BYU Football: Can Cougars avoid repeating last season’s disaster?

BYU football collapsed in 2017 after entering the year with high hopes. With expectations tempered in Provo, can the Cougars rebound in 2018?

Last year’s BYU team fell apart before things could really get going. The Cougars looked listless against FCS Portland State in the season opener. BYU prevailed over the Vikings 20-6 at home, but it was a harbinger of a major downturn.

Following that early September kickoff to the 2017 campaign, BYU dropped seven straight before winning on the last weekend of October. Losses to LSU, Utah, Wisconsin, Mississippi State and even Boise State were hardly surprising. But the Cougars also dropped contests against 3-9 East Carolina, 6-7 Utah State, and 4-8 UMass during the year.

Injuries knocked BYU back down to earth. Kalani Sitake‘s team, despite the presence of so many upperclassmen on both sides of the ball, simply did not have the depth to rebound from the loss of key personnel. With so many Power Five teams on the schedule, independent BYU found itself merely trying to tread water over the course of a disappointing 4-9 campaign.

BYU once again returns one of the most veteran teams in the country. Can Sitake’s crew take down a tough group of opponents and contend for a New Year’s Six invitation? Let’s look at the composition of BYU’s offense and defense before evaluating the 2018 Cougars schedule.