BYU wants to ’embrace the night’ in late kick at West Virginia

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PROVO — BYU head coach Kalani Sitake knows it, and so do his players: The Cougars’ offense is backpedaling, and he’d be wise to make a change.

After being held to a season-low 6 points in Saturday’s loss to No. 7 Texas, BYU (5-3, 2-3 Big 12) was held to two touchdowns or less for the third time in 2023 and the second time in three weeks — perhaps ironically, both losses.

What kind of changes could be in store for BYU as it travels to West Virginia for a rare late kickoff on the east coast (5 p.m. MDT, FS1)?

To paraphrase the eighth-year head coach, everything is on the table.

“I think the points and fixing it, that’s the emphasis,” he said. “We’ve got to get there. It doesn’t matter how it gets done. … It’s go-time now. It’s been go-time. The way that we’ve been doing it hasn’t been working the way I want it to. We have very smart coaches and capable players that we can find ways to get points on the board.”

While hovering around the middle of the Big 12 standings overall and just one game from bowl eligibility in the Cougars’ first year in a Power Five conference, the Cougars’ offense has been significantly sub-par since Big 12 play began, according to data from collegefootballdata.com.

BYU ranks in the bottom three in the league during conference play in offensive points per drive (1.75, 12th), touchdown rate (19.2%, 12th), scoring rate (32.7%, 12th), punt rate or punts per drives (46.2%, 14th), yards per drive (25.4, 14th) and yardage rate (34.9%, 14th). The teams most consistently surrounding the Cougars in such statistical offensive breakdowns are Baylor (3-5, 2-3), Cincinnati (2-6, 0-5), Houston (3-5, 1-4) and Texas Tech (3-5, 2-3).

The defensive numbers are significantly higher, including ninth with 2.50 defensive points per drive and 31.3% touchdown rate, second in turnover rate with 16.7% and first in turnover on downs rate at 16.7%.

FOX may have done BYU a solid this week by slotting the Cougars into a night kickoff on the road at West Virginia, BYU’s first-ever game in the state and first trip to Morgantown. After being picked to finish last in the 14-team Big 12, the Mountaineers are a somewhat surprising 5-3 with a 3-2 mark in Big 12 play and searching for a bowl game.

The night kickoff could be a saving grace for BYU, which famously trended across social media for its significant uptick in performance before sunset. The Cougars will travel to West Virginia a day earlier than usual, as is custom for games played on the east coast.

“I’ve always heard about how we’re not good in day games; now we have a night game and you guys don’t want to talk about that anymore?” Sitake quipped. “It’s time to go and embrace the night. I’m excited about the game. … We’ve lost three games this year, and they’ve all been on the road. It’s tough to play on the road in this conference.”

Likewise, linebacker Max Tooley doesn’t put much stock in the “Vampire Cougs” phenomenon — both teams have to kick at the same time, he says. But a night game on the east coast can’t hurt.

“I’m looking forward to going up to West Virginia and playing a night game a little later in the day,” he said. “It’s definitely been our bread and butter in the past, doing really well at night. Hopefully we can keep it going into this game.”

Sitake didn’t elaborate much on what offensive changes could be, but he did mention one key change likely won’t happen: at quarterback. Kedon Slovis has started every game since transferring to BYU for his fifth season following stops at USC and Pitt, and expects to be the quarterback going forward after throwing for 1,716 yards and 12 touchdowns with six interceptions.

But could backup Jake Retzlaff be in further contention for some time, especially if the offense doesn’t improve? That could be more of an option as the Cougars hit the final four games of the regular season. The former No. 1 junior college quarterback in the country by ESPN can play in every game down the stretch while still maintaining his redshirt and not sacrificing a full year of eligibility.

“We have a lot of really good, young players,” Sitake said. “This makes it a lot easier now that we can redshirt guys for four games and even the bowl game. Now that that’s an option, we have to look at that.”

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