Score Prediction for BYU Football vs Stanford

BYU WR Chase Roberts scores a touchdown against Portland State | BYU Photo

On Saturday night, BYU hosts the Stanford Cardinal for just the second time in Provo. Stanford is the only P4 opponent that BYU has on its non-conference schedule before they kickoff conference play at Colorado later this month.

BYU is heavily favored in this game. As of this writing, BYU is favored by 20.5 points. BYU is coming off a 69-0 win over Portland State and Stanford is coming off a 23-20 loss at Hawaii in week zero.

Stanford scored just 13 points on offense in the season opener and the passing attack was poor. Stanford sixth-year senior Ben Gulbranson was 15/30 for 109 yards and an interception. Stanford's primary source of offense came on the ground - the Cardinal ran for 177 yards and 4.1 yards per carry.

Stanford will struggle on offense in this game. After holding Stanford to 20 points, Hawaii allowed 40 points against Arizona in week one, including 5.5 yards per carry.

Unless BYU gives the ball away multiple times, it's hard to imagine Stanford producing more than 14 points on offense. The BYU defense should assert their dominance and make life miserable for Ben Gulbranson.

If Gulbranson is put in a situation where he has to carry the Stanford offense, he frankly won't be able to. Frankly, it would not be surprising to see Stanford try out other options at quarterback. That might be their best chance to make this game competitive.

On offense, expect a heavy dose of LJ Martin from BYU. Martin was excellent in the season opener and he looked like BYU's best player on defense. Getting Martin involved early should make life easier on Bear Bachmeier while he settles in for his first game against a P4 team.

We expect a bit of a slow start from the BYU offense while Bachmeier gets settled in. A haltime score of 10-3 or 14-3 would not be surprising. By the second half, Bachmeier will be settled and the BYU offense should break the game open.

Ultimately, BYU pulls away and the Stanford offense won't have the firepower to keep up.

BYU 31 | Stanford 10