Use this page as a one-stop shop throughout the week for everything related to the game. Updates will be made leading up to kickoff, including broadcast plans, news, fan events and game notes.
Opening statement "We had a good week last week of preparation and we are completely focused on Arizona now. We are really excited about the matchup. We have a lot of respect for Arizona. I am good friends with their head coach. Brent and I go way back. We used to work together at Oregon State. There are a lot of guys on that staff that I admire and know really well. They will have their team ready. We look forward to having them here at home. There are a lot of exciting things going on here this week. The goal for our team is to stay focused, stay humble and keep working hard. There are a lot of people talking about us, but the key for our team is to keep going to work. Arizona has tons of talent. They have a great quarterback and a very strong run game. The defense also knows how to make plays and force turnovers. We think the matchup is going to bring the most out of us. Coming into Provo, they will see an excited home base, but we can’t look at that as the only advantage to rely on. I’m excited about how our team worked last week. I’m excited about the progress we are making."
On the team's readiness after a bye week "Our rhythm has been the same. It was a work week for us last week. The only difference is that we didn’t play a game. We try to find ways to get them in great shape, and also give them time to heal as well. Our preparation has been pretty good right now."
On the defense’s pressure and amount of sacks recorded this season "Everybody understands the system. Big plays are made by all 11 players doing their job right and complimenting each other, believing in the system and getting better. All that goes hand in hand. I think we are making bigger plays. We aren’t just getting sacks. We are getting some “hurries”, creating some difficult throws. I have to give credit to the coaches and players for understanding the scheme and executing it in the right way."
On defeating Arizona in his first game as BYU head coach "That tests my memory. I just remember moments from the game like when Jake Oldroyd made that kick. I remember our fullback, I think, scored our first touchdown which was nice. It was a competitive game. That seems so long ago now. I think I was way better-looking back then. We’ve had some great battles with Arizona. We’re glad that they are in the conference now. They do an amazing job. I have a lot of respect for them and their fanbase. We hope they can be treated well by us and our fans."
On Duane Akina's defense "They have proven that they can get after the quarterback. They can stop the run and stop the pass. They can create turnovers, which is what gave them a spark over the weekend. Akina has been around football for a long time. He is a legend in the business. Being Polynesian growing up, you knew what he was doing. I’ve appreciated him as a leader. He is one of the original guys that has been in coaching. We appreciate his mentorship as we grew up in our positions. He’s doing an amazing job with his staff. They have capable players at every position. Them beating Utah up in Salt Lake doesn’t just happen by accident."
On BYU's 5-0 start and pressure to keep the team humble "We are in the position that we thought we would be. I’m excited for the fans and our families. We are grateful to have FOX come in and experience BYU Football. It’s great for everybody, but we embrace it by going to work. We’ve done a great job with that so far every week, and I don't see our mentality changing this week. This team is led by the players and I expect them to get it done. They can be distractions if you allow them to be."
On buzz around BYU this season "It’s all fun. My job is to allow these young men to play their best. I think that preparing mentally, physically and spiritually all matters. When we do that we can have the most fun on Saturday. They have to relish the grind and appreciate all the tough parts of it. Having fun on game day is what it’s all about. There is nothing wrong with enjoying it. Part of your fun is the tough and gritty moments. We have to keep working hard and finding ways to better ourselves in all aspects of our lives."
On the center position "We have a lot of guys who can play center. I trust TJ Woods to get the offensive line ready. We have a lot of guys who can snap the ball. I think there is a lot of cross-training there, but having guys like Bruce Mitchell, Jake Eichorn, Trevor Pay and Sam Dawe they can all snap. I am probably leaving out a few more. It’s about getting the right connection. It’s hard to replace Connor. Luckily, our staff preps for these types of moments. We saw the transition work well."
On coming off the bye week “We told ourselves ‘we know what happened last year after the bye week’, so we came in over the weekend and got our stuff done and went over some film and did everything we could to make sure we stayed on top of things for this weekend.”
On BYU’s offense at full strength “I know when we are at full strength and everyone’s clicking, like what happened in the Baylor game last week, we are even more powerful.”
On the major spotlight on Saturday’s game “I don’t think there’s a challenge to stay humble with a big game like this, we are going to stay humble the whole season. We will continue to come to practice to work hard, lift hard, study hard and prepare hard to make sure we are doing all the right things to be ready on Saturday. Even with Fox Big Noon coming to town, we are going to stay focused and pretend like they’re not there.”
On Arizona “I know Arizona is a great program with great offense and defense. I actually have a high school teammate who plays corner for Arizona, so I will be going against him this weekend, which I think will be a great experience.”
On success with kickoff returns “At practice, we work on getting set up the correct way and finding holes, and reps after reps after reps to try to get another one.”
On coming off the bye week “I think during this bye week we stayed the course and did what we’ve done the previous five weeks. We have been focusing on what’s been working, and I don’t think anybody took this week off. It’s been a good bye week, everyone stayed safe and healthy, so we are ready for this week.”
On the balance and consistency of the team “I think that’s been huge this year. We don’t look at any game as a big game because we approach each week as if that’s the biggest game of the year, and I think that’s something the coaches have been really dialed in on. I think it’s been a good focus for us this year and the team has been bought-in on it.”
On the success of the defense this year “I think one of the biggest emphases on this year has been urgency and execution. It’s nothing new from what we ran last year, but we are playing more urgently and are able to execute our calls more effectively.”
On his experience battling injury “I think I have been just honed-in on the process. That is something our captain, Tyler Batty, emphasizes, which is that elite little things lead to elite processes. So I think that’s what I have been focusing on, and many of my teammates, just the everyday grind. Each day will add up to bring big wins for this program.”
“For a lot of my career, I’ve been bitten by the injury bug, so I really haven’t had a full season yet. We had a really good offseason with our strength and conditioning staff, and they got us all healthy. Sports science has been working, too, so those things are keeping me on the field this season.”
On Arizona’s quarterback “We need to keep him in front of us. I think something he finds a lot of success with is buying time for his receivers and getting out of the pocket. So a big key for us is keeping him in front of us, collapsing the pocket and not allowing him to extend the plays for too long.”
On Arizona “From what I have seen from watching them and studying film, I know Arizona is a tough team. Their guys play hard and physically, and I think that’s a good matchup for us. We are looking forward to this week because we know they will give us their best, and just like each week, we will come out with ours.”
On key to progression in defense “I think we’re on a string, the back end with the defensive linemen. We understand that we work together. If they're getting pressured, that means we're getting picks. If we’re in the coverage for a while, that means they’re getting sacks. I think we do a good job of complimenting each other.”
On team’s approach each week “It’s been great. We’re 5-0 obviously and we haven't blinked at all. I think that’s what has kept us successful. It’s not about the record, but it’s about getting better each game and trying to play our best football each game. The best part is we still haven’t. Going into the bye week 5-0 is a great feeling but we know we’ve got business to take care of this week and we will do our best to play our best football this week. If it doesn’t happen, we’ll try again next week and so on and so forth.”
On key to making this happen each week “I think it’s attention to detail every week, through every position group. If we can take on the little things how we should, that gives us the best chance of having the season we want to have. It’s not always about the big things that everybody sees.”
On the team’s reaction to Fox Big Noon Kickoff coming to Provo “For me, it’s just another game. Obviously it's a bigger game to the public and everybody else, but for us we know a good opponent is coming into our stadium. We’ve got to protect our stadium. That’s how I think everybody will look at it. It’s not too much about Big Noon, and it shouldn't be. I think that’s more for the fans. It’s great recognition, obviously, but we’re not too worried about it.”
On benefit of getting an extra week to prepare for Arizona “It’s been great. This week is more of a review of what we learned last week, and what we’ve been able to catch on to. Now we have a second week to really practice it and perfect it and master it. I think that’s a big deal for us. Having that extra week should show up this Saturday.”
Game Day Information
Cougar Canyon & Cougar Walk Cougar Canyon will take place on the West side of the stadium from 10:00 a.m. on game day. Food trucks and activities for all ages are available. BYUtv's pregame show Sports Nation GameDay and BYU Radio’s Cougar Pregame Live will also be broadcast live from Cougar Canyon. The Cougar Walk will take place from the north end of Cougar Canyon in through the soutwest corner of the stadium, starting at 12 p.m.
Cougar Canyon is expanding this season, south of the stadium. Cougar Club members have access to Cougar Club exclusive activities there. There will be activities available to all fans as well.
LaVell Edwards Stadium has adopted a NO bag policy, except for a few exceptions. Small clutch bags, no larger than 5” x 8” x 1”, with or without a handle or strap can be taken into the stadium. Medically-necessary bags will be permitted after inspection. One bag per person. No outside Food or drink will be permitted.
Enjoy the convenience and reliability of UVX and FrontRunner to get you to and from the BYU football game this Saturday. You can ride UVX for a $2.50 fare, and there will be extra service provided before and after the game. For the best service, please head directly to the stadium stations, or bus, or UVX within 15 minutes following the game.
Parking passes for all designated BYU lots are digital this season. If you are a passholder, you will see the pass available to download in the same location where you download your digital ticket. Please ensure that you download the digital pass before you start driving to the stadium, and have the pass up on your phone and ready to display as you arrive at your designated lot. Also, familiarize yourself with the parking map, if necessary. Having your parking pass ready to display will greatly expedite the process of pulling into the lot. As all parking pass holders get used to this new process, there may be wait times. We encourage you to leave for the game a little earlier than you usually do to allow for some extra time to park.
