How will Jake Retzlaff respond after uneven outing vs. the Mustangs?

BYU can get halfway to bowl eligibility with a win at Wyoming this weekend. That’s the goal after the Cougars defeated favored SMU on the road in Dallas, but the task got harder with two running backs doubtful.

Here’s Jay Drew’s update on the status of starting running back LJ Martin and his backup, Hinckley Ropati, who were banged up during the win at SMU.

BYU is favored by just over a touchdown against the Cowboys, who lost to ASU and Idaho in their first two games. Both Idaho and ASU have proven to be tough opponents, and Wyoming has traditionally made any game with the Cougars a “Super Bowl” type event. It is always tough to play in Laramie.

In this piece, Drew explains why athletic director Tom Holmoe scheduled this road game in Laramie.

This week, Wyoming coach Jay Sawvel talked about how BYU coming to town is a big deal.

“This is a special game, when you get down to it — for our players, for our program, for the state. BYU is not on any future schedule. I don’t know when they’ll ever come back to War Memorial Stadium, and I think that because of that, this will be a big deal to everyone in the state of Wyoming.”

The Cowboys lost at ASU 48-7 and then to Idaho in Laramie 17-13.

Cougar Insider predictions

Question of the week: BYU has overperformed to what oddsmakers predicted in its two first games. With running backs LJ Martin and Hinckley Ropati doubtful this week, how do you think QB Jake Retzlaff responds after his three turnovers versus SMU and a boatload of criticism?

Jay Drew: They say a running game is a quarterback’s best friend, but it appears that BYU will be without its two top running backs Saturday against Wyoming. That’s not a good turn of events for Retzlaff. Enoch Nawahine and Miles Davis are serviceable backs, but they are not LJ Martin and Hinckley Ropati. I think BYU will struggle to run the football against the Pokes.

That means the onus will be on Retzlaff to produce more passing yards and play more cleanly than he did against SMU. I think there will be an increased emphasis on taking care of the football, and I think Retzlaff will respond. Clearly, he tries to do too much at times and ends up making some really critical mistakes.

I will say this: If he commits two or more turnovers in the first half against Wyoming, I think we will see Gerry Bohanon — who gives BYU a better rushing attack and could pick up some of the carries that would have gone to Martin and/or Ropati.

Prediction: BYU 24, Wyoming 13.

Dick Harmon: It’s unfortunate Martin and Ropati got hurt. They are not only experienced backs with run skills, but are valuable in blocking protection for Retzlaff on pass plays.

However, I think there is some good that comes out of this. With BYU’s defense playing so well and Wyoming’s offense struggling, the Cougar offense will get more opportunities and that will open the door for Miles Davis and Enoch Nawahine. I also think we may get the first look at freshman running back and Timpview High product Pokaiaua Haunga, who has impressed a lot of folks both in high school and during fall camp. Getting these guys playing time will only benefit BYU heading into Big 12 play the following week.

Look for Aaron Roderick to lean on the pass more, but also to run Retzlaff more off RPO action. This is what he did in the second half at SMU to set up that game-clinching 37-yard option pitch on fourth-and-1 to Davis that was one of the best plays of that win.

Retzlaff has proven to be a guy who tries to make plays when there might not be a play — and he’s paid for it with fumbles and interceptions. This will be a key test for him to see if he’s learned his lessons. In golf, we call it taking your medicine.

In golf, sometimes you get in trouble with a bad lie, a shot blocked by trees or bushes, and you think you can do some dramatic once-in-a-lifetime heroic shot to save par when the best thing to do is get out of trouble, accept the bad luck, give up a stroke or distance and get the ball back in play, avoiding a double or triple bogey. This is where Retzlaff needs to change his ways. He needs to live on to another play with a bad situation and try again instead of forcing a pass when in the grasp of a tackler. Just go down on a broken play that’s not salvageable, or throw the ball out of bounds and take his lumps.

Prediction: BYU 34, Wyoming 10.

Cougar tales

Kevin Young continues to make headlines nationally with his recruiting class, staff and future recruiting moves. In a podcast called “Field of 68,″ the hosts gave offseason grades for college basketball programs and rank the Cougars at the top. You can see this podcast here:

In this piece by Robbie McCombs, he chronicles BYU’s recent jet-setting home visits to top basketball targets.

BYU upset SMU 18-15 in a dramatic defensive battle in Dallas to improve to 2-0. Here’s our coverage of that win:

• ‘The Improbables’ were a big hit at SMU (Dave McCann)

• Unsung heroes in SMU win (Jay Drew)

• Retzlaff made big plays just in time (Jay Drew)

• Analysis: BYU’s defense made a statement (Jay Drew)

• Defense was lights out; offense needs help (Dick Harmon)

• Why Latter-Day Saint missionaries showed up at SMU game (Jay Drew)

• How social media reacted to BYU over SMU (Jackson Payne)

From the archives

From X-verse

Extra points

• SMU featured high-stress moments (Provo Daily Herald)

• Big 12 projections after Week 2 (KSL Sports)

• Three former BYU runners wrap up racing season (Deseret News)

Fanalysts

Comments from Deseret News readers:

I’m glad our defense came to play. That our offense put up six less than Nevada is somewhat terrifying as we approach conference play. I wasn’t too bothered by the Retzlaff fumble — it was supposed to be a handoff, the timing wasn’t there, and he ended up having the ball ripped out while he was trying to negate the damage. Unfortunate, but not a bad decision. That second turnover, though. Yeesh. Those are the kind of decisions I thought he’d cleaned up over the summer. He’s got to be smart enough to take the loss of yards and get another down. I was impressed by Nawahine in his debut. He’d be my pick for RB2 behind Martin. Ropati put together a couple good runs when he actually hit the hole hard, but he’s got a bad habit of trying to change direction when he should just use his momentum to get a few yards. He does the defense’s work for them when he stops and tries to juke. With his strength and build, we just need him to go north/south and then fall forward. Nawahine did a better job of that, IMO.

— MesaAZCoug

Is there a new rule at BYU prohibiting pass plays on second down? The play calling in the second quarter was head-scratching, to say the least.

The defense, on the other hand, was impressive. I hope we can stay healthy because we have some studs out there.

— Keepinginformed

I was curious, so I looked it up.

SMU, last year, was No. 11 in points allowed. Top 15 in other areas, like total yards allowed and passing yards allowed. Their defense is legit.

It’s not a surprise that many people think they are a dark horse to really make some noise in the ACC this year. Their QBs are pretty good, and with that defense ... watch out ACC.

Final note: BYU looked big and strong. I couldn’t believe how good so many of our players looked. I think they will be just fine this year. Yes, I agree the BIG XII champ QB needs a shot.

— RR

Up next

• Sept. 12 | 7 p.m. | Women’s soccer | Arizona State | @ Provo

• Sept. 12 | 8 p.m. | Women’s volleyball | San Diego | @ San Diego

• Sept. 13 | 9 a.m. | Cross country | Autumn Classic | @ Orem

• Sept. 13 | 8 p.m. | Women’s volleyball | Oregon | @ San Diego

• Sept. 14 | 7 p.m. | Football | Wyoming | @ Laramie, Wyoming