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BYU Football: Cougars 2023 Season Preview and Predictions

By Hunter Newbold

Nov 27, 2021; Los Angeles, California, USA; BYU Cougars head coach Kalani Sitake celebrates in the second half against the Southern California Trojans at United Airlines Field at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 27, 2021; Los Angeles, California, USA; BYU Cougars head coach Kalani Sitake celebrates in the second half against the Southern California Trojans at United Airlines Field at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports /
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Excitement abounds among BYU Cougar fans everywhere as the Cougars prepare for their first season in the Big 12 Conference. How ready are they?

BYU football will make its Big 12 debut in 2023 after over a decade of independence. This was a move that will ultimately do a lot of good for the program in terms of national attention, but will also come with some challenges as they adapt to a schedule that is full of power five opponents.

Exciting news of Big 12 expansion came last week as rival Utah will be joining the conference in 2024 along with Arizona, Arizona State, and Colorado. The Cougars were fortunate to get in when they did and it will be interesting to see how they adjust.

The roster for the Cougars will look a little different in key roles, leaving some question marks and making the season a bit difficult to predict. Key departures include QB Jaren Hall, WR Gunner Romney, WR Puka Nacua, and LB Keenan Pili. Some nice additions out of the transfer portal that should have a major impact include QB Kedon Slovis, WR Keelan Marion, and DB Eddie Heckard.

The transfer portal could prove to be a strong asset to the Cougars, especially as a new member of a power five conference. They seem to have a knack for getting guys out of smaller universities that have the talent to play major college football. I believe that is something that could really help them going forward if they have strong talent evaluators on staff.

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