Tyler Batty Sets High Expectations Entering Final Year At BYU
Aug 5, 2024, 2:05 PM | Updated: 3:00 pm
PROVO, Utah— Only one player on the 2024 BYU football team received preseason All-Big 12 honors: Tyler Batty.
From once being an under-the-radar prospect at Payson High, who former BYU coordinator Ty Detmer discovered on the recruiting trail, Batty is now the face of a Power Four program.
The 6-foot-5, 275-pound defensive end didn’t expect to be back at BYU this season. He viewed last season as his senior year.
However, after BYU finished with an underwhelming 5-7 record last season that resulted in no bowl game and an NFL draft outlook that was in the sixth to undrafted free agent range, Batty took advantage of the extra year of eligibility granted from the COVID pandemic.
“This offseason was pretty transformative for us. Last year was nowhere near where we wanted it to be at the end of the day,” Batty said to KSL Sports. “But we also know who we have in the locker room. We know our team culture and, honestly, with a second year in the defensive scheme. Defensively, we’re really stoked about the potential this season has.”
Despite the team’s struggles, Batty individually showed he belonged in the physical grind of Big 12 football.
Batty finished with 57 tackles, nine tackles for loss, and 5.5 sacks last season. He also recorded the most hits on quarterback pressures (six) in the Big 12.
Batty earned Second Team All-Big 12 recognition.
BYU needs to produce sacks in 2024
He and the entire BYU defense, which finished 106th in total defense, 109th in rush defense, and dead last nationally in team sacks, are looking for more in 2024.
“It’s common knowledge that we need more sacks, and that kind of falls squarely on the defensive line’s shoulders and on mine,” said Batty. “For our team to be successful, I need to be in double-digit sacks. That’s what it is, right? There’s not really a question about it. I need to be in double-digit sacks.”
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The last time BYU football had an individual in double-digits for sacks was Bronson Kaufusi in 2015 before Kalani Sitake was the head coach.
Since Kalani Sitake took over as BYU’s head coach in 2016, the Cougars have not had a player reach double-digits in sacks.
Options around Tyler Batty on the defensive line
That’s a surprising stat for a coach who once orchestrated some of the best defenses in the nation as a coordinator at the University of Utah. But entering year nine with Sitake, BYU’s options to generate that coveted pass rush are increasing.
Batty won’t be the only one looked upon to generate a pass rush along the defensive line. BYU also returns senior Isaiah “Zay” Bagnah. Logan Lutui is back from an injury, and newcomers Sani Tuala, Ephraim Asiata, and Kini Fonohema give BYU more options off the edge to team up with Batty.
The interior of BYU’s defensive lines boasts senior veterans John Nelson and Blake Mangelson, who both began their careers as defensive ends.
Then you can’t forget Weber State transfer Jack Kelly, who has already emerged as a starter in BYU’s linebacker unit. Kelly was only half a sack short (10.5) of BYU’s team total for sacks (11) last season at Weber State.
“Whoever’s playing on the other side with me, needs to be in double digit sacks. We as a defensive line, need to be well into double digit sacks overall,” said Batty. “Last season, we had 11 sacks as a team. We need, at a bare minimum, twice that, and realistically, we need three times that.”
Impact on and off the field
Since Batty signed with BYU in the 2017 recruiting class, head coach Kalani Sitake has had high expectations for him.
He had a breakthrough three-sack game against Louisiana Tech as a true freshman in 2020. Since 2021, he’s been a mainstay on BYU’s defensive line.
#BYU DE Tyler Batty announcing he’s returning in 2024.
➡️: https://t.co/wCe3HrWiOu#BYUFootball #Big12 pic.twitter.com/G472k6XL7x
— Mitch Harper (@Mitch_Harper) December 3, 2023
Off the field, Batty was one of the first two BYU football players to receive an NIL endorsement in 2021. During his BYU career, he founded and operates Edwards Hands, a non-profit organization that provides horse rides free of charge to children with special needs.
Batty has impacted BYU on and off the field, accumulating 30 starts at defensive end. As a veteran leader in year two of defensive coordinator Jay Hill’s scheme, he looks to take it to a higher level.
“Tyler Batty led the Big 12 in QB hurries last year. I expect more out of him than that. …We need more sacks,” said Jay Hill. “I fully suspect that he’s only going to get better. He’s another one of those guys in the weight room where he put on 30 pounds on his bench and he’s bigger and stronger than he’s ever been. I suspect that he will have a phenomenal year.”
Comes down to execution
Settling into Hill’s scheme for a second season has Batty feeling optimistic entering the 2024 season.
“This is our identity as a defense, and this is what we’re gonna do, and this is how we’re gonna play. And now, the next piece is the execution. It just comes back to the execution,” Batty said on heading into year two in Hill’s defense.
“That familiarity for the second year in the defense is gonna allow guys to execute at a higher level. Things are going to slow down. The game slows down when you understand what you’re doing and you’re confident in what you’re doing. You’re able to play at a higher level. So realistically, that’s the jump we need to make is going from ‘OK, we’re a good defense’ to you want to be a great defense? Well, then, you have to execute almost flawlessly. Then we give our offense as many opportunities as we can for them to score.”
BYU football kicks off the 2024 season against Southern Illinois on Saturday, August 31 at 6 p.m. (MT) on Big 12 Now on ESPN+ and KSL NewsRadio.
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.
