Instant Takeaways From BYU’s Friday Win Over West Virginia

PROVO, Utah – BYU football improves to 5-0 after a game that had a strange vibe throughout under the Friday night lights.

Still, a win is a win as BYU defeats the West Virginia Mountaineers, 38-24.

BYU is now 2-0 in Big 12 play as they gear up to go back on the road next week to face the Arizona Wildcats.

Bear Bachmeier showed poise, bouncing back quickly from turnovers

For the first time in Bear Bachmeier’s career, he committed turnovers.

There were two turnovers, one an interception deep in West Virginia territory, then a fumble that was a backwards pass deflected by WVU near BYU’s endzone.

The first interception was excusable. However, the backwards pass is an opportunity to improve as it led to an easy West Virginia touchdown.

The good thing for BYU is that those second-quarter mistakes did not rattle the freshman quarterback.

Bachmeier immediately responded after the fumble, leading BYU to a touchdown drive before the end of the first half that the freshman quarterback capped off.

Earlier in the week, Cougar Sports Saturday co-host Kyle Ireland spoke with BYU Passing Game Coordinator Fesi Sitake, and the adjective that Sitake used to describe Bachmeier was “poised.”

That poise Sitake was referring to showed up on Friday night as Bachmeier wasn’t fazed by some mistakes that have been uncharacteristic since he took over the starting quarterback job.

BYU turnovers led to two of West Virginia’s touchdowns

If you only look at the box score, you might think it was a pedestrian night for the BYU defense by allowing 17 points to a shorthanded West Virginia offense.

However, those two touchdowns that West Virginia scored were aided by short fields caused by turnovers from BYU’s offense.

Bear Bachmeier’s fumble on a backwards pass that was deflected, then Jovesa Damuni’s fumble on a reception off a screen pass, set up the Mountaineers in scoring territory.

BYU’s offense needs to clean that up to avoid putting the defense in those spots.

The defense nearly gave up a third touchdown late in the fourth quarter, but they were able to get a goal-line stand, despite the late hit penalty on Keanu Tanuvasa and a defensive penalty on fourth down.

BYU’s defense committed two offsides penalties on fourth down. That’s something to address for Jay Hill and his defense moving forward.

Max Alford came up with the tackle to get the stop on the goal line.

But the good vibes on the defensive side were short-lived as BYU’s backups allowed a passing touchdown from Scotty Fox Jr. to Cam Vaughn with Marcus McKenzie in coverage.

BYU’s offense showed the ability to produce explosive plays through the air

Bear Bachmeier finished with a career-high for passing yards, eclipsing the 300-yard passing mark for the first time in his BYU career.

Explosive plays contributed significantly to that. Bachmeier had completions to star senior receiver Chase Roberts of 21, 47, and 85 yards. He also completed passes to Parker Kingston for 20, 35, and 54 yards.

Many of those yards were gained after the catch, thanks to the receivers, but it provided BYU with proof of concept that they can make big plays through the air. Those were hard to come by a week ago at Colorado.

It will be interesting to see if this trend can continue moving forward as the Big 12 schedule for BYU kicks into high gear beginning next week at Arizona.

The loss of Jack Kelly is significant

At the end of the first quarter, BYU star linebacker Jack Kelly suffered an injury to his left arm.

After spending a considerable amount of time in the medical tent, Kelly stepped out, sporting a sling on his left arm. There was also an ice pack underneath his jersey on his left shoulder.

The first linebacker off the bench to replace Jack Kelly was Ace Kaufusi. Kaufusi is a promising prospect with a big future. However, few players can match the impact and versatility that Jack Kelly provides to this BYU defense.

ESPN analyst Andre Ware, during Friday’s late-night broadcast, said that Kelly and Isaiah Glasker were the best linebacker duo in the country. Now, part of that tandem is gone. That’s significant.

Also of note, Isaiah Glasker didn’t play in the second half. He was suited up on the sideline, but didn’t enter the game.

Kelly entered the game as one of the leaders in the Big 12 in sacks. He’s been a leader of this team since he arrived on campus in the winter of 2024. It’s a significant loss; BYU will need some players to step up.

Chase Roberts is one of the great receivers in BYU football history

When looking up the stats in the second quarter, it was hard to believe that BYU senior wide receiver Chase Roberts set a new career high for receiving yards.

But that was in fact the case as Roberts beat his previous high of 131 yards in the second quarter on Friday night when he reached 132 yards after an 85-yard reception from Bear Bachmeier.

Last week, Roberts passed the 2,000 career receiving yards mark. He continues to climb the all-time leaderboards in BYU football history.

What’s crazy is that Roberts’ production feels underappreciated through the first five games this season. But he is playing at a high level, and he’s stepped up his play since Jojo Phillips went out with an injury in week two.

Tre Alexander has a bright future

Coming out of spring practices, it was clear that it would be hard to keep sophomore Therrian “Tre” Alexander off the field.

The Georgia native has shown glimpses of his ability since he arrived on campus.

This season, since the Stanford game, he has emerged as a starter at cornerback.

On Friday night, he earned his first career interception and nearly took it to the house.

The pairing of Alexander and Evan Johnson could be special this season and in 2026, as both have eligibility remaining after this year.

Mitch Harper is a BYU Insider for sports.ksl.com and hosts the Cougar Tracks Podcast daily on KSL Sports YouTube and KSL NewsRadio (SUBSCRIBE). Harper also co-hosts Cougar Sports Saturday (12–3 p.m.) on KSL NewsRadio.

Follow Mitch’s coverage of BYU athletics in the Big 12 Conference on X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram: @Mitch_Harper.

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