Is BYU Basketball Putting Pressure on BYU Football to Improve Much Sooner?

A sentiment among BYU fans that I’ve seen developing since Kevin Young was announced as the BYU Basketball coach could be summarized as follows: “BYU Men’s Basketball is crushing it in recruiting. They made it to the NCAA tournament. They were one of the better teams in the Big 12 in their first year in the league. BYU Football, on the other hand, is lagging behind in recruiting, better improve in 2024, and is at risk of becoming a dumpster fire. Perhaps we should start to throw all of our resources behind basketball and forget football.” I got to wondering, is BYU Basketball’s recent successes putting pressure on BYU Football to improve much sooner than scheduled?

I’ve observed this sentiment predominantly on CougarBoard and on X, aka the platform formerly known as the Twitter. I enjoy reading CougarBoard threads. Some comments are very insightful. Some are full of fan rage. Others are funny. Others are shortsighted. But, I appreciate that fans post their honest thoughts and opinions there. I’ve enjoyed reading over the years.

The way I see the issue of BYU Basketball apparently outshining BYU Football is that it is not as black and white as it may seem on the surface. Here are a few statements to consider, and I’ll break them down in more detail below:

BYU Basketball came into the Big 12 with a 3-4 year of struggle while BYU Football came into the Big 12 with a 3 year period of some of its winningest play in recent history.
BYU Basketball came into Year 1 of the Big 12 with a roster that was virtually the same as the previous year. BYU Football did not have this luxury.
Adding a new player in basketball is more likely to have a larger impact than adding a new player in football.
Mark Pope’s departure for Kentucky necessitated the need for instant investment.

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BYU Basketball came into the Big 12 with a recent history of struggle while BYU Football came into the Big 12 with a recent history of success

If you’re reading this, it is because you are a diehard BYU Football and Basketball fan. So, you’ll remember, painfully, that BYU Basketball was 19-15 during the 2022-2023 season. That was their last season in the WCC where they went 7-9 in conference play. They were a woeful 12-6 during preseason play.

To put that in perspective, that was Mark Pope’s worst season, and it was BYU’s worst season since the 2004-2005 season when they went 9-21. So, not too long ago, you and I and all the collective BYU Basketball fans, were thinking that if BYU scored a point during Big 12 play, we’d call it a successful season.

To say that BYU Basketball overachieved during Year 1 of the Big 12 is an understatement. That’s like saying Michael Jordan was a pretty decent basketball player.

BYU Football, on the other hand, had tremendous success during the 2020 and 2021 seasons. While 2022 wasn’t as spectacular, Kalani Sitake still led his Cougar football team to a 29-9 record from 2020 – 2022. BYU Football also had the #2 pick in the draft plus a host of other draft picks.

Year 1 for Football was painful, but it was almost exactly what most predicted (about 5 wins). It felt more painful because BYU started out 5-2 before collapsing with 5 straight losses. In the end, they landed about exactly where they were predicted finish.

Year 1 for Basketball was the opposite. Picked by many to be 13th or 14th in the conference, they made it to 5th by season’s end and had a 10-8 record in conference play.

It is important not to over index on where the programs are right now.

BYU Basketball is absolutely gaining momentum. They have a strong core returning and have exciting prospects coming in. Kevin Young has BYU in contention for a level of recruits that BYU hasn’t even dreamed of offering in the past. But, the program still has to prove it. Kevin Young has not coached a single possession of a game yet.

While I’m hopeful and optimistic that the MBB program will continue to grow and flourish, we still have to see it on the field. I wouldn’t be too quick to say that basketball has arrived and is ready to push football off of the top rung of the ladder of Cougar athletics.

BYU Basketball Had Roster Continuity that BYU Football did not have during Year 1 in the Big 12

One of the most underappreciated (or, least spoken about) reasons that BYU Basketball succeeded in Year 1 of the Big 12 while Football struggled has to be continuity of roster. BYU returned 4 of its 5 starters (adding Khalifa as the 1 new face who eventually became a starter). Every returning player developed in skill and understanding of their role.

Noah Waterman finally figured out his role. Jaxon Robinson became the best 6th man in the country. Trevin Knell was healthy. Dallin Hall and Richie Saunders got better, etc…

And so on.

Continuity makes a difference. In today’s world of one and done and transfer portal chaos, we all appreciate when we can recognize the same player wearing the same jersey number two years in a row.

Khalifa was a phenomenal addition (more on that in a moment), but the fact that BYU got another season with its players better understanding their roles can’t be overstated. Yet, I rarely hear people mention that impact.

Think about your job and a project or task that you’ve taken on. The first time you perform that task, you’re learning. Everything is new. Efficiency and speed are low. Then, when you perform that task for a second time, you see dramatic gains as efficiency and speed increase.

While I’m hopeful and optimistic that the MBB program will continue to grow and flourish, we still have to see it on the field. I wouldn’t be too quick to say that basketball has arrived and is ready to push football off of the top rung of the ladder of Cougar athletics.

A similar principle applies here for the men’s basketball team.

The same is harder to say for BYU Football.

They had to find, not one, but two new quarterbacks who both played significant time. They had to replace 4 of the 5 offensive line positions (Kingsley was on the roster in 2022 but at right tackle instead of left). They brought in key transfers at corner, linebacker, receiver, running back, and several defensive linemen. 20+ guys!

And, unfortunately, most of those guys had only 1 year of eligibility, so we’re not going to reap the benefits of continuity from most of them in 2024.

There were certainly other glaring weaknesses, and I’m not trying to make the case that you must have continuity to be good. But, continuity matters, and when BYU was playing new opponents for the first time, playing in a conference for the first time in over a decade, and going to new locations for the first time, it didn’t help tremendously to be learning how your teammate plays.

Adding a new player in basketball is more likely to have a larger impact than adding a new player in football.

Think about it this way – BYU has to put 5 guys on the basketball court for 40 minutes each. That adds up to 200 minutes total that they must account for. If you look at just the center position, they need 40 minutes of playing time coming from a few players.

Bringing in Aly Khalifa gave BYU an incredibly impactful player for ~30 minutes per game. Those 30 minutes were 75% of the playing time at center. And, they were about 15% of the total minutes for the team.

If you assume that Khalifa is touching the ball every other play on offense and playing defense every possession he’s in the game, then he’s potentially impacting 75% of the plays for which he’s on the court. His impact can really be felt!

If you move over to the football field, then adding in one new transfer is not likely to have the same impact.

Take a stud like Eddie Heckard. He’s only playing on defense, and of the plays he makes on defense, he’s not going to be involved in about 50% of the run plays. So, suddenly, his impact is confined to one or two dozen plays instead of 50-75 plays like Khalifa.

Outside of the QB position, most positions in football are going to be limited in the amount of impact they can have.

It’s true that football has more of a “home run” type of play in that it’s possible to score a touchdown or create a turnover. Yet, those only account for a few plays each season.

This is all to say that BYU Football has to exert more effort to bring in more guys to make an impact. To some degree, it is lower risk, lower reward. But, they still have to be good talent evaluators and developers on many more people than in basketball.

I will say that basketball is much more high risk, high reward. You may only get one or two shots and you must nail it.

Mark Pope’s departure for Kentucky necessitated the need for instant investment

I’m not sure if Pope was long on BYU. But, had Pope stayed at BYU, then I’m not sure that we’d have seen this level of investment at this time. When a head coaching position comes open and the transfer portal is about to open, and your own players can leave because your coach left, then you have to bring someone in and bring them in fast.

If you have to bring in a new guy, then you suddenly have the chance to swing for the fences. If you have done your homework prior to that door opening, as BYU did, then you already know that when you swing you are going to make contact.

If BYU Football is to feel any pressure, it should be completely and wholly based on their performance and the expectations relative to themselves and their competition. It should not be based on another coach down the hall of the athletic department who is making a splash in recruiting.

Sometimes in life we don’t fix things until there is an immediate and urgent need. BYU Basketball needed more investment prior to Pope, during Pope, and is now getting it after Pope. The head coach change is the opportunity to bring about the most impactful change and investment. But, remember that the results are not guaranteed.

BYU Football went through this in 2023 on a smaller scale. They shook up the defensive staff and brought in Jay Hill, and BYU has seen an improvement in their defensive recruiting as well as their defensive play.