BYU Football: Midseason Position Group Power Rankings
The BYU football team is already at the halfway point of the regular season. After six games, the Cougars are 4-2 with a signature win over Baylor and losses to Oregon and Notre Dame. In advance of the second half of the season, we wanted to put together position group power rankings to highlight the top performing position groups and talk about those that need to improve for BYU to finish off the season strong.
1. Quarterbacks
Before taking a late hit against Utah State and suffering an injury, Jaren Hall was having a nearly perfect season. Even after a shaky start against Notre Dame, Hall has thrown for 1,558 yards, 14 touchdowns and 2 interceptions this season.
His performance against Notre Dame included some uncharacteristic mistakes, but that shouldn't take away from how great he has been to start the season. His performance earned the top spot in our power rankings for his position group.
Hall has been throwing to a relatively inexperienced group of receivers and has shown the ability to throw those receivers open. He has also been BYU's unquestioned leader.
2. Wide Receivers
BYU came into the season with two undisputed top wide receivers: Puka Nacua and Gunner Romney. Due to injuries, those two have only played 113 snaps combined. In their absence, different wide receivers have stepped up and played major roles in BYU's offense. Chase Roberts was Jaren Hall's top target in a critical win over Baylor. Roberts racked up 122 receiving yards on 8 interceptions and 1 touchdown against the Bears.
Keanu Hill took over the game against Wyoming with 5 receptions for 160 yards and 2 touchdowns.
Kody Epps was the highest-graded player out West last week thanks to his 100-yard receiving performance against Notre Dame. Epps leads the Cougars in receptions, and he has led BYU in receiving yards in both of the last two games. Epps brings a different skillset to BYU's wide receiving corps and appears to be a star in the making.
Brayden Cosper is also putting together his best season as a BYU Cougar with 190 receiving yards.
The wide receivers have shown that they have a core group of players ready to play in the Big 12 even after Nacua and Romney leave the program. The wide receiver depth has been tested in the first half of the season, and this group has answered the bell on every occasion.
3. Offensive Line
The expectations for BYU's offensive line were sky high this season. The offensive line hasn't been as dominant in the run game as fans hoped, but they have been one of the best units in the country in pass protection. According to PFF, BYU's offensive line has the second best passing-blocking grade in the country behind only Oregon. Blake Freeland is the highest-graded player on the team at 85.5.
If this group can figure a few things out in the run game like it did against Notre Dame, BYU will score a lot of points on the back half of the schedule.
4. Cornerbacks
The two-deep at cornerback has the highest average grade of any position group on the defense. As a team, BYU ranks 25th in passing yards allowed per game and the cornerbacks are a major reason why.
Kaleb Hayes and Gabe Jeudy-Lally are one of the better starting cornerback duos in recent BYU history. This group will take the next step if it can start to create takeaways.
5. Running Backs
The running backs have experienced ups and downs during the first half of the season, so this group is ranked right in the middle. Chris Brooks has looked good in the last two games after it appeared that Miles Davis was on track to take his starting spot. Davis is the highest-graded running back of the group, but an injury against Utah State kept him out of the game against Notre Dame.
Lopini Katoa, like the others in this group, has shown flashes. Katoa's 20-yard run on 3rd & 18 would have been one of biggest plays of the season had BYU come back and beat Notre Dame.
6. Linebackers
The starting linebackers have some of the lowest grades on BYU's defense. However, this group deserves some credit for making some big-time plays. Max Tooley has two pick-sixes on the season and he had a huge interception against Notre Dame. His interception against the Fighting Irish was assisted by a tipped pass from fellow linebacker Payton Wilgar.
So why is this group ranked towards the bottom of our list? Run defense. BYU's starting linebackers (Tooley, Wilgar, Pili, Bywater) have averaged a run defense grade of 57.97 out of 100. That is...not good, and a major reason why BYU has struggled so much against the run.
Expectations were high for this group and rightfully so. BYU's starting core of linebackers features proven playmakers with years of experience. If BYU is going to figure out solutions against the run in the second half, however, the linebackers will need to elevate their performance.
7. Tight Ends
Starting tight end Isaac Rex has 10 catches for 131 yards through the first half of the season. Former co-starter Dallin Holker entered the transfer portal and is no longer with the team. Masen Wake has played a hybrid TE/FB role this season, and Ethan Erickson has taken a few of the reps left by Holker.
The group's depth and star power took a hit with the transfer of Holker, and the production to date hasn't met expectations. However, this group has the talent to turn things around in the second half of the season.
8. Safeties
This group might be ranked lower if not for the fantastic effort of Micah Harper. The converted cornerback has been a revelation for the BYU secondary; Harper has the highest midseason grade on the defense with an 81.1.
The safeties have been without starter Malik Moore over the last few games. Talan Alfrey and Ammon Hannemann have taken most of the remaining reps at the safety spot. Alfrey is inexperienced but he has also shown lots of potential. Ammon Hannemann has seen his reps steadily decrease this season.
9. Defensive Line
The defensive line has rotated through a lot of players this season. As a unit, the defense has played 438 snaps this season. John Nelson has played more snaps than any defensive lineman at 246, which is 56% of the total snaps. In total, 12 defensive lineman have played 50 ore more snaps this season.
Tyler Batty has been one of the best players on BYU's defense this season. His 77.0 season grade ranks second behind Micah Harper. John Nelson, a sophomore, has also had great moments this season. This group is ranked near the end of our list because we have to grade their performance as a unit. In this case, that is 12 contributors.
The interior defensive line has struggled the most according to Pro Football Focus. Five interior defensive lineman have played more than 50 snaps this season: Caden Haws, Lorenzo Fauatea, Gabe Summers, Josh Larsen, and Bruce Mitchell. Gabe Summers has the highest grade of those five players with 55.1 and the average grade is 51.2.
For a school that recruits like BYU, it's incredibly challenging to find 12 defensive lineman that can rotate in and perform at a high level. Through six games, it has been a challenge for BYU.
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