon | @Eugene, OregonSept. 17 | 6 p.m. | Womens volleyball | vs. Utah Valley | @ProvoSept. 17 | 7 p.m. | Soccer | vs. Utah | @ProvoSept. 19 | 8 a.m. | Womens golf | Mercedes Championship | @Knoxville, Tennessee
Wednesday, September 14, 2022 at 6:17 pm