After a rousing victory in its season opener, BYU is now set to face Stanford on Saturday at Provo, Utah.
BYU (1-0) crushed FCS opponent Portland State 69-0 over the weekend as true freshman Bear Bachmeier took over as Cougars quarterback and had a short but efficient day by going 7-of-11 passing for 97 yards and three touchdowns before halftime. His additional five rushes for 32 yards and two rushing touchdowns earned him Big 12 Freshman of the Week honors.
“I think some of those throws he wishes he could get back, but overall, I thought he had a good demeanor about him,” BYU head coach Kalani Sitake said. “I thought he had a great presence. The guys felt really good about him leading the offense. I felt good about how he finished the first half.”
BYU’s 468 total rushing yards were second most in program history, while the 606 total yards were the most since the 2020 Boca Raton Bowl against UCF.
On defense, BYU yielded just 51 total yards, including minus-5 rushing yards.
The Cougars were just outside the Associated Press Top 25 before the victory and remained there heading into Week 2. Now, Bachmeier prepares to square off against the team he originally committed to in Dec. 2024, the Stanford Cardinal.
Saturday’s opponents have met three times, with Stanford winning two of them, although BYU won the most recent meeting 35-26 in 2022.
The Cardinal (0-1) will be out to recover from a 23-20 loss at Hawaii on Aug. 23, while also taking a step up in class with their opponent. Stanford fell on a last-second 38-yard field goal.
Stanford’s Micah Ford rushed for 113 yards and a touchdown that came with 9:41 remaining for a 20-17 lead. But the advantage melted away on two Hawaii field goals over the final 2:01.
“We have to learn from that, we have to move on, and we have to stay the course,” Stanford head coach Frank Reich said this week.
Stanford QB Ben Gulbranson was 15 of 30 for 109 yards, no touchdowns and one interception that came in the fourth quarter. Stanford’s only other TD came on a fumble recovery by Micah Alejado in the end zone in the first quarter when the Cardinal took a 10-0 lead.
Stanford had 177 total yards rushing and 36:07 time of possession that was the program’s most in a game since 2019.
“(BYU) is a really well coached team and you can see that,” Reich said. “They’re a good football team and their schemes are very sound. Defensively, I feel like I’m watching an NFL team with everything they do.”
— Field Level Media
