No. 14 BYU defeated the Utah Tech Trailblazers 63-7 Saturday night at LaVell Edwards Stadium, earning a commanding victory to start the 2026 season.

"We had five penalties tonight, and I didn't like them," said Kalani Sitake, BYU head coach. "We need to be more disciplined as a team in all three phases. Thought the guys had opportunities to make plays, and I am really proud of the young guys that did it. Very proud of the defensive and offensive lines tonight as well. I was proud of the way Kelly Poppinga called the defense tonight and what Aaron Roderick did on the other end as well. I'm also proud of Justin Ena as well. All three phases definitely can do some good things. I was sad to see us unable to get the shutout for Kelly Poppinga, but that's ok. That drive from Utah Tech gave us plenty of good learning moments for our guys that'll have huge payouts for us in the future. I'm proud of this team and the way the guys played and the energy that we had. So thanks to all the fans for the energy and that they stayed here till the very end. The ROC was here the whole entire time, which impressed a lot of our players that came from the portal and other places. They couldn't believe the support that the fans have for the team and the energy. They made lots of noise, and we need them next week and all year long. They've been very consistent with their support and the love for the team. I hope they know that the team recognizes it, and I speak for all of them on that. Just want to say thank you to all the fans for their support."

Leading the BYU offense, quarterback Bear Bachmeier threw for 198 yards on 16 completions. Included in his 80-percent completion percentage to nine different targets, the sophomore tossed three touchdowns to begin his second season in Provo. In addition to his performance through the air, Bachmeier rushed four times for 30 yards, including a 13-yard touchdown. Two other quarterbacks, Treyson Bourget and Enoch Watson, made appearances after halftime in Saturday night's matchup.

For the first time in the last 30 seasons, tonight's matchup saw five different BYU players notch a rushing touchdown in Legend Glasker, Devaughn Eka, Preston Rex, Journee Tonga and Bachmeier. The Cougars ended the night with 308 rushing yards, with 11 different players contributing on the ground. Starting was senior running back LJ Martin, who finished the game with 54 yards on seven carries. BYU also saw a kickoff returned for a touchdown after cornerback Cannon DeVries went end zone-to-end zone to start the second half.

True freshman Glasker made his mark on the field, scoring three touchdowns. With 65 receiving yards, the Lehi, Utah, native caught two touchdowns on three catches. Glasker also earned a rushing touchdown off a jet sweep in the first quarter and ended the night with 16 rushing yards. Two other true freshmen, Eka and Tonga, each scored rushing touchdowns in the second half.

In his debut as defensive coordinator, Kelly Poppinga's defense totaled 45 tackles on the night, led by Jarinn Kalama, Matthias Leach and Kendal Wall, who all notched four. Additionally, three different players recorded an interception in Leach, Therrian Alexander III and Evan Johnson. Tausili Akana also recovered a fumble to cap off BYU's defensive stand.

Under the direction of head coach Kalani Sitake, the Cougars are now 10-1 in season openers and 5-1 in season openers at home. This is the second-straight season that BYU has scored over 60 points in its first game.