Seven Takeaways From BYU's Gutsy Win Over Colorado

It felt dicey early on, but BYU pulled off the gutty 24-21 win over Colorado. The Cougars proved a lot in this game. They proved they could overcome adversity. They proved they are not phased by hostile road environments. They proved that they could beat a team with top-30 type talent. Here are seven key things we learned after BYU’s great escape.

No need to panic until after the scripted drives

BYU CB Tre Alexander against East Carolina | BYU Photo

For those unfamiliar, the first drive or two of each half for each team are “scripted”, meaning that the play calls are all made in advance. Sometimes months in advance. After that, play callers must make down-to-down adjustments and play calls. When Colorado was scripted, they looked unbeatable, jumping out to a 14-0 lead with 134 yards of offense on 9.1 yards per play. On their final 7 drives, though, Colorado gained just 25% of available yards, mustering just 154 yards of offense on 4.1 yards per play.

It's clear Colorado had this game circled on their calendar for months after getting beat down by this BYU team in the Alamo bowl. Siale Esera mentioned postgame that Colorado came out with multiple looks they had not shown on film, and it took a second to adjust. Once they did, though, BYU’s defense looked like BYU’s defense, forcing five three-and-outs on Colorado’s last six possessions. On unscripted drives, BYU was +36% in net available yards, +2.4 in net yards per play, and outscored Colorado 24-7. That looks a lot more like the BYU we know.

Bear Bachmeier won’t be good. He is good.

BYU QB Bear Bachmeier against Colorado | BYU Photo

It’s an insult to Bear to say he is good “for a true freshman.” He's just good. Great, even. Bachmeier is top 25 nationally in passer rating and in the top third of all quarterbacks in ESPN’s QBR. He is the first quarterback in BYU history to account for 10 total touchdowns and 0 turnovers in his first 4 career starts. While his passing numbers didn’t break records Saturday, he accounted for 283 total yards before kneel downs and 2 touchdowns. What the box score won’t tell you, though, is just how unfazed he looks by adversity.

When BYU went down 14-0, Bachmeier led a 65-yard field goal drive in which he accounted for 63 total yards. When BYU needed a touchdown to cut the lead to one possession before half, Bachmeier led a 95-yard TD drive that ended in a 5-yard strike to Roberts. BYU earned its first lead on a 4th and goal TD pass where Bear navigated the pocket to find an open Roberts. On BYU’s drive to put them ahead for good in the fourth quarter, Bachmeier accounted for 50 total yards, including the 16-yard run on 3rd and 17 to keep the drive alive.

This kid is going to win a lot of games at BYU. He probably will this year too. Whatever “it” looks like, he has it. Bachmeier got emotional after the game when talking about how he was raised to never be someone that shies away from contact. From his performance, that appears to apply both physically and spiritually.

Bear Bachmeier’s response on not sliding:
“Sorry I’m getting a little choked up, but that’s just how I was raised. My dad, my mom, my older siblings, my younger brother… you gotta have that mentality, you gotta go get that 1st down. You gotta do whatever you gotta do to win.” pic.twitter.com/0hQqF5nAMV
— Robby Huckvale (@robby_huckvale) September 28, 2025

BYU’s coaching staff earned this win

BYU head coach Kalani Sitake with coordinators Aaron Roderick and Jay Hill | BYU Phot

BYU won this game for two reasons: They had the better quarterback and they had the better coaching staff. Bachmeier’s calmness under pressure has already been outlined, but this coaching staff’s ability to make in-game adjustments is the reason they have now won 15 of their last 17 games. Colorado deserves all the credit in the world for out-scheming Jay Hill in the first quarter, but once the BYU defense went back to more traditional fronts and employing Glasker and Kelly as QB spies, Colorado didn’t do much of offense.

Aaron Roderick was in his bag all night long, scheming easy throws and open receivers for Bachmeier and coming up with a counter when Colorado largely kept LJ Martin quiet. BYU moved the ball all night, with zero three-and-outs and over 60% of available yards gained. The Cougars converted on their 3 redzone trips with 2 touchdowns on beautifully-designed play calls. Finally, Kalani made the right strategic decisions all night. Deciding to punt instead of try a 51-yard field goal late was a head-scratcher at first, but pinning Colorado at the four and forcing Colorado to prove they could manage the end-of-game situation turned out to be a stroke of genius. In the end, BYU outcoached and out-executed one of the most talented teams in the league. That seems to be happening a lot lately.

Sam Vander Haar is the most underrated player on the team

BYU is the top team in the nation in net field position this season because Vander Haar is a certified weapon. If there is such a thing as a game-winning punt, Vander Haar had it on Saturday. Kalani put his trust in his punter to pin Colorado inside the 10 to start their potential game-winning drive and Vander Haar stuck it within the 5. That was arguably the most clutch play of the game. Now if he could just give me tips on how to improve my own short game, that would be great.

It’s time for moderate concern about BYU’s defensive line

The BYU defensive line against Colorado in the Alamo Bowl | BYU Photo

BYU’s defensive line got pushed around for large stretches against Colorado. While we should all keep in mind that Colorado actually has a very good offensive line, their run game should not have had as much success as it did. Colorado’s offensive line generated nearly four yards per rush before contact and allowed just two pressures all night long to BYU’s defensive line. It’s fair to say that BYU does not have a ready-made NFL pass rusher on the roster. There is talent that can and should develop into that in time, but BYU’s defensive ends are either too young or are built more like defensive tackles. The lack of d-line pressure hasn’t cost BYU yet, but it will once BYU gets into the meet of their schedule if they can’t get pressure from anyone not named Isaiah Glasker or Jack Kelly.

BYU’s stars make star plays

BYU linebacker Isaiah Glasker against Colorado | BYU Photo

After a brutal start to the game, Isaiah Glasker, Jack Kelly, and Faletau Satuala took over the game for BYU’s defense. The trio combined for 15 tackles, 3 sacks, 4 TFLs, and the game-sealing INT. Their combination of size and speed has likely not been seen at BYU since Kyle Van Noy, and BYU has three of them on this roster. Evan Johnson held speedsters Sincere Brown and Omarion Miller to a combined 2 catches for 8 yards with a pair of sensational open-field tackles. Chase Roberts had two touchdown catches, including a whip route that had the defender touching earth. There is plenty of inexperience on this team this season, and when BYU faces adversity, it’s stars need to be relied upon. They did in a big big way on Saturday.

BYU’s ability to win close games is a feature not a bug

📊🏈DID WE REALLY GET BEAT THAT BAD
Net Success Rates in Week 4 pic.twitter.com/23GtfpcMzX
— parker fleming (@statsowar) September 22, 2025

There is a popular chart that makes it’s way around the internet each week called “Did we really get beat that bad?” It measures team's “net success rates” in games to measure which teams were better on a down-to-down basis (right side) and which teams relied on explosive plays to win (the left). BYU ended up on the left side of the chart a lot last season, including in wins over Kansas State, Utah, and Baylor. This was used against BYU to show that they were a lucky team unworthy of playoff consideration. Don’t be surprised when BYU ends up on the left again against Colorado. While I don’t fully agree with how the chart is presented, BYU’s ability to win games despite not always having a higher down-to-down success rate is a sign that this is a well-coached, resilient, football team. It has been for years.

This might be anecdotal, but once BYU took the lead in the third quarter, there was never a moment in which the game felt in question. That is because BYU has a knack for winning these kinds of games. This isn’t the first time a Kalani BYU team has fallen down by two scores early in a P4 road environment, then went on to win those games against Utah and Arkansas. The reality is BYU is not talented enough to blow teams out every single week. Therefore, it comes down to which team has the players and coaching staff that will make the key plays and decisions in the key moments. Once again, BYU showed they still have both in 2025.