Some Truth about the BYU D

I think that our D has played well in some guys, poorly in others. So I thought I would check to see if there were any themes I could tie it to, or reasons for it. I started with the QB Efficiency rating of the opponents QB, and is as far as I got, because it really tells the story.



BYU has lost 2 games, and played poorly defensively in both. The offense did not help either, with turnovers or inability to score, but the D struggled regardless. I do not think it a coincidence that both Ponder and Dalton are statistically the best QBs BYU will face all year.



Dalton ranks #7 nationally in QB Efficiency. Ponder ranks #14 nationally. Not only are both efficient passers, but both are playmakers with their feet. They put a great deal of pressure on an opposing defense. BYU tends to try to take one thing away from a team, but those guys make it nearly impossible to do just that with their versatility and with the speed and skill around them. I think the skill set of Ponder and Dalton are the reasons BYU lost those 2 games as much as anything.



As to the other QBs BYU has faced, or will face, let's review.



OU- L. Jones #30

Tulane-Kemp #47

CSU- Stucker #73

USU-Borel #46--great runner as well

UNLV- Clayton #80 good runner

SDSU- Lindley #51

Wyo-Carta-Samuels #108 but a fast runner.

UNM-Porterie #98

AFA-Around #41, but not enough throws to qualify. AFA has less than 100 passes all year as a team.

Utah Cain #39, Wynn not rated yet



The point being, I think our D philosophy will work just fine against the QBs we have left to play this year, and the D will play well. Utah is a wild card if Wynn plays and he goes off, but otherwise, we will not see a QB remotely close to the level of Dalton or Ponder again. In fact, probably not the level of Lindley from SDSU either, who got really hot for that game, and is improving each week.



We just need to switch the philosophy up when we play dual threat QBs that are efficient. Otherwise, our D does enough to win. This weekend should be no exception where the Wyo QB is pretty bad at passing statistically. I think we contain him as we did Borel and win easily.

Lindley was also helped by the fact that BYU shut down the SDSU run game, so they had no choice but to pass the ball down the field. Point being, when BYU makes a team one dimensional, they usually win, even if the other team passes it well. If BYU can not take as aspect of the game away from an opponent, that is when they struggle.



I expect BYU to focus on the run at WYO and make that freshman beat them with his arm. Do not think he can do it.