Cougs Daily

Notes and Observations from Day 6 of BYU Football Fall Camp

Casey Lundquist|
BYU quarterback McCae Hillstead at Fall Camp
BYU quarterback McCae Hillstead at Fall Camp | BYU Photo

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BYU Cougars

PROVO, Utah - Fall Camp is in full swing for the BYU football program. The Cougars wrapped up day six of Fall Camp with a padded practice. Here is a recap of everything that happened during the media portion of the first day of Fall camp. The highlights from day six are at the top of this article.

McCae Hillstead Wins the Day

It was redshirt sophomore McCae Hillstead that took the first reps with the first-team offense. Unlike some drills that are situational, this drill was pretty simple: play football. The quarterbacks were tasked with moving the chains and sustaining a drive.

Hillstead led the best drive of the day.

His first pass attemept came on the run. Hillstead was pressured by defensive end Orion Maile-Kaufusi. He escaped the pocket and threw a back-shoulder pass that was broken up by Mory Bamba. The pass was in the right spot, but it was a nice play from Bamba to knock the ball away from Tiger Bachmeier. Hillstead gave the reciever a chance without putting the ball in danger.

His next throw was a third-and-long conversion to Parker Kingston. Kingston settled near the first-down marker and Hillstead hit him on time and on target for the first down.

The next play was a perfectly-thrown touch pass over the middle to Carsen Ryan. Hillstead fit the ball in before the safety could help over the top. That was the throw of the day.

Hillstead's final throw was a quick completion to Keayen Nead for a short gain.

Overall, Hillstead was accurate and he moved the offense down the field. He also didn't put the ball at risk.

Bear Bachmeier

Bear Bachmeier was the second quarterback out and he played with the second-team offense. Texas transfer Tausili Akana almost singlehandedly blew up the first drive. More on Akana in a moment.

Bachmeier's first pass attempt was a screen to Jovesa Damuni that was blown up by Akana. Bachmeier fit the pass over Akana and found Damuni for the completion, but the play had nowhere to go after Akana disrupted it.

The next few plays, Bachmeier sat back in the pocket before scrambling for short gains. He probably wait a little too long before either attempting a pass or scrambling for a few yards. It was the first time where the processing speed looked like a freshman adjusting to the speed of college football.

Faced with a 3rd & 5, Bachmeier found his brother Tiger Bachmeier for a first down. Bachmeier collided with cornerback Marcus McKenzie but he held on for the catch.

After sitting out for a drive, Bachmeier came back in with the second-team offense. His first pass attempt was a nicely thrown ball to the boundary attempted for LaMason Waller. Waller was running an out route and he came down with the pass but his momentum carried him out of bounds.

The next play, Bachmeier had a hesitation sack. However, this one appeared to be the fault of two inexperienced wide receivers who range the wrong routes. The two wide receivers were corrected by Fesi Sitake after the play.

Bachmeier's final pass attempt was knocked down at the line of scrimmage by true freshman safety Crew Clark.

Treyson Bourguet

Bourguet had just one drive on Tuesday. Bourguet's first pass attempt was a screen to Cody Hagen. Hagen gained 7-8 yards - he looked good after the catch.

His next pass attempt was a dump off to LJ Martin that was incomplete. Bourguet was pressured and would have been sacked by Keanu Tanuvasa on the play.

His next pass attempt was another screen to Cody Hagen that was disrupted by the defensive line for little to no gain.

Bourguet's last pass attempt came on the run. Bourguet was evading pressure and moving to his right when he found Keayen Nead 10-15 yards downfield. Bourguet threw the ball slightly across his body and found Nead but the ball was dropped.

Disruptive Defensive Line

The defensive line was disruptive on the first day of full pads. Tausili Akana was consistently in the backfield, Keanu Tanuvasa had a would-be sack, Jack Kelly had a quarterback pressure, and Orion Maile-Kaufusi had a quarterback pressure.

This defensive line has always had the talent to be more disruptive than previous defensive lines for BYU, and on Tuesday, they showcased that potential.

Tausili Akana, in particular, looked like a man amongst boys when he went up against the second-team offense. The offense had no answer for his speed off the edge. Akana has an elite first step.

Play of the Day

Veteran running back LJ Martin had the play of the day. Martin found a lane and accelerated through it - the play was blown dead but it did not appear that he would have been tackled by the safety.

Martin is down five pounds compared to 2024 and he looks like a quicker, healthier, and faster version of his 2024 self. He is in line for a breakout season if he can stay healthy.

Two Starters Return

Two projected starters were back in action for the BYU offense. Offensive lineman Weylin Lapuaho and wide receiver Parker Kingston took reps in front of the media for the first time. Kingston had the aforementioned first down conversion courtesy of McCae Hillstead.

Young Players Rotating on the Defense

A handful of young players are getting reps for Jay Hill and the BYU defense. Cannon DeVries was getting first-team reps at nickel. Jonathan Kabeya is still in line to start at that spot, in the opinion of this author, but DeVries could be the backup nickel.

True freshman Ulavai Fetuli continues to get reps with the second-team defense at defensive tackle.

True freshman Nusi Taumoepeau was getting some second-team reps at outside linebacker. Taumoepeau certainly looks the part, even as a true freshman. He is all of the 6'3 and 245 pounds that he is listed on the roster.

True freshman Kelepi Latu-Finau was also getting second-team reps at defensive tackle.

Emerson Geilman

True freshman walk-on Emerson Geilman got a small handful of reps. Geilman made a nice downfield throw to Dom McKenzie for the long gain.

More Fall Camp Coverage

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Casey Lundquist
CASEY LUNDQUIST

Casey Lundquist is the publisher and lead editor of Cougs Daily. He has covered BYU athletics for the last four years. During that time, he has published over 2,000 stories that have reached more than three million people.

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