Cougar Insiders

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One way to look at BYU’s bowl game is that the Cougars have 11 wins again. Ending the year with 12 wins for 2025 would be a major step in earning a top 25, if not a top 15, preseason ranking heading into the season next fall.

BYU and Georgia Tech will face off in the Pop-Tarts Bowl in Orlando, Florida, Dec. 27, and will depart next week for bowl festivities. Will they be ready?

Here’s a look at the squad’s injuries, announced transfer portal candidates, and other bowl preparations by Jay Drew.

The Cougars need freshman quarterback Bear Bachmeier to heal up from his ankle injury suffered early in the Big 12 championship game. It would also be huge if junior running back LJ Martin made the decision to play in this game and not opt out like many possible NFL candidates do at this time of year. To date, reports have Martin practicing with the team.

BYU’s opponent in the Pop-Tarts Bowl, Georgia Tech, features a talented quarterback in Haynes King. Even with GT’s late-season troubles, he remained a talented force. Why did Tech struggle at the end and how do you expect BYU will do defending King and company in Orlando?

Jay Drew: As soon as I heard that BYU was facing Georgia Tech in the Pop-Tarts Bowl, I thought about Yellow Jackets quarterback Haynes King, and how impressive he was in the few GT games I watched in 2025. The Texas A&M transfer is one of the top dual-threat quarterbacks in the country. The Cougars will have their hands full with the 24-year-old QB.

When King was healthy, Georgia Tech was one of the best teams in the country. It was ranked as high as No. 8 before a 48-36 shootout loss at North Carolina State. King directs one of the best offenses in the country.

What happened? Coach Brent Key’s squad simply faced some really good teams, losing 42-28 to Pitt and then 16-9 to No. 4 Georgia in a defensive battle in Atlanta. It’s a darn good team, and a worthy bowl opponent for No. 12 BYU. The Cougars cannot afford to take them lightly.

Here’s what Jay Hill said when I asked him about the Jackets: “They have a very good run scheme. I love it. It’s complicated. They can hit you from all angles, which is one reason why it’s been so effective. The quarterback obviously makes it run, the ACC quarterback of the year.

“He can run it, he can throw it, and he’s scored a lot of touchdowns this year,” Hill continued. “They’ve got weapons on the perimeter, and I think their offensive line is athletic. It is a good offense, very good.”

With three weeks to prepare, I expect Hill will have the BYU defense prepared to play well. Just like last year against Colorado and Shedeur Sanders. The difference is that GT is more balanced offensively. Colorado struggled to throw the ball, and Hill knew it.

Also, King is better at reading defenses than Sanders. Tech’s defense isn’t that great, so BYU should be able to keep up. I expect a high-scoring game, won at the very end.

Dick Harmon: Haynes King is a dangerous QB that BYU will have its hands full defending. King is a dynamic, high-upside dual-threat quarterback with sub 4.5 speed. He has dominated college defenses with his legs and deep-passing ability. He creates plays out of structure and adds a unique rushing dimension that’s rare at the position; however, his lean build, inconsistent short-area passing, and occasional risky decisions raise questions for Jay Hill.

It is huge that Hill has so much time to game plan for Haynes and Georgia Tech’s heavy run-oriented offense. As we saw in last year’s Alamo Bowl, Hill is great at preparing his defense if given time to break down tendencies and prepare his guys with keys and ploys. King is a different animal for the Cougars. He is explosive and has Taysom Hill breakaway-speed.

The big concern with Georgia Tech is the team is well-balanced both on offense and defense as evidenced by the one-score loss to Georgia in a defensive battle. As we’ve seen in so many game this season, Hill is aided on defense when he gets BYU’s offense to control the ball and take time off the clock with long drives. This gives his players a chance to rest and keeps Georgia Tech’s offense on the sidelines. That will be a key in this game.

When Hill’s defense has faltered this season, it has usually been when players try to do too much themselves and do the jobs of others, leaving gap and edge control undefended and uncovered. This will be a key to this game — to be assignment-sound. Like the cliche says, everyone has to do their 1-Eleven.

I find it interesting that CBS Sports is reporting Florida, who hired GT offensive coordinator Buster Faulkner Dec. 11, might be poaching other GT coaches. The three mentioned are offensive analyst and former Alabama standout offensive lineman Emil Ekiyor, H-backs coach Dylan Dockery, and assistant offensive line coach Mike Polly. Other staff members reportedly left for Nebraska and Virginia Tech. All this shuffling of coaches at GT could be a factor in this game.

AJ Dybantsa led BYU to wins over Clemson and Cal-Riverside with outstanding play this past week. You can read game coverage of the Clemson win here and Cal Riverside here.

BYU’s women continue to rack up wins without star Delaney Gibb. After an 81-46 win over UTEP, freshman Olivia Hamlin was named the Big 12 player of the week.

Here’s look at No. 10 BYU’s NCAA résumé by Jackson Payne.

Comments from Deseret News readers:

In the past, the only times I would care if BYU won or lost was if it helped Utah. But once Kalani took over (has it been 10 years already?), I started rooting for them to win every game but one.

Sitake is such a great guy and coach, it’s hard not to like him. While I’m red through and through, I bear no ill-will toward BYU and will watch their games when possible.

— rvalnsz

“The O line and D line got beat by TT’s trench guys. That’s a starting point, but BYU needs a big-time running back and deep-threat at receiver.”

Boy Dick, you and the two experts on AFR might want to get together and settle on a common story. They don’t agree with this at all. They showed play after play from both BYU sides getting quickly into the other side’s territory with a level OF EASE.

So why the big losses on paper. First game self destruction. Second game the injured QB completely changed what the elite defense could completely focus on. It changed the whole game completely and TTU knew it.

Their belief was had Bear stayed healthy more scoring would have happened. Think about the halftime score if he was healthy. 7-7. 7-3 14-3 BYU. Third- quarter score. BYU up a TD or more.

BYU needs to keep improving but the luck has to change when you play elite teams like yourself or like TTU.

I have seen and coached too many strange games where one play made the game score look like a blowout that weren’t.

Strangely I didn’t read about having two QBs the real weakness.

Do really enjoy your articles.

— MarkMAN

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