What exactly is the Cougars’ identity heading into bye week?

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What exactly is the Cougars’ identity heading into bye week?

BYU players greet fans after winning a football game against the Cincinnati Bearcats at LaVell Edwards Stadium in Provo on Friday, Sept. 29, 2023. Five games into the season, the Cougars have turned a few heads. | Kristin Murphy, Deseret News

Dick Harmon · Deseret News

Tue, Oct 3, 2023 ·

12 min read

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After five games, what exactly is the identity of BYU 's football team heading into a bye week before a trip to TCU?

A passing team? A defensive team? A big-punt team?

Maybe it's none of the above.

In many ways, this is a kind of strange football team. One that can get outgained and run fewer plays but a squad that still finds ways to win.

Is that the definition of efficiency?

Last Friday, Cincinnati outgained BYU by 203 yards and lost. It is believed that is the first time in BYU history that has happened.

It's a team with a new quarterback, running backs, defense and myriad injuries. But last Friday's 35-27 win over Cincinnati proved this is a quick-strike, big-play team that can win despite losing statistical battles.

So what's the identity?

Gritty? Resilient? Secure in adversity? A squad steeped in confidence and belief?

What is it? Irrepressibility and adaptability?

Could it be this Cougars team is better conditioned, more focused or is it simply the "maturity" factor BYU football rosters are known for surfacing this past September?

Clearly, it is a football team that has not played its best through a 4-1 record.

On Monday, guard Connor Pay told reporters the team has been "timely" and played well during the games, when it was needed most.

"We were there to pull through with the exception of Kansas . Other than that, when we've needed it in those crunch-time moments we've come through whether on offense, defense or special teams, there have been big moments in all phases in all five games.

"Obviously, we need to work on being more consistent and play a little more complete game. It's hard to win in college football and the first year in the Big 12 to be 4-1, it's something to be proud of even if we have a lot to work on," said Pay.

"The best news for BYU is they are 4-1 and still haven't played their best football," according to Jeff Hansen, on his "Daily Dose" YouTube channel on Monday.

"It's not as if BYU has peaked and playing better than anybody expected them to play and is set for some regression. No, they're not playing particularly well but they are fighting things out, gritting out wins. That is something Kalani Sitake teams have struggled with — when they don't play well, BYU gets beat."

In wins over Arkansas and Cincinnati, BYU was outgained a combined 922 to 576 total yards but outscored those two P5 opponents 73 to 58.

Both Arkansas and Cincinnati dominated in time of possession over BYU, with the Razorbacks owning the clock 33:15 to BYU's 24.50. In that game, BYU ran 57 plays and scored 38 points — 1.5 points per play.

Cincinnati's clock advantage was even bigger at 35:01 to BYU's 24.59. The Cougars ran just 53 plays for its 35 points or 1.514 points per play (BYU's defense did score six defensive points on a pick-six by Jakob Robinson).

In BYU's only loss at Kansas, this magic formula did not occur even with a 17-14 lead at halftime. Three turnovers led to three Kansas touchdowns, including a scoop and score on BYU's first play of the game to create a 7-0 deficit.

But the fast-strike efficiency is definitely a trend in the last two wins.

ESPN analyst Trevor Matich, a Monday guest of BYUtv's "CougarNation," said BYU's identity might be winning situations, evidenced in the Cincy win after being outgained by 200 yards. Matich was a member of BYU's 1984 national championship team.

"It's situational football. They won the game with execution and being more mistake-free. It's the way they lost against Kansas," said Matich.

"You can see the Cougars take a step forward, you can see their determination. They gave up a lot of third-down situations, about 50% to Cincinnati but Cincinnati was only 1 of 3 on fourth down, and BYU's defense and special teams got two turnovers, so BYU won.

"BYU had fewer penalties than Cincinnati so when Cincinnati was moving the ball up and down the field, at the moment when a play had to happen either BYU made that play or Cincinnati did something to hurt themselves. This is BYU's formula moving forward. They are a more disciplined group in general because of the way they recruit and the kind of kids who come to BYU and when they play to that, they are hard to beat."

When asked if how BYU is winning is sustainable, Matich answered, "It's a foundation," and called on the Cougars to improve on both sides of the ball, especially with continued progress in the run game. "It's something to build on, making fewer mistakes than the other side because it keeps you in position."

Amazingly, BYU ranks 116th in total offense with a 318 average per game. BYU's run game ranks 129th in the country at 62.8 per game. In passing, the Cougars rank 48th in the NCAA at 255.8 per game and BYU ranks 56th in scoring with a 31 ppg average.

Future Big 12 power rankings: There's a new No. 1 following a weekend of chaos

Former BYU quarterback and KSL radio game analyst Riley Nelson said BYU's identity so far is clear.

"Through five games they should be known as a team that finds a way to win. Win ugly. Win when the numbers don't add up. This team just finds a way to win," said Riley.

As a former QB, Nelson knows the importance of creating yards and knows offensive coordinator Aaron Roderick's priority in the passing game is to pass for more than than 10 yards per attempt.

Against Arkansas, BYU passed for 7.8 yards per attempt and versus Cincinnati that figure was 9.2 yards per attempt. In the win at Arkansas BYU gained 14.6 yards per completion. In the Cincinnati win Kedon Slovis averaged 16 yards per completion to the Bearcats' 11.

"An old saying is that the only stat that matters are the points on the scoreboard," said Nelson. "This team is the embodiment of that saying. If you were to take away win/loss and the scoreboard and just showed someone the box scores ... nine out of 10 people would guess this team 2-3 at best.

"In a way that's something to be proud of but it should also be extremely motivating because you never know if the carriage is going to turn back into a pumpkin.

"The defense has had a notable culture and performance change. Offense seems to make timely plays. I think special teams is the unnamed hero, how else can you explain winning meaningful games when so badly outgained? All in all a positive debut in the Big 12. They've proven they belong and if they continue to iterate and improve game over game and year over year, fans should be confident that this program should compete for conference championships in the future."

So, what's BYU's identity?

Well, 4-1 can mean many different things, some unexplainable.

Like what?

The Cougars are one of the worst run teams in college football but stand 4-1.