Observations From Final Week Of BYU Football Spring Practice
Mar 27, 2024, 12:05 PM
PROVO, Utah – BYU football enters the final week of spring practice for the 2024 season.
The Cougars completed practice number 13 on Tuesday. KSL Sports was on hand to observe during the media observation window.
BYU had to take practice inside the Indoor Practice Facility due to some classic spring weather in Utah. One moment, it was snowing, then sunshine. Then, a stretch of hail hit BYU’s campus, with the sun breaking free again.
Here are some observations from practice.
Young offensive linemen continue to earn reps
Spring practice continues to be an opportunity for younger players to earn snaps. Some underclassmen continue to get reps in media observation periods along the offensive line. That’s offensive tackle Trevin Ostler from Bountiful High School and former Timpview High prospect Sonny Makasini at offensive guard.
During portions of the observation period, both players were lined up with what appeared to be the first-team offense.
Freshman contributing on the backend of the defense
One of the newcomers who has earned high praise throughout spring is freshman safety Tommy Prassas. The 17-year-old from Basha High School continues to earn first-team snaps.
During Tuesday’s media period, Prassas was paired with Talan Alfrey, who has also had a productive spring.
Prassas is a good athlete with a track and field background. Based on what he has shown in the spring, it will be hard to keep him off the field this fall in his first season.
Quarterback update
Jake Retzlaff was the first quarterback that the media watched on Tuesday.
After him was Treyson Bourguet, then Gerry Bohanon.
The battle for the starting job continues between Retzlaff and Bohanon. Western Michigan transfer Treyson Bourguet is making a solid case to win the third quarterback spot.
Bourguet completed a deep pass to tight end Ray Paulo.
Bohanon had an incomplete deep pass attempt intended for Chase Roberts. However, what was notable was Bohanon’s arm strength on the pass. It was one of the strongest deep ball attempts the media has seen from Bohanon during media observation periods this month.
Bohanon is only in his fourth month returning to football since suffering a torn labrum injury in October 2022.
Redshirt freshman wide receiver makes some plays
Devin Downing had one of the best days for BYU’s offense. The former American Fork High receiver standout made an acrobatic diving grab from Treyson Bourguet. During the media window, he was targeted on three other occasions.
One of his targets resulted in a stop at the line of scrimmage by defensive back Zion Allen.
Downing is a former three-star recruit in the 2020 recruiting class. He had the tall task of replacing Chase Roberts at American Fork in his prep career and totaled 1,787 yards as a senior.
Faces in the crowd
National Champion Quarterback Robbie Bosco and former Utah and Weber State head coach Ron McBride attended practice on Tuesday.
BYU football signee Jett Nelson from the 2024 recruiting class was observing practice. He is preparing to serve a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Chile.
Mitch Harper is a BYU Insider for sports.ksl.com and hosts the Cougar Tracks Podcast (SUBSCRIBE) and Cougar Sports Saturday (12–3 p.m.) on KSL Newsradio. Follow Mitch’s coverage of BYU in the Big 12 Conference on X: @Mitch_Harper.
