The struggles that the Cougars have been dealing with since the Oregon game showed up yet again in the game against Arkansas.
The offense was able to keep them in the game for a while, but they could not run the ball with any consistency, allowing the Razorbacks’ defense to drop back into coverage every snap. Besides the first two and last Arkansas possessions, the Razorbacks scored every time their offense had the football.
Unfortunately, BYU’s defense is struggling at the wrong time. When playing against good competition, they have been pushed around and there seem to be holes all over in the secondary for the opposition to expose.
This team was supposed to be much better than this with all of the experienced players that they have but they have only been disappointing thus far.
Issues on both sides
From my perspective, it seems as though many of the issues that the Cougars have experienced over this season have been coaching errors. Players on the defense constantly are taking bad angles on tackles, receivers are oftentimes wide open against both man and zone defense, and the defensive line is being pushed back constantly.
On offense, the team is heavily reliant on the arm of Jaren Hall and he’s been dealing with a shoulder injury, which spells problems. Over the last several weeks, the running game has not been able to get going at all in the first half and this results in the opposing defense putting the focus on stopping the pass. BYU’s offensive scheme relies upon the team setting up the running game and without that happening, the Cougars have struggled to be consistent on offense.
Frustration building
Fans are starting to get very frustrated with the coaching staff as it seems as though no adjustments have been made. It’s the same issues plaguing the team every week, and it’s very disappointing to watch. This team finished in the Top 20 in the nation last year and returned the second-most production in the country this season, yet they have been playing as though they are very inexperienced.
The main thing that is holding this team back from once again being a Top-20 team is themselves. This team fails in so many ways to play the game fundamentally sound and it’s becoming hard to watch. The schedule does get easier from here on out for BYU so they’ll have a chance to win some more games this season, but this is not the season the team and fans had hoped for.
When a team has an experienced and talented team, as well as a quarterback, they should be performing better than how this Cougars team has been. They have been embarrassed when playing against top-tier competition and this is not typical for a BYU team. Something needs to change and it will be interesting to see if that actually happens or if this team will just be content with mediocrity.
Up next
BYU will now lead to Lynchburg, Virginia to face Liberty on Saturday, Oct. 22. The game will kick off at 1:30 p.m. MT and can be seen on ESPNU.
BYU Football: Analyzing ESPN’s FPI predictions over the years
