BYU Football must do something it’s only done once to beat Arizona

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The 15th-ranked BYU Cougars and Arizona Wildcats square off in a Week 2 Big 12 football contest on Saturday.
For Kalani Sitake's team, this game could come down to two important stats above any of the rest. How many times can the Cougars defense pressure or sack Arizona quarterback Noah Fifita?

In terms of sacks, BYU has only put Fifita on the ground once in the past two years. That came early in the third quarter on October 12, 2024. Isaiah Glasker stripped the ball from Fifita on the sack, and teammate Harrison Taggart recovered the fumble to set up BYU deep in Arizona territory. The Cougars rolled on to a 41-19 win.

The result from two years ago was a better result than mid-way through last season. BYU nearly watched their undefeated second come to an abrupt end and needed to overcome a double-digit deficit in the fourth quarter for a double overtime win. Arizona's returning players still feel the agony from the stunning 33-27 result. However, BYU's defense failed to register a sack against Fifita.

This will have to change if BYU does not want another close dog fight to open up conference play this year.

Both teams have high hopes for this season, and are coming off "momentum building" seasons in 2025. For BYU, Bear Bachmeier's college debut couldn't have been scripted any better. The Cougars ended with a 12-2 record with two losses to Texas Tech, keeping them out of the College Football Playoff. On the other hand, Arizona went 9-3 in the regular season before falling to SMU in the Holiday Bowl.

This game was moved into the non-conference portion of the season due to BYU being named Notre Dame's replacement when USC dropped out of their annual rivalry. However, the misfortune for the Irish has allowed for this Big 12 matchup in Week 2. So it's really a win-win scenario with BYU hosting one of college football’s biggest games in the middle of the season.

Arizona is one of two Big 12 opponents that BYU will play at least three times since joining the conference four years ago. Utah has gone back-and-forth with the Cougars in the Holy War rivalry. The bitter Beehive State foes have brought one of the best head-to-head competitions to a conference setting.

BYU opened the season with a dominant 63-7 win over Utah Tech. The Cougars are led by Bachmeier and top running back LJ Martin, who is expected to carry the load for the Cougars. They combined for 423 yards and four touchdowns against Arizona last year.

Arizona started strong with a 35-7 victory against Northern Arizona. Fifita and his teammates will be looking for revenge from last year's loss to BYU.

No. 15 BYU welcomes Arizona into Provo on Saturday afternoon. Kickoff is scheduled at 3:30 p.m. ET on FOX.