BYU football with chance to show growth against resurgent Kansas | News, Sports, Jobs

Courtesy BYU Photo

Don’t expect BYU football players and coaches to have forgotten last year’s 38-27 loss at Kansas.

Now the Cougars want payback.

“We are excited because we know it didn’t go our way last year,” BYU head coach Kalani Sitake said earlier this week. “We know we can play better than what we did against them. We are excited for that opportunity to play them again at our house. A lot of their guys are back, so the matchup is going to be awesome.”

BYU faced the Jayhawks in its very first Big 12 game. The Cougars came in 3-0 record with a win at Arkansas, but struggled against the physicality of Kansas and couldn’t keep up.

But that was then and this is now, according to BYU senior receiver Darius Lassiter.

Courtesy BYU Photo

“I really think it’s that we can match the intensity of the Big 12 now,” Lassiter said. “Last year, our first game, just being [in Lawrence], we kind of came out flat. We know that if you do that in this league, that it can kind of get you behind and get you clawing from behind.

“That’s what you don’t want to do, because in this league there’s a lot of offenses that can score a lot of points, so you don’t want to play catch up. I feel like we just learned from our mistakes last year, and that kind of just put us in a position that we are in now.”

Cougar sophomore linebacker Harrison Taggart talked about how BYU realized last year just how competitive conference games would be and now they are prepared.

“Every single week is, in my opinion, a big game,” Taggart said. “The Big 12 is an amazing conference, and we’ve seen that. We’ve seen that last year. We’ve seen that this year. There’s tons of talent in the Big 12.”

He credited Kansas for giving the Cougars that “Big 12 awakening” and said that now gives BYU a “little bit of a chip on our shoulder.”

Courtesy BYU Photo

The Cougars have applied the lessons from their first season in the league and turned it into a 9-0 record overall (6-0 in conference play) and a No. 6 ranking in the latest College Football Playoff rankings.

Kansas, on the other hand, came into 2024 with some high expectations, only to lose six games by a combined 30 points (five by six points or fewer).

But the Jayhawks are coming in off their most complete game of the season, a 45-36 win over then-No. 17-ranked Iowa State.

“Kansas has a lot to prove and had a great game last week,” Sitake said. “They have a ton of talent and are well-coached. Their football IQ is impressive. They are playing well right now. I have to get these guys ready to play this weekend.”

Leading the way has been the Kansas offense, which has scored at least 27 points in its last six games.

Courtesy BYU Photo

“Their offense is really dynamic,” Taggart said. “They have a bunch of weapons, whether it’s through the quarterback, the receiver, their running back is really good as well. I think their O-line is really good as well. Overall, they’re a well put together team, and just shutting down their weapons, playing how we’ve been playing ball, and getting the ball back to our offense will be really important for this week.”

Leading the way is Jayhawk junior quarterback Jalon Daniels, a dual-threat athlete who can be a game-changer, but Sitake agreed that Kansas has a lot of weapons.

“He’s gifted,” Sitake said. “He can run and he can throw. He’s a veteran. It’s a difficult matchup. Their running back is back too. He is one of the premier running backs, and there are so many all over this conference. They don’t get enough credit for their defense either. We saw that last week. I am looking forward to the matchup. We want to play our best game of the year this weekend. We can be more efficient and it starts with today and today’s practice.”

In addition, BYU will once again be welcoming former offensive line and offensive coordinator Jeff Grimes back to Provo. Grimes is the offensive coordinator for the Jayhawks and is part of a solid staff that Kansas head coach Lance Leipold has assembled, according to Sitake.

“We have tons of respect for Kansas and their coaching staff,” Sitake said. “I have so much respect for Lance as a leader. He is an amazing man and coach. Just like they did last week, they can get up on you and beat a ranked team. Nothing is easy in this conference. We don’t anticipate it to be easy. In order for things to go our way, we have to play at our best no matter what game it is.”

BYU senior offensive lineman Connor Pay said the Cougars know this will be a test, but they have every reason to be confident as well.

“They’re good but on the flip side, we’re good too,” Pays said. “That’s what we’re focused on. A lot of the mistakes and challenges we’ve run into this season have been self-inflicted. If we make those mistakes, they’ll take advantage of it. So we’ve got to tighten up.”

No. 6 BYU vs. Kansas

TIME: 8:15 p.m. MT

TV: ESPN

WHERE: LaVell Edwards Stadium, Provo

THE WORD: This will be the third meeting between BYU and Kansas with the Jayhawks winning both previous meetings … Kansas won the last matchup, beating the Cougars 38-27 in Lawrence in 2023 … The two teams have never played in Provo, as the other meeting took in the 1992 Aloha Bowl in Hawai’i (a 23-20 Jayhawk win) … BYU leads the Big 12 and is No. 2 nationally in the ESPN Football Power Index strength of record metrics. The Cougars have wins over two teams currently ranked in the Top 25 and are one of four unbeaten teams remaining in the FBS.