Can BYU’s defense contain Georgia Tech’s ‘intricate’ offense with three weeks to prepare?

NCAAF College Football News, Photos, Stats, Scores, Schedule & Videos...

ORLANDO, Fla. — The toaster attached to the Pop-Tarts Bowl trophy was not functioning properly when BYU coach Kalani Sitake and Georgia Tech coach Brent Key attempted to heat up a couple of the pastries at the media hotel Friday morning before a joint news conference.

In Sitake’s case, the 10-year coach better have his defense fired up and ready to play in Saturday’s game (1:30 p.m. MST, ABC) at Camping World Stadium, or it could be a long day for the No. 12 Cougars.

Led by ACC Quarterback of the Year Haynes King, the Yellow Jackets (9-3) have the kind of offense that could give BYU and defensive coordinator Jay Hill fits. At any rate, it will be a lot toastier in Orlando with temperatures expected to be in the high 70s, as opposed to Provo.

“The run game, I would say it is pretty similar to the University of Utah,” Hill said Wednesday. “There’s a lot of shifts and motions, and zigging and zagging. Eye discipline on the back end is going to be very critical as well. I really like the way they call the game. You see how one play sets up the next. I think they are very creative in what they do. They have got obviously very good talent.”

Coaches pose with Pop-Tarts Bowl trophy on eve of showdown in Orlando pic.twitter.com/UCWZOelhq8

— Jay Drew (@drewjay) December 26, 2025

With King finishing the regular season with 2,697 passing yards and 922 rushing yards, Georgia Tech ranks 12th nationally in total offense (466.3 yards per game) and 19th nationally in rushing offense (203 yards per game). King threw 12 touchdown passes and was picked off five times.

“These are the challenges that you get excited for as a coach because they pose a lot of challenges for us,” Hill said.

Another storyline involving Hill was brewing Friday, as former Utah coach Kyle Whittingham inched closer to becoming Michigan’s new coach. Although Hill and other BYU assistant coaches recently received a salary increase at BYU when Sitake signed his long-term contract extension earlier this month, the possibility exists that Whittingham could call upon Hill to join him in Ann Arbor.

Matt Zenitz of CBSSports.com reported Friday afternoon that Hill “is expected to be among the names of interest for the Michigan DC job,” citing unnamed sources.

As the Deseret News reported Friday, Hill would probably be high on Whittingham’s wish list, which also includes former BYU quarterback Jason Beck, currently serving as Utah’s offensive coordinator.

Having spoken to media members in Orlando on Wednesday, Hill was not available for comment Friday when news broke regarding Whittingham. Coincidentally, Michigan faces off against Texas in the Cheez-It Citrus Bowl here in Orlando on New Year’s Eve.

At the aforementioned news conference Friday, Sitake was asked whether his contract extension and additional resources promised to the football program by BYU’s administration will help him retain valuable staff members, such as Hill.

Sitake acknowledged that he does have coaches on his staff who want to be head coaches, but added that he can’t foresee the future. Mostly, he sidestepped the question and talked about the trust he has for all the assistants on his staff.

“It is tough because you don’t want to lose any of your guys just like we’re losing our seniors tomorrow,” Sitake said. “We don’t want to lose any of our family members. … But that’s just attrition, and that’s life.”

BYU defensive coordinator Jay Hill is expected to be among the names of interest for the Michigan DC job, sources tell @RJ_cfb and me.

Hill, who has a longstanding relationship with Kyle Whittingham, has led the way as BYU is ranked 21st nationally in scoring defense. pic.twitter.com/oJeg9GNHak

— Matt Zenitz (@mzenitz) December 26, 2025

Hill coached under Whittingham from 2005-13 at Utah and then left the Hill in 2014 to become Weber State’s head coach. After nine season with the Wildcats, he joined Sitake’s staff at BYU in 2023 and has been responsible for turning around the Cougars’ defense in the third year of his tenure as defensive coordinator.

The Cougars are No. 21 in the country in points allowed (19.6 ppg.).

“One thing we are lucky (about) at BYU is we get to coach some of the greatest young men in the country, I believe,” Hill said. “They are very motivated guys. They do well in the classroom. They do pretty well on the football field. We are pretty blessed with who we get to coach.”

More at NCAAF College Football News, Photos, Stats, Scores, Schedule & Videos