BYU (1-0, 0-0 Big 12) at SMU (2-0, 0-0 ACC)
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To start up: Friday, 5:00 PM MDT
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Place: Gerald J. Ford Stadium (Capacity: 32,000)
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TV: ESPN2
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Live Streaming: ESPN.com/watch
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Radio: KSL 1160 AM/102.7 FM/Sirius XM 143 Radio
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Series: BYU leads 4-0
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Weather report: Skies will be mostly sunny at kick-off, with temperatures around 27°C, but could drop to 15°C overnight. Winds will be light and variable, with gusts of up to 24 km/h coming from the north-east. Very little chance of rain during the match.
Trends
For BYU: The Cougars have lost five straight road games dating back to last year, but played significantly better in their final road game of 2023, a 40-34 overtime loss to Oklahoma State. Last year, they opened the Big 12 on the road in Kansas and lost 38-27 in a turnover-filled affair.
The Cougars are 6-9 overall against ACC teams (SMU joined the league this year) and 62-41 in head coach Kalani Sitake’s nine years. BYU is 8-4 in Friday night regular-season games under Sitake.
For Southern Methodists: The Mustangs are averaging 44.0 points per game and allowing just 15.5 points per game. This is their third game of the season as they beat Nevada in Week 0 and upset Houston Christian in Week 1.
SMU receives votes in the Associated Press Top 25 after winning the American Athletic Conference last year. They meet BYU in the regular season for the first time since 1997. They lost to BYU 24-23 in the 2022 New Mexico Bowl when their last-second two-point conversion attempt was stopped by BYU cornerback Jakob Robinson.
What should you pay attention to?
Jake Retzlaff, transfer to junior college got the starting nod over former Baylor and USF QB Gerry Bohanon and guided the Cougars to a 41-13 victory over FCS Southern Illinois. Expect Retzlaff to look for receiver Darius Lassiter, who missed the game against SIU due to an issue with the NCAA and his eligibility waiver for a final season of college football.
The Cougars enter the game relatively healthy, although cornerback Mory Bamba did not play against the Salukis and watched the game from the sidelines with a protective boot on his left foot.
BYU’s offensive line of center Connor Pay, point guard Weylin Lapuaho and tackles Caleb Etienne and Brayden Keim picked up where they left off last year against the Oklahoma schools and put together some standout performances. They were joined in the starting lineup by freshman Sonny Makasini, who is expected to make his second career start Friday against the Ponies.
Southern Methodist coach Rhett Lashlee is in his third year and has a career record of 20-9. One of those nine losses came against BYU when he opted to take a two-game, New Mexico Bowl victory two years ago and QB Tanner Mordecai was stopped a yard or two short of the goal line.
They rank fourth in the country in three-point conversion percentage (54%) and are No. 1 in total first downs, with 51 in two games.
Key player
Jake Retzlaff, junior, BYU, quarterback: For BYU to have a chance to pull off an upset as a double-digit underdog, Retzlaff will have to play as clean and impressively as he did against Southern Illinois. And BYU will have to establish the same type of running game to keep the Mustangs’ pressure honest. Retzlaff completed 20 of 30 passes for 348 yards and three TDs against the Salukis.
Another key player to watch is BYU sophomore running back L.J. Martin, a native of El Paso, Texas. Martin will often be called upon to make plays not only to gain tough rushing yards, but also to slow down SMU’s linebackers.
Quotable
“There’s obviously room for improvement. We know how to fix them. We’re looking forward to doing that. … Against SMU, the head coach is a good friend of mine. Rhett Lashlee is an unbelievable coach. He knows how to run an offense, how to run a game and how to run a program.
“I think he’s one of the best coaches in college football. He’s done a great job with this program.
“It will be difficult for us to play against them. We have to fix some things to be at our best.” — BYU coach Kalani Sitake.
“Ten straight power plays, that’s what we asked for. That’s what we wanted. I think there’s a lot of buzz around our program, which is great. There’s a lot of overzealous people predicting what we’re supposed to do. I mean, there’s no pressure on us. We’re not supposed to win these games, right? … I think we have a good team. We’re not there yet.” — SMU coach Rhett Lashlee, whose team is a 10.5-point favorite.
Next step
BYU Calendar
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August 31 — Lost to Southern Illinois, 41-13
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Friday — at SMU, 5 p.m. MDT on ESPN2
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September 14 — at Wyoming, 7 p.m. MDT on CBS Sports Network
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September 21 — State of Kansas
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September 28 — at Baylor
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October 5th — Goodbye
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October 12 — Arizona
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Oct. 18 — Oklahoma State, 8:15 p.m. MDT, ESPN
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October 26 — Central Florida
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November 2 — Goodbye
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November 9 — in Utah
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November 16 — Kansas
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November 23 — at Arizona State University
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November 30 — Houston
