Utah State’s Preparation Unphased By Unknown BYU Starting QB

Oct 30, 2019, 4:34 PM

Quarterback Christian Stewart #7 of the Brigham Young Cougars, who replaced the injured Taysom Hill, is sacked by Torrey Green #39 of the Utah State Aggies, during the fourth quarter of their game at LaVell Edwards Stadium on October 3, 2014 in Provo, Utah. Utah State won 35-20.(Photo by Gene Sweeney Jr/Getty Images )

(Photo by Gene Sweeney Jr/Getty Images )

BY KYLE IRELAND, KSL SPORTS

KSL Sports

LOGAN, Utah – Utah State head coach Gary Andersen said that his team’s preparation for BYU won’t change based on not knowing who’ll be starting at quarterback for the Cougars.

The Aggie coach previewed the Saturday, November 2 rivalry matchup during his weekly press conference in Logan.

“It doesn’t really change it that much, honestly,” said Andersen about the Aggies’ game prep. “The quarterbacks are there. The quarterbacks have won. They’ll be in a position to play games and win games.”

“The Battle for the Old Wagon Wheel” will be the first time this season the Aggies won’t know the opponent’s starting QB during their week of game preparation.

Wagon. Wheel. Wednesday.#AggiesAllTheWay pic.twitter.com/3Ljpxz7uaq

— USU Football (@USUFootball) October 30, 2019

BYU’s No. 1 quarterback Zach Wilson has been out for the Cougars’ last two games because he had surgery on his right hand after suffering an injury in the fifth game of the season, a 28-21 loss at Toledo.

Without Wilson, the Cougars have started Jaren Hall and Baylor Romney in each of the last two games respectively.

Hall was under center during the majority of BYU’s game at South Florida before suffering a concussion. Before leaving the game, Hall was 15/23 passing for 148 yards and a touchdown. He also carried the ball 16 times for 83 yards and a score. The Cougars fell to the Bulls 27-23. It was BYU’s third consecutive loss of the season.

Romney finished the game at USF and threw 6/10 for 73 yards. He started in place of Wilson and Hall in BYU’s following game at home against Boise State. The Cougars hosted the then No. 14 ranked Broncos and pulled out a 28-25 win to move to 3-4 on the season. Romney led BYU to victory completing 15 of 26 attempts for 221 yards and 2 TDs.

BYU head coach Kalani Sitake said that “competition and seeing who gives us the best opportunity to win” will determine who’s the QB for the rivalry game.

Andersen doesn’t think starting Hall or Romney will change how BYU offensive coordinator Jeff Grimes and passing-game coordinator Aaron Roderick will design an offensive gameplan against the Aggies.

MORE:

Whether it’s Hall or Romney, the Aggies won’t change their approach.

“The offense isn’t going to say, ‘Hey, we’re going to drastically change because this guy’s playing or that guy’s playing,” said Andersen. “Whoever they put out there is a quarterback that’s been able to successfully move the offense.”

On the Rivals podcast, former BYU defensive lineman Jason Buck had a similar outlook to Andersen’s view of the Cougar QB battle.

Buck stated that the offensive play calling would be more critical for the Aggies to prep for than who would be running those plays at quarterback.

Rivals is powered by BYU Athletics. Scott Mitchell and Jason Buck, past football rivals at the university and professional level, come together to talk about life and sports. Scott Mitchell was a record-setting quarterback at the University of Utah. He then went on to play for Miami Dolphins, Detroit Lions, Baltimore Ravens, and Cincinnati Bengals. Jason Buck was drafted out of Brigham Young University in the first round of the NFL draft. He played on the defensive line for Cincinnati Bengals and Washington Redskins. He earned a Super Bowl ring in the Redskins victory over Buffalo Bills in Super Bowl XXVI.

The Cougars head up to Logan to take on Utah State on Saturday, November 2 at 8 p.m. on ESPN2. The Aggies have won each of the past two seasons against BYU.