No. 8 BYU vs. Iowa State: Game day preview plus score prediction
Oct 9, 2026, 12:00 AM | Updated: 12:02 am
PROVO — BYU vs Iowa State takes center stage on a weeknight in Big 12 After Dark.
The marketing for this game leans into BYU’s “Vampire Cougs” moniker. It’s the first late-night kick at home this season. And it’s the first home game at LaVell Edwards Stadium in 27 days.
BYU enters the game ranked eighth in the AP Top 25 poll at 4-0 overall and 2-0 in Big 12 play. Iowa State enters the game at 3-2 overall and 1-1 in the Big 12.
BYU trails the all-time series against Iowa State, 5-1. The Cougars’ first victory in the series came last year in Ames, where BYU stormed back for a 41-27 win after trailing 24-10.
It’s the third meeting between these programs as Big 12 foes. Iowa State won the first meeting in 2023, a late-night “blackout” game for BYU, 45-13.
No. 8 BYU vs. Iowa State
Location: LaVell Edwards Stadium
Kickoff: 8:15 p.m. (MDT)
TV: ESPN
Radio: KSL NewsRadio (102.7 FM, 1160 AM)
Three gameday thoughts
1. BYU can still win games without LJ Martin
The lower-body injury to running back LJ Martin last week was a significant blow to the ceiling of this year’s BYU football team.
However, BYU has shown over the last few years it can find answers when key players like LJ Martin go down.
View this post on Instagram
BYU is 4-0 over the past two seasons in games Martin hasn’t played.
So is BYU’s season over with Martin reportedly out for a month? No. But tonight will play a big role in setting the tone that this team can still operate at a high level without its star.
2. Better to give full-time snaps to Journee Tonga, Preston Rex, and Devaughn Eka this week instead of next
If you’re going to begin a stretch of games without LJ Martin at running back, it’s better to do it against an Iowa State team that has struggled with tackling in spots this year, instead of against Notre Dame.
Journee Tonga is 13th nationally in yards per carry at 8.3 yards on 19 carries this season. If BYU gets that level of production from the freshman ball-carrier, they are going to be able to keep the offense moving along in a stretch without its star.
But Tonga won’t be the only one.
Preston Rex has 18 carries this season and has expressed how confident he feels at the running back position this year, compared to last season, when he felt more like a gadget player after moving over from safety.
It will be interesting to see if offensive coordinator Aaron Roderick and running back coach Harvey Unga create an opportunity for freshman Devaughn Eka to earn snaps.
BYU RB Devaughn Eka on how he's approaching this upcoming game against Iowa State.
(From earlier this week at practice, before availability reports) pic.twitter.com/8iYOOlIPjQ
— Mitch Harper (@Mitch_Harper) October 8, 2026
Eka was impressive in fall camp, particularly in one of the scrimmages.
There’s also Logan Payne to round out the depth at running back.
Iowa State is 85th nationally in rush defense this season. While you can expect great effort and physicality from the Cyclones, BYU should be able to run the ball still.
3. Expecting improved play from the Right Tackles
The first game without Andrew Gentry was a little bit of a roller coaster between Bott Mulitalo and Siosiua Latu-Finau. Mulitalo got the start and ended up playing 46 snaps to Latu-Finau’s 19.
There were two false start penalties on Mulitalo in that game as he was going up against a senior EDGE rusher from TCU in Zach Chapman, who was making his season debut last week.
While the penalties were a little concerning, there were glimpses of the star power
Two BYU vs Iowa State questions
1. How much of a focus does BYU make to throw the ball early in this game?
BYU struggled to throw the football last week against TCU. The misty rain fell throughout the win at TCU. So there’s some grace to be given considering the elements.
BYU QB Bear Bachmeier made it clear it was a one-off performance affected by the elements. The Cougars were efficient through the air in the first three games of the season.
Now, with Martin out, it’s the perfect spot to ignite the passing attack to its fullest potential.
Finding ways to get the ball to Legend Glasker and the BYU tight ends will be important not only in this game, but to give peace of mind moving forward that what took place in Fort Worth was truly elements-induced.
2. Will Iowa State continue to miss tackles?
The Cyclones had a big win last week over West Virginia 45-42. Iowa State’s offense was explosive, led by star running back Aiden Flora. The Cyclone offense put up 577 yards. That’s the good news for ISU. The defense allowed 518 yards and missed 27 tackles against WVU’s offensive attack.
Go back to the Utah game two weeks ago in Ames, Iowa State missed another 24 tackles. So in the last two games, they’ve missed 51 tackles. That’s probably music to the ears of BYU QB Bear Bachmeier when he decides to take off and run. Or when Journee Tonga shows his shiftiness in the open field.
By comparison, BYU’s defense missed nine tackles in the win at TCU.
View this post on Instagram
One score prediction for BYU vs Iowa State
This could be a one-score game entering the fourth quarter. Iowa State can hang around.
After getting down early against Utah, they showed some fight in the second half and made it interesting for a moment before going three-and-out, opening the door for Utah to pull away.
Look for BYU’s defense, ninth nationally in rush defense and allowing only 75 yards per game, to keep Aiden Flora and the Iowa State offense from popping off big plays.
BYU gets a wire-to-wire victory with an early fourth-quarter touchdown to make it a two-score win, setting the stage for next week’s top-10 clash against Notre Dame.
Score prediction: BYU 27, Iowa State 13
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.
