BYU Midseason Report Card: Lack Of Consistency Hurting Cougars

PROVO, Utah – The 2019 season had so much promise for BYU early in the year. Now it appears to be on life support.

BYU is currently 2-4 at the midway point and despite significant injuries to the Cougars starting quarterback and running back, losses against Group of 5 programs Toledo and South Florida were inexcusable.

There have been individuals and position groups that have shown moments of brilliance, but nothing has been sustained. BYU lacks consistency and it’s one of the big reasons the Cougars are 2-4 at the midway point.

With six games down, and six guaranteed games coming up, let’s take the time to dish out some grades on how each position group has performed for BYU through six weeks.

Quarterback

The thumb injury to sophomore Zach Wilson was a significant setback for the BYU offense. Wilson was averaging 264 yards per game and had the ability to pop off for a big run at any time. When Wilson returns later this season, he will return to being BYU’s starting quarterback. But Cougar fans have to be excited from what they’ve seen out of their No. 2 and No. 3 quarterbacks in Jaren Hall and Baylor Romney. Hall showcased his dual-threat abilities before going down with a head injury against USF which led to Romney stepping in and showing well in two drives.

Zach Wilson continues to make clutch plays week in and week out!

(Via @ESPNCFB)pic.twitter.com/GqVHl2JdsN

— PFF College (@PFF_College) September 14, 2019

BYU’s quarterback position has been one of the least of their worries. The exciting part is that there is still room to grow.

Grade: B+

Running Back

Where would BYU be if graduate transfer Ty’Son Williams had played all six games so far this season? When Williams went down with a season-ending ACL injury against Washington, the Cougars lost their only feature back. Williams, who is planning on applying for a medical hardship year from the NCAA, was an instant star for BYU.

Ty'Son Williams celebrated with his family after #BYU's 29-26 win over #Tennessee in 2OT. pic.twitter.com/cd6d9OVM9d

— Zak Hicken (@zakhicken) September 8, 2019

Emmanuel Esukpa has been okay, Lopini Katoa had a nice showing against USF but his role this year has been more behind the scenes, Sione Finau has good speed, and Jackson McChesney is a returned missionary. Williams’ injury left a big hole in the Cougars backfield and it’s not a coincidence that BYU has lost each game since Williams went down.

Grade: C

Wide Receiver

Coming into the season offensive coordinator Jeff Grimes said this group was the most improved unit during the off-season. There have been strides from this position, especially in seniors Aleva Hifo and Micah Simon. Another senior Talon Shumway has made some acrobatic grabs and sophomore Dax Milne has been one of BYU’s top touchdown targets this season.

WHAT A CATCH TALON SHUMWAY#GoCougs #BYUFOOTBALL pic.twitter.com/oIzyXzI1Qg

— BYU FOOTBALL (@BYUfootball) September 14, 2019

The strides have been positive,  but there have been too many setbacks to see tangible growth. BYU’s receivers have had a lot of drops this season and they’ve continued to struggle against athletic and quick secondaries from the likes of Utah, Washington, and even South Florida.

Grade: C-

Tight End

Matt Bushman has been excellent. He can continue to improve as a blocker, but as a pass-catching tight end, there are very few in college football better than Bushman at the tight end position. Bushman has been the only reliable player on BYU’s offense through six weeks. The rest of the tight end unit has been non-descript.

Matt Bushman is a match up nightmare. His game is nice. pic.twitter.com/uqB8YEHF9O

— Dr. Derwin L. Gray (@DerwinLGray) September 22, 2019

Moroni Laulu-Pututau is in and out of the lineup with injuries. Hank Tuipulotu suffered a season-ending injury during fall camp and Joe Tukuafu has now moved back to the offensive line.

Grade: B+

Offensive Line

There were a lot of expectations for BYU’s offensive line entering this season. To begin the year, there was a lot of promise after giving up only sack against Utah’s talented defensive line. Then the big guys up front in BYU’s offense performed very well in wins against Tennessee and USC. Since the overtime win over the Trojans, BYU has been wondering what has happened to their offensive line.

Grimes’ offensive MVP: Brady Christensen

“He is really coming into his own and in my opinion as one of the best players not only on our team, but maybe in the country. It’s too early to say that, maybe, but he’s playing at a different level than other players.” #BYU

— Mitch Harper (@Mitch_Harper) September 23, 2019

The bright spot has been left tackle Brady Christensen who is a future NFL player. He’s been a star protecting the blindside for BYU’s three different quarterbacks. Center James Empey has been solid as well along with Keanu Saleapaga who has grown leaps and bounds from where he was a year ago along the Cougars defensive line. It has been the guard spots that have been prone to miss assignments.

Giving up 13 tackles for loss and six sacks to a USF defense was a major blow to the outlook on BYU’s offensive line moving forward.

Grade: C-

Defensive Line

BYU’s run defense is the 8th worst in the country right now giving up 224.5 yards per game on the ground. Only twice since 1972 (year LaVell Edwards was hired) has BYU given up 200-plus yards per game on the ground to opponents. The 2019 defense has the makings of becoming the third and it starts upfront with the BYU defensive line. Khyiris Tonga and Bracken El-Bakri have been solid for the Cougars along with Lorenzo Fauatea who had a monster game against USC. But that’s about it. There hasn’t been a consistent pass rush and the Cougars can’t shed blocks and are not sound in gap assignments.

GROWN.

MAN.

STRENGTH.@khyiristonga 💪💪 pic.twitter.com/Ofo9iLjvY0

— BYU FOOTBALL (@BYUfootball) September 16, 2019

Grade: D

Linebacker

The loss of Zayne Anderson to a shoulder injury was a big setback, but young faces have stepped up for the Cougars at linebacker. Chaz Ah You, Payton Wilgar, and Kavika Fonua have been solid and none were projected to be starters entering fall camp. Also, Isaiah Kaufusi has been solid.

#BYU sophomore Chaz Ah You has all the makings of being the Cougars next great outside linebacker. https://t.co/uYNgnLzxOk

— Mitch Harper (@Mitch_Harper) October 11, 2019

The one question at linebacker is, who is the leader? Ah You is a rising star and Wilgar is becoming one of the more consistent players in the program. But who’s the Bryan Kehl or Cameron Jensen of this group? BYU desperately needs that leader to emerge moving forward in the back half of the season.

Grade: C+

Cornerback

Senior Dayan Ghanwoloku has been excellent for BYU this season, but like so many in this position group, Ghanwoloku is battling injuries at the moment.

Ghanwoloku should be back to action this Saturday against Boise State. Not having him against USF was a big void for the Cougar defense. He has a potential future in the NFL with how much of a playmaker he can be.

But from Ghanwoloku, Chris Wilcox, to Keenan Ellis, BYU’s depth at corner has been tested due to injuries. There has been a payoff with playing so many guys. Sophomore Isaiah Herron has emerged as a playmaker and Malik Moore has made leaps forward after being switched from safety back to cornerback.

Dayan Ghanwoloku had two goals when he came to BYU: Earn a degree, and to move on to play in the NFL. After crossing the first off his list, the NFL is now in his sights. #BYUMediaDay pic.twitter.com/5KgoCLEf4R

— KSL Sports (@kslsports) June 18, 2019

If BYU can add Wilcox in the final four games that would be a huge boost to this unit.

Grade: B-

Safety

Besides senior Austin Lee, there has been a revolving door of players seeing action at safety. The first game of the season, preferred walk-on Hayden Livingston got the start against Utah. Then seventh year senior Sawyer Powell, Malik Moore before switching to cornerback, and now Beau Tanner.

From Alta HS ➡️ Utah ➡️ SLCC ➡️ BYU#BYU senior safety Austin Lee reflects on his unique path to Provo and wanting to make the most of the remaining games in his final season. @kslsports pic.twitter.com/noUk1jYIJi

— Mitch Harper (@Mitch_Harper) October 16, 2019

Lee’s performances early in the year and against USF have been the highlights for this group, but aside from Lee, it’s been a non-descript unit.

Grade: C+

Specialists

Jake Oldroyd has had three misses in the past two games on placekicking, but for the most part, Oldroyd has been a huge weapon for the Cougars. A big reason for BYU’s two wins is because of the leg of the sophomore kicker. Oldroyd has also played a big role in the Cougars’ punting duties as well.

With two FGs of 50+ yards in only nine career games played, Jake Oldroyd is on pace to become the most prolific long-range kicker in BYU football history.

— Greg Wrubell (@gregwrubell) October 15, 2019

Skyler Southam has done a solid job on kickoffs and prior to last week’s fumble at USF, Danny Jones had been solid in pooch punt situations.

Grade: B-

Mitch Harper is a BYU Insider for sports.ksl.com and host of the Cougar Tracks Podcast and Cougar Sports Saturday (Saturday from 12-3 pm) on KSL Newsradio. Follow him on Twitter: @Mitch_Harper.