BYU vs Portland State
2024 Recap
The Cougars are coming off a very successful season where they finished 11-2, capping the season with a win over Colorado in the Alamo Bowl, tied for first in the Big 12 for the regular season and ranked 13th in the final AP Poll.
Key Roster Changes
The offseason headlines were dominated by the sudden departure of senior QB Jake Retzlaff who was expected to have stellar final season after taking a big step forward for BYU during the 2024 season, though still finishing the season with rather average overall ratings. True freshman Bear Bachmeier transferred to from Stanford following spring football and was named the starter two weeks ahead of the season opener. Bear will be the first true freshman to start a season opener at BYU.
Other notable departures include C Connor Pay, LT Caleb Ettiene, WR's Darius Lassiter, Kody Epps, Keelan Marion, DL's Tyler Batty, Isaiah Bagnah, and John Nelson, as well as DB Jakob Robinson.
The team is bolstered by the additions of transfers such as TE Carsen Ryan (Utah), DL Keanu Tanuvasa (Utah), WR's Tiger Bachmeier (Stanford) and Reggie Frishknecht (Snow College), DL Justin Kirkland (Oklahoma St), and OL Andrew Gentry (Michigan), among others.
Portland State at a glance
They opened the season with a loss to Tarleton State at home in week 0, getting blown out 42-0. They gave up 453 yards of offense, with 301 rushing yards at a gashing 6.1 ypc. The Vikings turned the ball over 4 times and only managed 277 yards of offense. They finished 2024 3-8 with one of the worst rated defenses in all of FCS and don't look like they will be turning the page this season.
Keys to the game
Protect Bear Bachmeier. Give him plenty of time in the pocket, easy reads, and let him get comfortable in his first game at the college level.
Pressure the Vikings QB's. They all made poor decisions under pressure last week, resulting in 4 turnovers. Bring the heat and force them to make plays down the field.
Play for a blowout. Coach Sitake doesn't like to run up the score. While I respect good sportsmanship, give Bachmeier as many snaps as possible in a live game scenario to run the full offense. Build chemistry, don't let up, because we will score early and often in this game.
Prediction
This game will be a blowout. BYU opened as heavy favorites - initially a 34.5-point spread, now hovering around 44.5 points - over Portland State. This is about the softest possible opener for Bachmeier to settle in. Coach Hill has stated several times through fall camp that the defensive line has more speed than either of his first two seasons at BYU and expects to get more pressure on QB's this season. The Vikings gave three different QB's snaps and all three struggled, getting pressured and sacked multiple times. I pick BYU to cover the spread and send the Vikings packing with a 52-0 dominating win.
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