Dropping eight, BYU linebackers becoming ghosts

PROVO — They are proven thieves for sure. 

A very young cadre of BYU linebackers now leads the nation in interceptions — as a position group — with 10.

Southern Cal, Boise State and Utah State were all among the victims. 

A redshirt freshman leads the way.

A year ago, freshman Payton Wilgar was a walk-on who decided he’d better move somewhere else and put his name in the NCAA transfer portal. But then he got a call from BYU coaches informing him that there would be a scholarship available for him in 2019, and he enrolled for the winter semester.

A former high school basketball and football star at Dixie High, he is the son of former BYU safety Dana Wilgar, who was all-WAC in the early ‘70s. In talking to Dana about his son back in August, he described how Payton was training to play inside and outside linebacker, and he predicted his son would make big plays for the Cougars if given the playing time. In part, the reasons were his athleticism, size and roots in playing basketball.

Today, Wilgar leads BYU in interceptions with three; that’s more than any linebacker in the FBS. Kavika Fonua and Isaiah Kaufusi each have two. Max Tooley, Chaz Ah You and Jackson Kaufusi each have one. University of Missouri’s linebackers are a distant second with six interceptions. 

BYU ranks 10th nationally in turnover margin, third in interceptions per game (1.5), fifth in total interceptions (12), fifth in takeaways a game (2.25) and eighth in total takeaways (18).  Wilgar ranks 19th in the country in interceptions.

Former Mississippi coach Hugh Freeze, now at Liberty, faces BYU this Saturday, and he’s very aware of what BYU’s linebackers have done against quarterbacks like Jordan Love and Kedon Slovis.

“Their length defensively at linebacker is probably as long as I’ve ever seen,” said Freeze.

Wilgar and Keenan Pili are 6-foot-3, and Isaiah and Jackson Kaufusi are both 6-2. BYU’s linebackers have generally been a team strength. One of the tallest Cougar linebackers ever was Todd Shell, from Mesa’s Mountain View High, who ended up a first-round pick of the San Francisco 49ers in 1984. Shell was 6-4.

BYU has deployed its linebackers in a lot of coverage, often using a three-man front and keeping linebackers near or outside the box to drop into coverage. While that scheme has caused a lot of head-scratching with critics, it has also put linebackers into zone coverages.

Against USU, BYU’s defense dropped eight into coverage 62 times in 82 plays, forcing Jordan Love to make plays.

In that mindset, this group has become ghosts to QBs. That was a part of getting five turnovers from the Aggie offense in a 42-14 win in Logan.

Overall this season, BYU’s defense has struggled to limit yards on the ground and air. Committing to not regularly pressure quarterbacks is designed to protect the back end of the defense. In the course of the season, that’s evolved since the loss at South Florida.

Assistant head coach Ed Lamb, who oversees linebacker play, said there are myriad factors involved in the linebacker theft service.

“You have to credit the defensive backs, really,” Lamb said on BYUtv’s weekly Coordinator’s Corner show.

“We’ve played a lot of different coverages this year, and the types of teams we’ve played like to air it out, regardless. They are going to throw it into coverage and take a chance.”

Lamb said his linebackers have been very good at covering the short stuff and then, while keeping eyes on the quarterback, they’ve quickly turned their hips and dropped back to cover. “That’s where almost all the interceptions have come.”

He also said because of meager time to work with players, he has done hardly any catch drills. “They were almost all safeties and running backs in high school or in our own program. They’ve come with those skills.”

One of BYU’s most productive linebackers in taking the ball away was current New England Patriot Kyle Van Noy. He almost single-handedly defeated San Diego State in the last Poinsettia Bowl with takeaways and a pick-six.

Van Noy, like Wilgar, is 6-3. Van Noy ended up with seven career interceptions, none his freshman year. Wilgar has equaled Van Noy’s best season (3), his sophomore year in 2011, and he has four regular-season games to play, beginning with Liberty on Saturday.

Usually, it is cornerbacks and safeties who lead their defenses in interceptions. This year’s Kalani Sitake defense goes against the grain in this regard big time.

Basically, said Lamb, “They’ve fooled the quarterbacks.”