On Saturday, December 5th, Brigham Young University will take the field at 5:30 PM in Brooks Stadium of Conway, South Carolina. In this setting, at Coastal Carolina University, the Cougars will play their most important football game of the century.
When the BYU Cougars (9-0, CFP #13) face off against the Coastal Carolina Chanticleers (9-0, CFP #18), they will play for an opportunity not seen in Provo since 1997: A coveted bowl slot on New Year’s Day. If BYU exits Conway on Saturday with a win, their second ranked victory of the season, they may deservedly vault into one of the twelve reserved spots for January 1st. Currently ranked 13th, the Cougars are in search of a boost: A defining win, to leave no doubt they belong in that decorated dozen. On a larger scale, the Cougars would remain a long-shot contender for one of four playoff spots.
With these stakes, based around rankings which are known and definable, Saturday’s game takes on the most significant implications of any game since Lavell Edwards’ retirement. The Cougars know how far they need to climb. It will be their task to start the ascent.
While the stakes may be astronomically high, each team is still viewed by outsiders as an unknown product. Neither has played a particularly difficult schedule, and the playoff committee has notably downgraded BYU based on this weakness. Cougar fans may be unaware that the Chanticleers received a similar committee downgrade, currently ranked four spots lower than their AP rank of 14. Each team impressively remains undefeated through nine games, but some further frame of reference is necessary.
On BYU’s side, the Cougars have consistently been more dominant, with a scoring margin of +31.4 to Coastal’s +21.9. Brigham Young’s margin is first in FBS, and goes up further to +34.3 only counting away games (as this Saturday’s game). Furthermore, BYU has seven barnstormer victories by 30+ points; Coastal Carolina has two victories by said margin. As for similarly ranked opponents, each team faced off against the country’s then 21st-ranked teams during their respective road matchups against Boise State and Louisiana-Lafayette. Brigham Young won convincingly 51-17. Coastal won a dogfight 30-27.
Yet, the Chanticleers have not required pure dominance to accompany a myriad of strengths. Their offense rides behind a prolific, four-pronged rushing attack. Including quarterback Grayson McCall, Coastal boasts four players with at least 300 rushing yards. They are led in this area by multi-talented back Torrance Marable, who has amassed 592 yards on the ground, 163 through the air, as well as 14 all-purpose touchdowns. The Chanticleers run early and often, with nearly twice the number of rush attempts as passing. This is not to imply they cannot or do not pass the ball. Rather, the rushing attack has instead helped buoy their quarterback’s numbers to lethal efficiency.
While redshirt freshman McCall may not employ eye-popping raw numbers, he leads their balanced offense to near perfection. For the season, McCall maintains 20 touchdowns to only one interception, completing 67% of his passes and averaging 10 yards per attempt. He has added 365 yards and 5 TDs on the ground, presenting as a true dual-threat quarterback. What Coastal has not required of McCall has been to become a pure volume passer, as he averages only 218 passing yards per game, topping 300 yards in just one contest. It’s yet unknown how McCall would perform if asked to throw 30 or more times, which number he has yet to reach in 2020.
The Chanticleers have remained perfect without gaudy passing numbers, and in large part due to an agile, tenacious pass defense. Coastal’s pass rush has compiled 31 sacks on the year, with 11 interceptions on the back end. As a unit, CCU allows a paltry 181 passing yards/game, an impressive number regardless of the schedule. Defensive End Tarron Jackson is their defensive player to watch. Jackson is among the top pass-rushers in FBS, projected as a late-round NFL draft pick. He is responsible for 8.5 sacks and 12.5 TFLs on the year. An opposing quarterback would be unwise to live in the pocket against this force. Their most glaring weakness lies with their rush defense, which allows over 140 yards/game and 4.1 yards/carry. They are physical and quick, but slightly under-sized enough to cause issues in ground defense.
The key for Kalani Sitake’s Cougars will be to focus on the ground game on both ends. Defensive coordinator Ilaisa Tuika would do well to gameplan heavily against the run, to set Coastal Carolina up as a pass-first offense. The Chanticleers have not yet been forced into a pass-heavy role on the year, and it would certainly cause some discomfort for their option-style attack. On offense, OC Jeff Grimes will need discipline, to not play into Coastal’s pass rush. Dropping Zach Wilson back early and often does little to counter Coastal’s speed on the defensive front. Rather, the initial recipe should focus on wearing down their rush defense. Led by Tyler Algeier, the backs will need to keep star DE Tarron Jackson and his pass rush guessing with multiple looks and directions. BYU should seek to change the defense’s mindset, force them away from the blitz into run gap coverage, and allow Wilson to eventually work with a clean pocket. If Brigham Young can both establish and defend the ground game, they have a good shot at the win. The Chanticleers are built to control possession time, unless their opponent disrupts these facets. Ball control will be crucial.
Brigham Young University has an opportunity this Saturday, in the national spotlight, to define their season. They have an opportunity to play themselves into their biggest postseason stage in more than two decades, and against their best opponent of the season in Coastal Carolina. Like their pioneer ancestors, the Cougars have blazed a rocky but clear trail. From embarking as the only active football program West of the Rockies, to their rise as the premier program among a slew of late-arriving blue-chip names, Brigham Young goes into Conway with the hopes of Cougar Nation riding high on their shoulders. The stage is set at Brooks Stadium. The truck has arrived. The players are ready. As the school’s namesake Brigham Young boldly declared near the finish line of his 1847 pilgrimage, so is echoed to all who have watched the rise of BYU Football in 2020: “This is the right place.” Play on.
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