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The season opener against Utah Tech is months away, but the sights, sounds and all the feels of football return to campus Friday as BYU kicks off spring practice. The Cougars will wrap up the team drills April 3.
On the heels of Kalani Sitake’s most successful season at BYU, where the Cougars finished 12-2, won the Pop-Tarts Bowl and earned a No. 11 ranking in the final AP Top 25, the head coach will embark on his 11th season. He goes to work with the biggest contract he has ever had and the highest expectations his teams have ever faced.
During the same early December week when Sitake turned down a tempting offer from Penn State and agreed to a lengthy extension at BYU, the Big 12 Coach of the Year marched his Cougars into the program’s first Big 12 championship game.
Playing in front of a mostly Red Raider crowd in Arlington, Texas, freshman quarterback Bear Bachmeier drove BYU 90 yards for a touchdown on the Cougars’ first possession. The march was both impressive and costly.
LJ Martin’s 10-yard run capped the 14-play drive to give BYU a 7-0 lead; however, one snap earlier — the unlucky 13th — Bachmeier suffered a sprained ankle that skewed the rest of the day in No. 4 Texas Tech’s favor.
Season-ending shoulder surgery followed the game for Martin while a partly healed Bachmeier led the Cougars into the Pop-Tarts Bowl against No. 22 Georgia Tech. On BYU’s first possession, Bachmeier reaggravated his ankle injury, which again, altered the Cougars’ plan of attack.
With his mobility mostly grounded, the 6-foot-2, 230-pound teenager stood in the pocket and, while eluding the ACC’s top sack squad, threw for 325 yards and a touchdown. BYU rallied to sting the Yellow Jackets 25-21 to earn their first 12-win season since 2001.
Bachmeier, the Big 12’s Freshman of the Year, will lead the Cougars into their first spring workout Friday afternoon as he morphs into a sophomore. Martin, who earned Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year with his 1,305 rushing yards and 12 touchdowns, continues to heal his shoulder but is expected to be a full-go senior for the season opener.
The return of BYU’s two top guns on offense, and almost the entire defense, has optimism and expectations sky high in Provo. With seven home games, including Notre Dame on Oct. 17, the Cougars are licking their chops over their chances to take the program a step further.
Even with the return of so many, there are still plenty of questions to answer over the next five weeks. BYU must replace Chase Roberts and Parker Kingston at receiver; Carsen Ryan at tight end; Jack Kelly at linebacker; Tanner Wall at safety, and kicker Will Ferrin.
In addition, Kelly Poppinga will take command as defensive coordinator and introduce new coaches Lewis Walker (cornerbacks) and Demario Warren (safeties).
There is just enough newness to keep the Cougars interested. For a program that is 23-4 over the last two seasons with a pair of Power Four bowl victories and lofty rankings — both for the team and its 2026 recruiting class — life is good.
Sitake’s challenge this spring will be to keep his locker room hungry even as they digest all their success. A tough task, for sure, but that’s why he makes the big bucks and it’s also why BYU extended his contract for many seasons to come.
Dave McCann is a sportswriter and columnist for the Deseret News and is a play-by-play announcer and show host for BYUtv/ESPN+. He co-hosts “Y’s Guys” at ysguys.com and is the author of the children’s book “C is for Cougar,” available at deseretbook.com.