Score Prediction for BYU Football vs ECU

BYU safety Faletau Satuala against Stanford | BYU Photo

In a typical college football season, a bye in week three is not ideal. For the 2025 version of the BYU football team, however, the bye week might have come at a great time. The Cougars had two games against outmatched opponents to kickoff the career of true freshman quarterback Bear Bachmeier. Bachmeier got his first two starts out of the way, and then had an extra week to prepare for his first road game.

With conference play on the horizon, BYU will need Bachmeier to do more than he did in the first two weeks to win games, and they might need him to do it as early as Saturday. East Carolina features an above average defense that ranks 32nd nationally in total defense and 11th nationally in scoring defense.

The Pirates, at least on paper, are particularly stout against the run. They have allowed just 59 yards per game on the ground which ranks sixth in the country.

If BYU is going to consistently move the chains, Bachmeier will need to be able to make chunk plays with his arm. If East Carolina has a weakness of defense, it is in the passing game. The Pirates allowed 318 passing yards in their only game against a P4 opponent this season (NC State).

With an added week of reps with the first-team offense - which increased his time as the BYU starter by 50% - we expect Bachmeier to take a step forward. The BYU offense won't be humming at the level that it was a times last year, but it will be better than it was against Stanford (especially in the redzone). If the BYU defense could gift the offense with a short field or two, that would go a long way in helping BYU put up points.

This game will come down to the BYU defense. East Carolina quarterback Katin Houser can sling it and he punishes defenses that blitz: Houser is averaging 324 passing yards per game. However, the BYU defense is much better than any defense ECU has faced this season. Like they did against Stanford, we expect the BYU defense to carry the Cougars to victory while the offense continues to improve.

BYU 27 | ECU 17