Five Things We Learned From Kalani Sitake’s BYU/Baylor Presser
Sep 23, 2024, 2:55 PM
BYU football head coach Kalani Sitake addressed the media in preparation for the week five matchup against the Baylor Bears. (Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret News)
(Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret News)
PROVO, Utah – The 22nd-ranked BYU football team kicked off week five of the 2024 season with a virtual press conference from head coach Kalani Sitake.
Sitake spent 15 minutes on Zoom with the media on Monday as his 4-0 BYU squad gears up to face Baylor (2-2, 0-1 Big 12) in Waco.
#BYU football head coach Kalani Sitake is addressing the media on Zoom in preparation for the week five matchup against Baylor.#BYUFootball #GoCougs pic.twitter.com/X953R0lQ86
— KSL Sports (@kslsports) September 23, 2024
Here are five things we learned from Sitake’s press conference for Baylor week.
BYU is giving LJ Martin “extra time” to heal from injury this week at Baylor
BYU star running back LJ Martin was noticeably absent from the Cougars weekly depth chart.
Kalani Sitake was asked if that meant Martin was out for this week against Baylor.
Kalani Sitake said they are targeting to have RB LJ Martin return for the October 12 game against Arizona.
Martin is out against Baylor this week as he continues recovering from an ankle injury.#BYU #BYUFootball
— Mitch Harper (@Mitch_Harper) September 23, 2024
“Yeah. I think we’re counting on him taking advantage of the extra time that we can get and hopefully get him back by the sixth game [against Arizona],” said Kalani Sitake.
“…I think if you ask LJ and the rest of the guys, whether you’re able to go isn’t really the question. It’s are you better than the guys that are at full strength? If you ask our running backs, they want to play. But we’ve got to make the best decision, and we can really take advantage of extra time and healing for him. That’s what we’re going to do with him.”
Martin has missed the past two games due to an ankle injury he suffered in BYU’s win at SMU.
Second-string running back Hinckley Ropati is working his way back from a knee injury he suffered at SMU. Ropati is listed on this week’s depth chart.
Other options at running back include Sione I. Moa, who had a breakout performance against Kansas State, rushing for 76 yards on 15 carries and a touchdown, Miles Davis, and Enoch Nawahine.
“Stop blowing his head up. We’ve got to keep him humble and keep him hungry.”
Speaking of Sione I. Moa, Sitake fielded two questions from reporters about the true freshman’s path to BYU.
Coming out of Timpview High School, Moa was offered a preferred walk-on opportunity by former BYU defensive coordinator Ilaisa Tuiaki during the 2020 recruiting cycle.
#BYU RB Sione I. Moa on whether he expected to get an RB1 workload against Kansas State.#BYUFootball pic.twitter.com/5IHk7MJGv8
— Mitch Harper (@Mitch_Harper) September 22, 2024
After the second question about Moa was asked during the virtual press conference, Sitake said, “You guys didn’t even talk to me about him before the season. Now you guys want to know all of the details. He’s a great player, and we’re excited about what he’s doing. He’s got some improvement to make. That’s what we’re going to focus on. So stop blowing his head up. We’ve got to keep him humble and keep him hungry.”
Going up against a former BYU player on the Baylor offensive line
Former BYU offensive lineman Campbell Barrington is starting at right tackle for the Baylor Bears. Last week, he was a captain in the Bears’ overtime loss at Colorado.
Sitake was asked if he still had a relationship with Barrington after leaving BYU in the 2023 transfer portal cycle. Barrington is in his second season with the Baylor program. Last year, he played alongside his older brother, Clark, who was also a former BYU lineman.
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“I haven’t talked with him much since he left; whenever I can see him, he knows we care about him. I love the Barrington family,” Sitake said. “We appreciate what they’ve done for us here and what they’ve done for me as a coach and our team. That’s kind of how things work in the Transfer Portal. You’re gonna have to get used to seeing some guys that maybe we’re on your roster but are playing at other places. I wish nothing but the best for them.”
Impact of a morning game on this week’s schedule
BYU will face the Baylor Bears at 11 a.m. (Central Time). It will be a 10 a.m. “body clock” game.
Sitake was asked if his team’s schedule would change this week in preparation for a morning kickoff.
“The schedule changes, but not with our practice schedule. We’ve already got our classes in the morning. We’re an afternoon practice team. … We’ll adjust a couple of other things, meeting times, things like that. But we’ve been in this situation before.”
Last season, BYU was 0-5 in games that started in the morning or early afternoon (1:30 p.m.).
Relationship with Baylor coach Dave Aranda
“Dave Aranda’s a good friend of mine. I’ve known him for decades. We’ve been around each other quite a bit. We did some professional development. So a lot of guys on our staff know him. … We know a lot about him, and that’s why the focus is on this game.”
The relationship between BYU’s staff and Aranda is strong. One of BYU’s consultants is former Utah State and Wisconsin head coach Gary Andersen.
During Andersen’s time in Logan and Madison, Aranda worked on Andersen’s staff as a defensive coordinator.
BYU analyst Chad Kauha’aha’a also worked with Aranda at the University of Wisconsin.
Linebackers coach Justin Ena and analyst Al Pupunu briefly worked with Aranda during his one-month stop at Southern Utah before he went to Hawaii.
Sitake later added, “Dave’s a great coach. He’ll get those guys ready and is a great person. I really enjoy my friendship with Dave. He has a great football mind. So we’ve got to be ready to roll.”
No. 22 BYU at Baylor
Date: Saturday, September 28, 2024
Kickoff: 10 a.m. (MDT)
TV: FS1
Radio: KSL NewsRadio (Extended pregame begins at 7 a.m.)
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.
