Kalani Sitake heaps praise on No. 23 Utah, QB Devon Dampier ahead of rivalry game

An hour or so after Utah football coach Kyle Whittingham declined to say much about the No. 15 BYU Cougars and freshman quarterback Bear Bachmeier on Monday, BYU’s Kalani Sitake took a different approach when asked about the No. 23 Utes and transfer quarterback Devon Dampier.

No surprise there.

Sitake has generally taken a positive, gracious and respectful path regarding the rivalry and Utah — where he was an assistant under Whittingham for 10 seasons — while the longtime Utah coach, a former BYU player, tends to keep his thoughts to himself as much as possible.

BYU (3-0, 6-0) and Utah (2-1, 5-1) will meet for the first time as ranked teams since 2009 on Saturday, with kickoff at LaVell Edwards Stadium set for 6 p.m. MDT. The rivalry game pitting instate opponents located less than 50 miles apart will be televised nationally by Fox.

“Whether we want to admit it or not, we actually need each other,” Sitake said in his weekly press briefing, and repeated many of the same things he said before last year’s rivalry game, and first-ever Big 12 matchup of the longtime foes, a 22-21 BYU win in Salt Lake City.

“As I have said before, wishing bad things on others is not good for the soul,” Sitake said. “I’m not trying to get fans how to do it, but it has got to be a lot more fun when you can actually talk about the respect that you have for each other and that there is connection from both sides.”

“The competition has always been there, and the intensity can be there. There’s nothing wrong with the intensity being there. I would like to see it (include) tons of respect. … "

BYU coach Kalani Sitake on BYU-Utah rivalry

The Cougars, Cincinnati and No. 7 Texas Tech (3-0, 6-0) currently sit atop the Big 12 standings, while Utah — whose only loss was to the Red Raiders — needs to beat BYU for the first time since 2019 to stay in the hunt for the league title.

Utah is a 3.5-point favorite, while ESPN’s FPI gives BYU a 51% chance of winning. As Whittingham and Sitake pointed out in their news conferences, the teams are very alike statistically — outstanding defenses and above-average offenses.

“The competition has always been there, and the intensity can be there. There’s nothing wrong with the intensity being there,” Sitake said. “I would like to see it (include) tons of respect. … This is a great rivalry when we have each other on the schedule, and regardless of the outcome this weekend, there’s a lot of different things that can happen that will probably need each other’s help.”

For BYU, which owns a two-game winning streak over the Utes after having lost nine straight in the rivalry game before that, the second half of the season will be ultra-difficult, and Sitake acknowledged that Monday.

“Watching Utah film, it is a really talented team with so many different weapons, and that’s in all three phases. They are well-coached,” Sitake said. “When you are going up against Kyle Whittingham and his staff, the players are going to be well-coached. They’ll be tough and they’ll be physical.

“So it’s going to be a great matchup, and we’re looking forward to the challenge this weekend. It’s going to take our best focus and has every bit of our attention. … We recognize the talent that they have there, and have a lot of respect for the program and their fans.”

BYU is allowing only 263.5 yards per game, while Utah is allowing 293.5 against a slightly more difficult schedule. BYU is No. 12 in the country in fewest points allowed, 14.67, while Utah is No. 11 at 13.83 points allowed.

Asked about BYU freshman quarterback Bear Bachmeier on Monday, Whittingham cut off the reporter and said: “You know, I am just going to focus on this week, our guys, our coaches. So I am not going to give much thought on the opponent this week. So really you have to ask them what they think of Bear.”

That after he praised Arizona State quarterback Sam Leavitt a week ago in his opening comments before he was even asked about Leavitt. Then the Utes ended up not having to face the ASU QB in their 42-10 lambasting of the Sun Devils at Rice-Eccles Stadium.

Bachmeier earned Big 12 Freshman of the Week honors for the third straight week, and fourth time this season, after helping BYU edge Arizona 33-27 in double overtime on Saturday in soggy Tucson. BYU running back LJ Martin is the co-offensive player of the week.

“I think Bear knows enough that if he keeps playing at a high level, that’s what we need him to do,” Sitake said. “Part of his progress and his growth is that he learns things week to week. So this will be another cool experience for him. I’m excited that we get to be at home. It is exciting that we get to have this game and that this type of rivalry is alive and well. So it’ll be fun.”

Other takeaways from Sitake’s 20-minute presser on Monday:

Sitake impressed by Utah’s Dampier, and says so

While Whittingham chose not to talk about BYU’s new QB, Sitake went on and on about the Utes’ Dampier, who transferred from New Mexico and joined his old play-caller in Albuquerque, former BYU quarterback and quarterbacks coach Jason Beck, at Utah.

Responding to a question about the 5-foot-11, 210-pound dual-threat QB from Saguaro High in Phoenix, Sitake said Dampier is as efficient of a player as the Cougars will see this season. He also said that Beck has done a great job tutoring the junior.

“Yeah, super talented, and he’s tough, man. He has great vision, and that’s in the passing game and in the running game. … So when you look at the stats, he knows where to go with the ball, and he’s well-coached,” Sitake said. “There’s a reason why they brought him in. He looks really comfortable out there. And whatever you need to do, whatever you need him to do, he’s willing to do it, and he’s super tough.

“I think a lot of attention will go to his legs, because he can run, but he can throw too, and I like his overall presence on the field. We definitely respect what he does. He’s going to be dangerous. He’s got our attention.”

Will BYU LB Jack Kelly play against the Utes?

BYU was missing three of its best defenders for most or all of the marathon game at Arizona, as linebacker Jack Kelly was held out with an upper body injury and safety Raider Damuni and defensive tackle Keanu Tanuvasa, a former Ute, left in the first half.

Damuni sustained a lower body injury, while Tanuvasa was disqualified for targeting after a hit on Arizona QB Noah Fifita.

Sitake said the public will have to wait until Wednesday for a report on Kelly when the Big 12-mandated availability reports are published at 8 p.m. MDT.

“Yeah, I mean, he’s practicing,” Sitake said of Kelly. “We will wait until Wednesday. There’s a reason why we held him out last week.”

Sitake on ‘Big Noon Kickoff’ coming to Provo

Three weeks ago, when Fox’s “Big Noon Kickoff” was in Salt Lake City for the Utah-Texas Tech game, a couple members of the college football pregame show’s cast led Utah fans in vulgar chants about BYU the night before the game.

Sunday, the network announced that it is headed back to Provo this week for the rivalry game, a year after it was at BYU for the Cougars’ 2024 showdown with Arizona. While it was surprising to some that BYU is apparently welcoming the irreverent show with open arms, Sitake expressed gratitude for the spotlight — even if it disrupts his usual pregame routine.

“It just messes up my hair-cutting appointment (in the morning),” he said. “But other than that, we’ve had them here before. They came here last year when we played Arizona, and that was a lot of fun. It is really cool whenever you can bring attention to our stadium and to our fans here in Provo. I know our fans will represent and cheer for our team and then respect their opponent as well.”

Also Monday, it was announced that BYU’s game at Iowa State next week will kick off at 1:30 p.m. MDT on Oct. 25 and will also be televised by Fox.