Instant Takeaways From BYU’s Dominant Win Over Southern Illinois

Aug 31, 2024, 9:25 PM | Updated: Sep 4, 2024, 12:11 pm

KSL Sports

PROVO, Utah – BYU put on a show in its season-opening 41-13 victory over the visiting Southern Illinois Salukis at LaVell Edwards Stadium.

Here are some of my takeaways from the Cougars win.

1-0. pic.twitter.com/JNGeMegIQD

— BYU FOOTBALL (@BYUfootball) September 1, 2024

Best offensive performance since becoming a Big 12 member

You might see that take and think, “That’s impossible.” However, since BYU joined the Big 12 last year, they only have one game with more than 400 yards of total offense.

That one performance occurred on Saturday night.

BYU eclipsed the 500-yard mark against the Salukis, who boasted a top-four defense in the FCS last season. BYU finished with 527 yards.

The previous high was 394 yards against Southern Utah.

Jake Retzlaff backed up Aaron Roderick’s “clear-cut” QB comment

The fifth try was the charm.

Jake Retzlaff earned his first win as a starting QB on Saturday night, improving his record to 1-4. The former No. 1 JUCO QB recruit had far and away his best performance as a BYU Cougar.

Retzlaff’s work in the offseason with John Beck showed in the power behind his throws. He completed eight passes that gained 15 yards or more.

A Jake Retzlaff 💣 to Jojo Phillips gives #BYUFootball a 2⃣ TD lead#GoCougs | #BYUvSIU https://t.co/YGpesM3wwj

— KSL Sports (@kslsports) September 1, 2024

The offense had a good pace, and penalties were at a minimum.

Earlier in the week, BYU offensive coordinator Aaron Roderick said there was a “clear-cut” starter at quarterback. Well, Retzlaff backed up those remarks on Saturday night with his play. He shut the door on talk of playing Gerry Bohanon as a two-quarterback situation.

Retzlaff finished with 348 yards on 20-of-30 and three touchdowns with no interceptions.

He probably would have liked a few passes back, along with the first-quarter fumble that BYU center Connor Pay recovered, but by all accounts, it was a strong showing.

BYU’s defense was solid

My initial takeaway from the game is that the defense was solid in the blowout win over the Salukis. The only knock is that there were only two sacks and one takeaway.

BYU’s one takeaway was a poorly thrown pass by SIU quarterback DJ Williams, which was an easy grab for Cougar defensive back Jakob Robinson.

Jack Kelly living up to the hype in his BYU football debut

Weber State transfer Jack Kelly has received much praise since arriving on campus last January. The early returns suggest that the hype was warranted.

Kelly finished with five tackles, 0.5 tackles for loss, and one quarterback hurry.

His blend of speed and size makes him a top player on BYU’s defense this season.

LJ Martin looked fine

The sophomore running back from El Paso, Texas, dealt with a shoulder injury in the offseason. There were reports on whether he would miss game action this season.

BYU coaches maintained that there was no issue and Martin would play in games.

nice and easy @aLJayMartin

📺 https://t.co/zDOxM9A89H pic.twitter.com/oCpLFoRTiI

— BYU FOOTBALL (@BYUfootball) September 1, 2024

They were right.

Martin finished with 13 carries for 67 yards and one touchdown, with one receiving touchdown.

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.