Breaking down BYU’s defensive improvement midway through preseason training camp

The starting quarterback battle between incumbent Jake Retzlaff and newcomer Gerry Bohanon has hogged BYU football headlines for more than six months, and rightfully so.

Quarterback is easily the most important position in college football, especially at a place like BYU.

Meanwhile, second-year coordinator Jay Hill’s defense has plenty of position battles going on as well midway through preseason training camp, particularly at safety, one of the cornerback spots, two of the linebacker spots and the interior of the defensive line.

“Our goal is to (identify) as many starters as we can that can help us win,” head coach Kalani Sitake said Monday. “The best 11 will be in on the first snap.”

Some shuffling in the secondary

It very well could be the case that five of BYU’s best 11 defenders play in the secondary, which is why Micah Harper is playing a lot of nickel in camp. With Harper mixing it up with the cornerbacks rather than the safeties, there is a little more room for some candidates to emerge as starters from that group, but not much.

Talan Alfrey, Raider Damuni, Crew Wakley, Ethan Slade, Tanner Wall and freshman Tommy Prassas are battling to earn Hill’s trust and become starters for the Aug. 31 opener against Southern Illinois.

“Well, the safety room is going to be extremely difficult because there is a lot of good depth. There are a lot of good players in there,” Hill said last week. “There are a lot of position groups like that, where the next week to 10 days are going to mean a lot as far as solidifying depth charts.”

In somewhat of a surprise, Hill acknowledged that Prassas, a three-star recruit from Arizona who participated in spring camp , is getting some time with the first-team defense in camp.

“He is in the mix (to play), for sure,” Hill said.

Regarding Harper, who is returning from a knee injury, Hill said he is playing some nickel in camp, but will “mostly play safety” when the season begins.

“We feel like he can be a good in-between guy,” Hill said.

Defense is not getting dominated in camp

Throughout camp, neither the offense nor the defense continually gets the upper hand, which is the way Sitake likes it. Monday, he reported that Saturday’s scrimmage was a draw, with each side having its moments.

“It is hard to say that one side won. It was an evenly matched day between the offense and defense. We had some success on offense and some success on defense,” Sitake said. “I think a lot of the guys did exactly what we thought they would.”

Sitake said they came out of the scrimmage healthy, “for the most part,” although a few guys are banged up.

“Nobody gone for the year,” he said. “There will be guys that will miss some time, but it is OK. That is part of going live (tackling).”

Linebackers lining up to compete

Linebacker Jack Kelly said Monday that the defense “played amazing” during the scrimmage and has risen up to meet the challenge of learning and executing Hill’s schemes.

“Everyone was playing fast, physical, aggressive,” said Kelly, the transfer from Weber State. “The understanding of the assignments are really picking up well right now. … The whole team looked good.

“There were positives from offense and defense. So that was great to see.”

Like the safety position, there is plenty of competition at the three linebacker spots.

Kelly seems like a safe bet to earn a starting nod, but beyond the redshirt junior there are up to a half-dozen candidates for the other positions. Another transfer who has impressed in preseason training camp is Sione Moa, from Utah State.

Others in the mix are redshirt sophomores Harrison Taggart and Isaiah Glasker, UCLA transfer Choe Bryant-Strother , sophomore Siale Esera , Maika and Ace Kaufusi and Lucky Finau.

“I think every one in the linebackers room can play,” Kelly said. “They have a chance to start and get (playing) time.”

Kelly said he will line up all over the field, some times off the edge, other times on the inside where the Cougars are trying to replace Ben Bywater , who medically retired. The emphasis in 2024, Kelly added, has been to stay on attack.

“The coaches want us to be smart and obviously do our assignment, but just attack,” he said. “They don’t want to play passive. They want us to attack and make plays and go out there and get stops when we need them.”

“I feel like I am fitting really well into that,” he continued. “All the players have welcomed me and allowed me to do my assignment — play fast and be able to trust each other all around us.”

Hill is high on this linebackers group

Before the scrimmage, Hill said the defense “is much further ahead than where we were last year at this time” and noted that efforts to be more stout against the run appear to be working.

As far as the linebackers are concerned, Hill said several have “stepped up” to fill the considerable void left by Bywater and another outstanding playmaker from 2023, Max Tooley.

“I think Jack Kelly is playing really well. Isaiah Glasker has really stepped up,” Hill said. “Harrison Taggart is way ahead of where he was last year at this time. Ace Kaufusi has done a lot of great things. Sione Moa has done some good stuff. … Choe Bryant-Strother has done some good things.”

Dissecting the defensive line, and developing a pass rush

There has been a huge emphasis in camp on developing a better pass rush, after the Cougars ranked dead last in the country in sacks in 2023. Rush ends coach Kelly Poppinga said last week that the improvement will be evident when the games start.

Seniors Tyler Batty and Isaiah Bagnah are the returning starters at the defensive end spots, and will be bolstered by fellow senior Logan Lutui. Two other seniors — Blake Mangelson and John Nelson — have moved inside to defensive tackle spots.

Poppinga said the younger guys, such as freshman Ephraim Asiata, Bodie Schoonover, Kini Fonohema and Viliami Po’uha, have a chance to contribute as well.

“I just feel like it is a deep, solid group,” Poppinga said. “There are going to be some growing pains along the way, but the one thing I think we can do in that group is rush the passer. Last year, I put the main thing on (lack of sacks) is we couldn’t stop the run. And if you can’t stop the run, you can’t control the game with the pass rush.”

No question, BYU’s interior defensive line was weakened when Danny Saili hit the transfer portal and landed at Arkansas. That one hurts. But Nelson, Mangelson, David Latu and Josh Singh have a lot of experience, and newcomers Luke To’omalatai, Dallin Johnson and John Taumoepeau add depth and energy.

“Those guys are going to be good players in this defense,” Hill said of To’omalatai and Taumoepeau. “I like where they are at. There is always a lot to learn, especially for a juco guy, and with the complexity of our defensive scheme. They got a lot to learn, but I like our defensive progression right now. They are going to help us.”

Cornerbacks in the queue to help Jakob Robinson

Two-year starting cornerback Jakob Robinson has one side nailed down, while the other starting corner is up in the air. Candidates include Weber State transfer Marque Collins, part-time 2023 contributors Mory Bamba and Evan Johnson, and freshmen such as Jonathan Kabeya and Therrian “Tre” Alexander.

“Having Tre come in, Jonathan come in, they are technically sound, they are physical,” Robinson said.

“Us older guys are doing the same. We are pushing harder than we’ve been pushed before. … I can tell everyone understands the defense a lot more. They understand the scheme, know what to jump. I just think that everyone is just faster in general.”