No. 8 BYU vs. Arizona State: Game day preview plus score prediction
Oct 31, 2026, 12:21 AM
PROVO — BYU vs Arizona State in a Halloween afternoon tilt at LaVell Edwards Stadium.
No. 8 BYU needs a businesslike response after last week’s loss at UCF. With how UCF performed in their loss to Baylor on Friday night, a strong bounceback from BYU is needed more than ever.
BYU is 6-1 overall and 3-1 in Big 12 play. Meanwhile, Arizona State is 4-3 overall and 2-2 in league action after defeating Kansas State last week at home.
This is the 30th meeting all-time between these two programs. It’s the second matchup as Big 12 foes.
Arizona State is making its first trip to Provo since 2021, when BYU last beat ASU.
No. 8 BYU vs. Arizona State
Location: LaVell Edwards Stadium
Kickoff: 1:30 p.m. (MDT)
TV: FOX
Radio: KSL NewsRadio (102.7 FM) — Extended pregame begins at 9 a.m.
Three game day thoughts
1. Different feel around BYU this week
One of the biggest takeaways heading into this game is the atmosphere around BYU.
After the Notre Dame win, the celebration seemed to linger well into the following week. That was a significant victory worth enjoying, but the next assignment was UCF. From my perspective, the glow of beating the Fighting Irish carried almost to game day in Florida.
This week has felt different.
There’s been less noise and a more businesslike approach. At Wednesday’s media availability, only three reporters were there: myself, Jake Hatch, and a student reporter. I’ve covered BYU since 2014, and I can’t remember attendance being that low.
This is still a top-10 football team. One loss doesn’t change that.
It might be easy to view this as a lookahead spot with the rivalry game against Utah on the horizon, but I’d be surprised if that was the mindset of this BYU squad, humbled a little last week in Orlando.
Now the Cougars need to show they can respond. BYU has won 11 consecutive home games and hasn’t lost in consecutive weeks since the Kansas and Arizona State losses in 2024.
2. Arizona State’s freshmen backfield gives them new life
The Sun Devils have underachieved so far this season. But they still have enough talent to cause some disruption in the Big 12 title race.
Especially with the emerging play of their freshmen in the offensive backfield.
Quarterback Jake Fette, who is expected to get his first career start today, and running back Cardae Mack.
Mack might be ASU’s next Cam Skattebo at running back. He was excellent last week in the win over K-State, rushing for 159 yards on 26 carries and four touchdowns.
Fette provided an instant spark after replacing Cutter Boley, who only produced one first down in three drives in the second half against K-State. There isn’t much film on Fette, which could create challenges for Kelly Poppinga’s BYU defense.
BYU has been harping on doing their one-11th this entire week, after a performance a week ago where they couldn’t make tackles.
3. Bear Bachmeier has been excellent in home games this season
BYU sophomore quarterback Bear Bachmeier is completing 69% of his pass attempts in the previous four games played this season at home inside LaVell Edwards Stadium.
By comparison, on the road, he’s completing 57% of his attempts.
It’s good to be back home for the Cougars’ star signal caller after an up-and-down game against UCF a week ago, where he completed 50% of his attempts and had a tipped ball picked off that changed the entire complexion of the game.
Arizona State has lost by an average of 28 points in their two previous true road games this season, both against top-10 opponents. They have been prone to giving up yards and points. Let’s see if Bear has an efficient day through the air against the Sun Devils.
On the ground, Bear is one touchdown run away from taking sole possession of second place among BYU quarterbacks for most rushing touchdowns. He’s currently tied with Steve Young and Virgil Carter with 18 rushing touchdowns in his career.
Two BYU vs Arizona State questions
1. Will BYU’s freshmen running backs get some run?
Surprisingly, BYU did not turn to freshmen ball carriers Journee Tonga or Devaughn Eka in last week’s loss at UCF. Neither of them recorded a carry or a reception. Will that change this week?
BYU offensive coordinator Aaron Roderick has a lot of trust in Sione Moa, who racked up 13 carries in his first game he completed without an injury since the Stanford game in Week 2 of the 2025 season.
Moa likely gets the bulk of the workload in the backfield, but with Preston Rex, who was wearing a green jersey in practice this week, listed as “Probable” on the availability report, does that open the door for the talented freshmen to get some work?
Tonga has always shown his ability to be shifty out of the backfield. He displayed that on a nice 12-yard reception in the win over Notre Dame.
Eka has good size at 5-foot-11, 195 pounds.
As Kalani Sitake noted earlier this week, star running back LJ Martin is “getting closer.” This might be the last game without the reigning Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year. But it wouldn’t hurt to get some momentum behind the young ball carriers before a big rivalry matchup next week.
2. How will BYU’s secondary perform against the ASU wide receiver unit?
Arizona State’s receiving group is talented, led by Boston College transfer Reed Harris. It’s a big assignment for a BYU secondary that is without Evan Johnson entering this game.
The Sun Devils offense has produced nine plays of at least 50 yards this season. Keeping those explosive gains in check will be critical for BYU’s secondary.
One score prediction for BYU vs Arizona State
It wouldn’t surprise me if this was a one-possession game entering the fourth quarter.
Before this season, Kenny Dillingham had won six straight games against Top 25 opponents. He’s had a knack for big wins during his time in Tempe, and Arizona State’s young backfield has given the Sun Devils some renewed energy. They can make this uncomfortable for BYU.
Still, I believe BYU is the better team overall. BYU’s home-field advantage is real. The Cougars have won 11 straight at LES. That’s not a venue you want a freshman to get his first career start in.
BYU’s defense rattles Fette, and we see him make some mistakes, creating opportunities for BYU’s defense to generate an interception or two, something they haven’t done in three weeks.
Cougars get back in the win column.
Score prediction: BYU 35, Arizona State 20
Parts of this article were generated with the assistance of large language models and reviewed by our editorial team.
Mitch Harper is a BYU Insider for KSL 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.
