After playing the last two games with short-handed backfield, it appears that BYU is set to get at least one of their top ball carriers back this week against Baylor.
During his coaches’ show on Tuesday night, BYU head coach Kalani Sitake announced that Hinckley Ropati will return to action against the Bears in Waco (TX) on Saturday. This is a huge boost for an offense that could really use an effective ground game to help quarterback Jake Retzlaff get more comfortable as a game manager.
While getting Hinckley back will certainly be a lift for the offense, the Cougars will still be without the top back, LJ Martin, who has also missed each of the last two games.
Martin and Ropati were injured in BYU’s 18-15 win over SMU in Week 2 and have missed games against Wyoming and Kansas State in the following weeks.
BYU’s 38-9 win over Kansas State last week was one of the biggest wins of Sitake’s time in Provo, and it shot the Cougars all the way into the AP Poll for the first time since they joined the Big 12.
Coming into a Week 5 matchup at Baylor (2-2), Sitake and the No. 22 Cougars are trying to forget the victory and focus on the task at hand. Too often, we see teams coming off an emotional win and failing to show up the following week. BYU is trying to ensure that they avoid being the next team to do just that.
“Looking at the landscape of college football, teams have big wins and then it has this everlasting effect even into the next week,” Sitake said. “We have to make sure that doesn’t happen.”
Getting one of their top offensive weapons back will certainly help their cause, but linesetters appear to see this game as a tricky one for the Cougars, too.
As of Wednesday afternoon, BYU is a 3.5-point underdog at Baylor, up from the 2.5-point opening line. The Bears and Cougars will kick off at 11:00 a.m. CT Saturday, with coverage provided on FS1.
