"Take care of the stinking football" Kalani Sitake has a message for his turnover-prone QB

When a football team finishes a weekend road trip with an upset victory--especially early in the season--spirits are typically high and the feeling surrounding the team is almost drunk with optimism. But when the Cougars stole a win against the SMU Mustangs in Dallas, many were left with a sour taste in their mouths.

Among those feeling frustrated was BYU head coach, Kalani Sitake. Now in his eighth season at the head of the program, Sitake has coached some incredibly talented players. Notably, coaching NFL QBs Zach Wilson and Jaren Hall has allowed his offenses to operate comfortably and freely.

This season's quarterback situation has been tumultuous and uncertain since spring practice, and the current starter, Jake Retzlaff, has allowed old habits to resurface to the detriment of his teammates.

As the Cougars battled with SMU, Retzlaff's offense struggled mightily when exposed to their quarterback's turnover-prone tendencies. The opening drive saw a QB run that ended with a fumble. In a later drive, BYU's QB committed a cardinal sin of quarterback play when he attempted to throw out of an imminent sack. The ball floated harmlessly through the air and into the arms of a defensive lineman. The final interception saw Retzlaff losing sight of another lineman and throwing the ball directly into the defender's stomach. Interception number three.

Coach Sitake had some choice words for his quarterback on Monday, after having some time to reflect on his team's performance a few days prior.

“There’s no one-offs Take care of the stinking football,” BYU's head coach emphasized. “That’s what it comes down to. [...] I don’t want guys to have to play tight and feel like they can’t take a chance. But that football belongs to everybody."

Fortunately for BYU's struggling offense--which saw two running backs fall to injury early in Friday's game--whenever the team couldn't move the ball, the Cougars' defense picked up the slack in a big way.

Like Michael Scott trying to dine and dash, SMU wasn't afraid of BYU's slight offensive unit and felt as though they could brush it aside on their way to an easy exit. That was until the behemoth defense stepped onto the field and made their presence known. No free meals, SMU, not even for you.

As excellent as the defensive side of the ball was for the Cougars, everyone surrounding the program understands that this team won't win many games against real competition without putting points up on the board. Like my beloved Seattle Mariners, no one cares how elite your pitching staff may be, when you can't put up more than a run or two per game.

The Cougars need to put points on the board to reach bowl eligibility, especially in a competitive Big 12 Conference. For the offense to pick up the slack, they'll need to lean on a quarterback who can protect the ball first, and make the right plays second. Against SMU, the negatives far outweighed the positives for Retzlaff, and he'll need to fine-tune his output against Wyoming this weekend.

“It’s not just one player’s. It’s not his ball. It belongs to all of us. And so they need to start thinking about it more like that.”

With one game standing between the Cougars and their conference schedule, their matchup against the Cowboys may be their last chance to tweak the offense in preparation of the challenging slate ahead of them.

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