BYU Football: Game-by-game predictions for 2019 season

STARKVILLE, MS - OCTOBER 14: Tanner Mangum #12 of the Brigham Young Cougars hands the ball to Ula Tolutau #5 during the first half of a game against the Mississippi State Bulldogs at Davis Wade Stadium on October 14, 2017 in Starkville, Mississippi. (Photo by Jonathan Bachman/Getty Images) /

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(Photo by Scott Cunningham/Getty Images) /

Since moving up to the FBS in 2012, Massachusetts has been a standard bearer for college football futility. The past two 4-8 seasons, if anything, mark a significant improvement from their 1-11 start to life in the FBS ranks. But the Minutemen are still far removed from anything close to resembling even a .500 football team, as they rebuild once again with one of the youngest rosters in the country.

Two years ago, though, the Minutemen downed BYU in a year where the Cougars backslid through an injury-plagued campaign. Last year restored some semblance of normalcy to the relationship between the two independents, as BYU toppled UMass 35-16 at Gillette Stadium. Now they will get the chance to square off for the first time on campus in Amherst after playing two straight in Provo in 2016 and 2017.

By the time late November rolls around, BYU is going to have everything dialed in on all cylinders. Zach Wilson is going to have a field day against the Minutemen, and Lopini Katoa is going to finish with at least one touchdown on the ground. Look out as well as the defense gets in on the scoring act, perhaps with a Dayan Ghanwoloku interception return for a touchdown.

Prediction: BYU 45, UMass 14 (7-4)

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