Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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BLUEGOLDONLINE.COM OCT. 10, 2026 39 GAME PREVIEW: BYU NOTRE DAME PASSING GAME VS. BYU PASS DEFENSE Arguably the biggest separator between BYU and Texas Tech last year in the Big 12 was the former's lack of pass rushers and the latter's treasure trove of them. Have the Cougars fixed that problem? Not exactly. No BYU player has more than 4 quarterback pressures through three games in 2026. Isaiah Glasker (20 quarterback pressures last year) is probably the Cougars' closest thing to a serious threat off the edge. But after lining up there 288 times in 2025, he's on pace for just 108 such snaps over the same number of games in 2026, with BYU relying on him more as an off-ball linebacker. As referenced in an earlier section, Notre Dame has protected Carr well this season. Sophomore left tackle Will Black, though he's had some in- consistent moments in his first year as a starter, is more than capable of holding up on the blind side against BYU. On the back end, it's a different story. Satuala is a threat to take the ball away with 3 interceptions in 2025, but the cornerbacks, Evan Johnson and Therrian Alexander III, are tremendously difficult to deal with. Johnson had 5 interceptions in 2025 and Alexander is a breakout star of 2026, allowing an opponent passer rating of 0.0 when targeted. On 15 combined targets, the two corners al- lowed 6 receptions for 41 yards in their first three games. Both have already picked off a pass this season as well. Carr has loved to target outside receivers Jordan Faison (17 receptions for 239 yards in 2026) and Micah Gilbert (15 for 334), and BYU will test their abilities as well as anyone on the regular-season schedule. In the slot, DeVries — while not a liability — is probably the Cougars' most vulnerable starting de- fensive back. This might be the long-awaited Jaden Greathouse breakout game (in the regular season at least). But whomever he targets, Carr should have time to get the ball where it needs to go. Advantage: Notre Dame SPECIAL TEAMS As of Week 4, DeVries was one of just 13 players in the FBS with a kickoff return for a touchdown. Of those 13, he's the only one who did it in his lone attempt. Now, did he do it against Utah Tech? Sure, but DeVries showed he's capable of taking it to the house. The Irish do tend to cover kicks better than most teams, because they just use a bunch of four- and five-star freshmen on the kickoff coverage team. Joey O'Brien, Ebenezer Ewetade, Rodney Dunham, Thomas Davis Jr. and Ja'Kobe Clapper deserve praise for their work on that front. DeVries is also a capable punt returner, ranking 16th nationally with 16.67 yards per return. Faison ranks 24th with 14.00. BYU holds the return ad- vantage, but Notre Dame probably holds a slight coverage advantage. How about kicking? BYU's Matthias Dunn is 2 of 3 on the season with a long of 44. He played his senior year of high school football in 2018 — for reference, so did this writer — but he had never attempted a college field goal until this Septem- ber. Notre Dame's Spencer Porath is 5 of 6 with a long of 52 this season, and he has a stronger track record. All things considered, this could go back and forth. Advantage: Even COACHING BYU head coach Kalani Sitake has held his posi- tion since 2016, and the Cougars managed to keep him in Provo, Utah, despite heavy pursuit from Penn State last year. BYU also reorganized its ath- letic department in August, moving Sitake's report- ing line from athletics director Brian Santiago to advancement vice president Keith Vorkink. We'll see if it improves with the new power dy- namic, but in the meantime, few have done more with less. Taking a team with a true freshman start- ing quarterback — who didn't participate in BYU's spring practices — to the brink of the CFP was a wildly impressive coaching job. However, Sitake lost his most valuable assistant, defensive coordinator Jay Hill, to Michigan over the offseason. That loss has yet to hurt the Cougars, but again, they haven't reached the difficult part of their schedule yet. Marcus Freeman, meanwhile, brought back all three of his coordinators at Notre Dame. That continuity has shown so far this season, as has Freeman's ability to motivate his team through an early season schedule that, for other coaches, would breed complacency. OFFENSE Pos. No. Name Ht. Wt. Yr. WR 3 Kyler Kasper 6-6 212 Sr. 18 Reggie Frischknecht 6-4 200 Jr. WR 1 Legend Glasker 6-1 175 Fr. 19 Tiger Bachmeier 6-1 190 Sr. LT 58 Paki Finau 6-5 310 Jr. 59 Siosiua Latu-Finau 6-5 310 So. LG 51 Sonny Makasini 6-4 315 5th 74 Trevin Ostler 6-4 320 5th C 63 Bruce Mitchell 6-4 300 5th 67 Trevor Pay 6-3 295 Jr. RG 64 Kyle Sfarcioc 6-4 310 5th 72 Joe Brown 6-4 310 Jr. or 56 Zak Yamauchi 6-4 315 So. RT 59 Siosiua Latu-Finau 6-5 310 So. or 52 Bott Mulitalo 6-5 310 Fr. TE 7 Walker Lyons 6-4 245 Jr. or 2 Roger Saleapaga 6-4 235 Jr. WR 13 Jojo Phillips 6-5 205 Sr. 0 Tei Nacua 6-2 180 Jr. QB 47 Bear Bachmeier 6-2 230 So. 10 Treyson Bourget 6-2 210 5th RB 4 LJ Martin 6-2 225 Sr. 12 Preston Rex 6-0 200 Sr. DEFENSE Pos. No. Name Ht. Wt. Yr. DE 48 Bodie Schoonover 6-3 275 5th or 45 Viliami Po'uha 6-3 278 Jr. N 96 Justin Kirkland 6-3 310 5th or 94 Anisi Purcell 6-3 305 5th T 57 Keanu Tanuvasa 6-4 300 5th 94 Anisi Purcell 6-3 305 5th BB 13 Tausili Akana 6-3 235 Sr. 90 Hunter Clegg 6-4 250 So. FB/SAM 5 Nusi Taumoepeau 6-3 242 So. 30 Braxton Lindsey 6-3 240 Fr. MACK 4 Cade Uluave 6-1 230 Sr. 21 Miles Hall 6-1 230 Sr. ROV 16 Isaiah Glasker 6-5 240 5th 31 Jake Clifton 6-2 230 Jr. SS 22 Tommy Prassas 6-2 200 Jr. 17 Jarinn Kalama 6-3 210 Jr. FS 11 Faletau Satuala 6-4 215 Jr. 7 Kennan Pula 6-3 200 Fr. NICK 32 Cannon DeVries 6-0 184 So. 28 Crew Clark 6-1 195 So. CB 0 Evan Johnson 6-0 185 5th 20 Kevin Doe 6-3 206 Sr. CB 1 Therrian Alexander III 6-2 175 Jr. 15 Jayven Williams 6-1 175 5th. SPECIAL TEAMS Pos. No. Name Ht. Wt. Yr. P 19 Fuller Shurtz 5-11 185 Sr. 36 Cole Shulman 5-9 175 Fr. PK 97 Matthias Dunn 6-0 205 5th 99 Brody Laga 5-11 170 Fr. H 97 Fuller Shurtz 5-11 185 Sr. 36 Cole Shulman 5-9 175 Fr. LS 88 Ty Smith 6-0 205 Jr. 49 Rayden Heintz 6-0 212 So. or 47 Berkley Alfrey 6-0 225 So. PR 32 Cannon DeVries 6-0 184 So. 19 Tiger Bachmeier 6-1 190 Sr. KR 1 Legend Glasker 6-1 175 Fr. or 0 Evan Johnson 6-0 185 5th BYU COUGARS TWO-DEEP DEPTH CHART