BYU vs. Stanford: Game Day Preview Plus Score Prediction
Sep 6, 2025, 1:19 AM
PROVO, Utah – BYU vs. Stanford: A Big 12 versus ACC showdown.
Imagine telling someone that when these two programs last faced each other in Provo, back in 2003.
Stanford leads the all-time series against BYU, 2-1.
BYU won the last meeting, three years ago, their final regular season game as an FBS Independent.
The Cougars come into the game with a 1-0 record and are barely outside of the AP Top 25 rankings. Meanwhile, Stanford is 0-1 and coming into the matchup off a bye week.
The Cardinal lost their regular season opener two weeks ago at Hawaii, 23-20.
BYU vs. Stanford
Location: LaVell Edwards Stadium
Kickoff: 8:15 p.m. (MDT)
TV: ESPN
Radio: KSL NewsRadio (102.7 FM, 1160 AM) — Pregame begins at 6 p.m.
Three Game Day Thoughts
1. Feed LJ Martin
How good was LJ Martin last week?
The junior running back posted a career-high 131 rushing yards on eight carries in one half of work against the struggling Vikings.
Competition will be tougher this week, but if LJ gets the workload that he should, why can’t Martin set another career-high for rushing yards?
scarier in slowmo 😤 pic.twitter.com/DZUVsrTfYP
— BYU FOOTBALL (@BYUfootball) September 4, 2025
The best friends to a young quarterback are an offensive line and a talented ground attack. Utilize both of those aspects of the offense and feed LJ Martin the rock early and often.
This feels like a game where BYU should give Martin at least 20 touches. If they do, the talented ball-carrier will come away with some production.
It won’t be easy, as Stanford has a veteran defensive line that is among the most experienced in the ACC. The Cardinal have two players with more than 30 starts in their college careers.
Martin is up for the task when called upon.
2. Win on first downs
Last week, BYU had a 57% success rate on first down calls. What that means is they gained at least half of the yardage needed to move the chains again. That’s a good clip.
Stanford wasn’t far behind in their game against Hawaii. The Cardinal had a 56% success rate on first down.
BYU racked up 28 first downs in the win over Portland State, while Stanford picked up 21 first downs.
The Cardinal struggled at quarterback two weeks ago. If BYU can get Stanford behind the sticks on second and third down, that’s going to force the Cardinal to go to the air. That’s when BYU’s defense can get aggressive and be opportunistic.
On the flip side for BYU, if Bachmeier can continue to be in second and manageable, that opens up the options and window dressing that offensive coordinator Aaron Roderick can throw at Stanford.
3. For BYU, build an early lead
If BYU can jump on Stanford early with a two-possession lead, that’s going to be a tough spot for the Cardinal to rely on their ground attack.
BYU quarterback Bear Bachmeier told KSL Sports this week that getting off to a fast start against Stanford was a top priority. Last week, in the win over Portland State, the first offensive series stalled in BYU’s own territory with a punt.
Two BYU vs Stanford Questions
1. What wrinkles will Stanford and Frank Reich throw at BYU?
Stanford has talent. This is a significant step up in terms of challenges from what Portland State posed last week.
If you look at the 247Sports Team Talent rankings, Stanford ranks at No. 46, while BYU is at No. 70.
BYU head coach Kalani Sitake said his team needed to be “overprepared” for this week’s game as Stanford comes into the matchup off a bye week. On top of that, Stanford’s first opponent, Hawaii, was an Air Raid team. That scheme doesn’t translate much to what BYU does.
The Cardinal don’t have much to lose in this game as they still have ACC play to circle the wagons down the road. Why not throw some new wrinkles that potentially catch BYU off guard?
Portland State did that for a series that had minimal success before BYU snuffed out the 13 and 14 personnel, along with a different quarterback.
But this is a former NFL coach, Frank Reich, leading the Cardinal. I wouldn’t be surprised if he has a few tricks up his sleeve to catch BYU off guard.
2. Will BYU’s special teams extend its touchdown streak?
BYU’s special teams live up to their name. Last week, a blocked field goal by John Taumoepeau led to Jack Kelly gathering the loose ball and returning it for a touchdown.
It was the third consecutive game that BYU’s special teams had scored a touchdown, dating back to last season.
The last game BYU’s special teams didn’t score a touchdown was against Arizona State in Tempe.
One Score Prediction for BYU vs Stanford
I’m expecting BYU to win this game. I’d be surprised if BYU didn’t win in this spot and dropped one to the Cardinal.
However, I wouldn’t be surprised if Stanford was always within striking distance. I’m projecting BYU keeps a wire-to-wire lead with Stanford doing enough always to hang around, forcing BYU to play the entire four quarters.
BYU’s defense will be too much for Stanford in the end.
Score prediction: BYU 24, Stanford 10
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.
