BYU football spring camp preview: Can Cougars continue to cash in on recent momentum?

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BYU football spring camp preview: Can Cougars continue to cash in on recent momentum?

BYU coach Kalani Sitake talks with members of the media after the opening day of spring camp held at the Zions Bank Practice Fields of the Student Athlete Building on the campus of Brigham Young University in Provo on Thursday, Feb. 27, 2025. The Cougars open 2026 spring camp Friday. | Isaac Hale, Deseret News

Jay Drew

Thu, Feb 26, 2026 ·

10 min read

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Led by the surprising performance of true freshman quarterback Bear Bachmeier and a defense that ranked among the best in the Big 12, coach Kalani Sitake's BYU football team surpassed almost every expectation imaginable in 2025 on its way to its fifth 12-win season in school history.

The Cougars, who went 12-2 in 2025, have won 23 of their last 27 games against arguably the most difficult two-year schedule ever, are rolling along in what has truly been one of the most remarkable runs since the days of LaVell Edwards.

But Sitake and his re-tooled staff are far from satisfied. The 11-year head coach said as much earlier this month when discussing the additions from the transfer portal and high school ranks to the 2026 team.

"There's a lot of great momentum going on in the program right now," Sitake said. "We just have to keep building on it and do things a little differently than we did last year, because we need to improve from last year."

The process of making those improvements began in early January, most notably in the weight room, and have continued through February even as Sitake has replaced departed coaches Jay Hill and Jernaro Gilford with the promotion of Kelly Poppinga to defensive coordinator and hiring of Demario Warren to fill the sizable shoes of Gilford. Secondary coach Lewis Walker and outside linebackers coach Chad Kauha'aha'a are also now on the new staff.

Warren will coach the safeties and Walker will be in charge of the cornerbacks.

"The work has got to be put in place, and that's from everybody, including myself," Sitake said.

The on-field portion of that work begins Friday, as BYU opens spring practices for the 11th time under Sitake. The coach will conduct 15 practices between Friday and March 31, as BYU traditionally starts spring workouts before almost any other program in the country.

Once again, BYU will not have a spring game. Sitake said not having one allows for one more good practice, keeps players from suffering unnecessary injuries, and prevents future opponents from getting more game film to study on the Cougars.

BYU will return to having a pro day and has scheduled it for March 20 this year. The annual alumni game is scheduled for April 3.

Here's a look at five questions facing the program entering 2026 spring camp:

How will dismissal of Parker Kingston affect the Cougars?

The bombshell news that broke on Feb. 11 when standout receiver Parker Kingston was charged with felony rape by the Washington County District Attorney — and later expelled from BYU and kicked off the football team — will have lasting repercussions for not only the school, but the two-deep chart in several places.

Receivers coach and passing game coordinator Fesi Sitake suddenly is without his top three pass-catchers from 2025 — Chase Roberts is currently at the NFL combine and tight end Carsen Ryan is also moving on to the pros — and has some huge holes to fill.

New special teams coordinator Justin Ena also needs to find a punt returner.

There's also a leadership void, as Kingston, Roberts and Ryan all played key roles in that department.

USC transfer Walker Lyons and Oregon transfer Roger Saleapaga will presumably step in for Ryan , while the candidates to replace Roberts and Kingston are Oregon transfer Kyler Kasper, redshirt junior JoJo Phillips, senior Tiger Bachmeier , junior Cody Hagen, redshirt sophomore Tei Nacua and redshirt sophomore Reggie Frischknecht.

1129fbccougars.spt_IH_4471.jpg — BYU wide receiver Jojo Phillips (13) celebrates after completing his catch and running out of bounds during a ame against the UCF Knights held at LaVell Edwards Stadium in Provo on Saturday, Nov. 29, 2025. | Isaac Hale, Deseret News

Other newcomers include freshmen Jett Nelson, Jaron Pula, Legend Glasker and Terrance Saryon. Phillips is the most-accomplished receiver of the bunch, with 25 catches for 377 yards and three touchdowns in his career.

Speaking on Signing Day in early February , before BYU coaches were aware of Kingston's situation, offensive coordinator Aaron Roderick expressed confidence that the 6-foot-6, 212-pound Kasper could have an immediate impact, despite not having done much at Oregon in three seasons.

"We're banking on what we know about his character, what we know about his family, what we know about his athletic ability."

"Injuries really held him back from having the kind of success you want to have at Oregon. We've checked that out as much as we can, our people did," Roderick said. "And everybody (said) he's full go right now, doing everything. So we're excited about that."

Roderick said that BYU had "connections" to Kasper since his high school days and recruited him then, but wasn't able to land him.

"We're banking on what we know about his character, what we know about his family, what we know about his athletic ability. We're betting on him producing now that he's healthy, and it's a projection, but man, he has a lot of talent," Roderick said. "He is all of 6-6. What I've seen of him so far is very encouraging, and we're expecting big things."

Who's in the battle to be Bear Bachmeier 's backup?

BYU released its 2026 spring camp football roster last week, and perhaps the most surprising development on it was that there are only three quarterbacks on the team at the current time.

Of course, rising sophomore Bachmeier is the headliner, and as long as he stays healthy, BYU's offense is in good hands . Bachmeier was nothing short of sensational in 2025, and was the only true freshman in the country to lead a program to 12 wins. He set a BYU record for a freshman quarterback with 11 rushing touchdowns.

The only other QBs on the roster are redshirt senior Treyson Bourguet and true freshman returned missionary Enoch Watson, with 2025 backup McCae Hillstead having transferred back to Utah State . The battle between Bourguet and Watson to be Bachmeier's backup will be a big storyline in spring camp.

BYU quarterback Treyson Bourguet launches a pass Thursday afternoon during Day 2 of the Cougars' fall camp in Provo. | Jaren Wilkey, BYU Photo

Watson, 6-3, 215, has the higher ceiling, while Bourguet knows the system well and is as respected by his teammates as any player on the team.

Four-star signee Ryder Lyons is currently on a church mission.

Last year, assistant quarterbacks coach Matt Mitchell was credited with bringing Bachmeier along quickly after he joined the program in early June. This year, that task will belong to new hire Tyler Hughes , as Mitchell moved on to Colorado State.

A big part of Hughes' role will be to get Watson and Bourguet ready and help Roderick determine which guy will be QB2. Roderick said Hughes has been on BYU's radar for several years.

"He's a very good coach, has a wide, wide variety of experience," Roderick said. "… We hope he brings some experiences that he can share with us that will make our offense better."

Can BYU's defense continue to climb?

Having been promoted to replace Jay Hill, who is now at Michigan , Kelly Poppinga has promised more of the same for the Cougars' defense, which has been largely responsible for the program's success the past two years. Poppinga, who previously served as special teams coordinator and rush ends coach, has noted that there will be a few tweaks here and there, so presumably those minor changes will be implemented in spring camp.

"What we have been doing here has been working," Poppinga said on Signing Day. "We've had a lot of success with it. A lot of the stuff that Jay was doing was stuff that Kalani has done in the past, and stuff that (defensive analyst) Gary Andersen has done in the past, and both of those guys are still in the building. So being able to get feedback from those guys every single day, with their influence, will be big."

California Oregon St Football — California Golden Bears linebacker Cade Uluave (0) rushes an Oregon State passer during game Saturday, Aug. 30, 2025, in Corvallis, Ore. | Mark Ylen

The impact of Cal transfer Cade Uluave will be something to keep an eye on during camp, as the Utah native replaces Jack Kelly, a probable NFL draft pick. Other keys are safety Faletau Satuala and linebackers Siale Esera and Isaiah Glasker , guys who could have followed Hill to Michigan, but didn't.

Keeping defensive tackle Keanu Tanuvasa was also huge for Sitake and his staff.

"We give a lot of autonomy and power to the players on the team," Sitake said on Feb. 4 when asked what it means that so many players elected to stay in Provo. "… We have an amazing fan base, amazing alumni, and just a network of people that will always take care of them. So I don't know if it's one thing. I think it starts with the team, though, with the players on the team, and then you can factor all the other stuff that goes into it that makes it an overwhelming experience and really tough to turn down."

Other transfer portal and returned missionary additions to watch in March will be Kansas State linebacker Jake Clifton, Mississippi State cornerback Jayven Williams and RM Adney Reid.

"The competition for (two-deep spots) is going to be fierce throughout the defense," Poppinga said.

Can RB LJ Martin get some help?

Having undergone shoulder surgery last December, which caused him to miss BYU's 25-21 win in the Pop-Tarts Bowl, running back LJ Martin will obviously miss spring camp. Finding a capable backup for Martin will be another priority, unless redshirt sophomore Sione Moa has fully recovered from a compartment syndrome condition in his leg that threatened to end his college career. Other guys such as Preston Rex, bowl hero Jovesa Damuni, Lucky Finau, Charlie Miska and Logan Payne should get plenty of opportunities in spring, too, to show what they can do if they are healthy.

Two additions to watch are freshman DeVaughn Eka and USU transfer Micah Beckstead, a walk-on.

Will offensive line be as good as it was in 2025?

Sitake and Roderick have said that it wasn't easy to hold on to players such as Bachmeier, Martin and all-Big 12 center Bruce Mitchell, as other programs "tried to get ahold" of those players and others.

"The good news is we have great kids in this program. We have the right guys in this program that love the team, love the team culture," Roderick said. "… So it was a situation where you're making sure that we're staying in touch with our best guys, staying connected to our best players, and reminding them about the success we've had in the past and what we want to accomplish together in the future. We were really fortunate that all those guys chose to stay."

Roderick said BYU is one of the few Power Four programs that was able to hold on to all of its offensive players.

"Most of those guys are really committed to what we're doing here," he said.

0830fbccougars.spt_RG_04251_1.JPG — BYU quarterback Bear Bachmeier (47) is lifted by offensive lineman Andrew Gentry (75) after scoring a rushing touchdown during game against the Portland State Vikings at LaVell Edwards Stadium in Provo on Saturday, Aug. 30, 2025. | Rio Giancarlo, Deseret News

Along with Mitchell, right tackle Andrew Gentry and guards Kyle Sfarcioc and Sonny Makasini chose to return, giving OL coach TJ Woods plenty to work with in 2026.

In spring camp, look for four-star freshman Bott Mulitalo to turn some heads, along with perhaps Stanford transfer Zak Yamauchi, Washington transfer Paki Finau and USU transfer Jr. Sia.

Veterans such as Joe Brown, Ethan Thomason and Kaden Chidester will also be looking to improve this spring.

"You can never have too many good offensive linemen. Last season we were fortunate. We didn't get as beat up as we have in other years," Roderick said. "We rotated seven or eight guys on a regular basis, but that's just one position where you can never be too deep, especially at offensive tackle. … We added some good players to what was already a good group."

1129fbccougars.spt_IH_2027.jpg — BYU players make their entrance just before an NCAA football game against the UCF Knights held at LaVell Edwards Stadium in Provo on Saturday, Nov. 29, 2025. | Isaac Hale, Deseret News

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