No. 12 BYU, No. 22 Georgia Tech bucking trend with opt-ins to Pop-Tarts Bowl

ORLANDO, Fla. — If college football had a buddy-copy movie, the two co-starts might be BYU's Kalani Sitake and Georgia Tech's Brent Key.

That was pretty apparent Friday during the Pop-Tarts Bowl pregame press conference, when the duo struggled to eject a pair of the brand's frosted toaster pastries and Sitake joked that "maybe I broke it" before the two moved on to a more conventional photo opp.

But the former BYU fullback has plenty in common with the one-time Georgia Tech offensive lineman who speaks in similar tones of Ramblin' Wreck legend George O'Leary as Sitake does his mentor, LaVell Edwards.

The two run a similar program, too, with teams that rely on power-run and play-action to set up a quarterback pass game, one led by sixth-year senior Haynes King who will play his final collegiate game Saturday at Camping World Stadium (1:30 p.m. MST, ABC) and the other a true freshman who impressed Big 12 coaches enough to earn league offensive freshman of the year honors.

And for the most part, both quarterbacks with similar dual-threat abilities will have a (mostly) full complement of players.

Sitake confirmed Friday that the Cougars won't have any players opting out of the bowl game, though several injuries remain — most notably, star running back LJ Martin, who took advantage of a narrow window to have surgery before he decides if he's returning to BYU for his final season of eligibility.

Sitake added that some players dealing with various injuries would be game-time decisions, but did not go into specifics about the injured players, which is consistent with his policy all season.

"As a senior," wide receiver Chase Roberts said earlier, "it is another meaningful game and we want to end the right way and just play BYU Football."

Star linebackers Jack Kelly and Isaiah Glasker were also listed atop the Cougars' pregame depth chart, as well as safety Tanner Wall, who will play his final game at BYU after a winding road that took him from walk-on wide receiver to starting safety and team captain on a one-time College Football Playoff contender.

"I love all the seniors that are here, and they have been along the ride," said Glasker, a junior who went through senior-day exercises and will decide if he will enter the NFL draft after the bowl game. "I don't know, just being able to go out there and play and get this win would be a big thing."

The $6 million bowl game has grown to become as popular as Disney World and Universal Studios around Christmas time among college football fans, and it seems the players have little trouble wanting to be apart — even for two teams that had CFP aspirations at one point during the season.

"We're not an outcome-based organization," Key said. "We're about being in the moment and playing where your feet are."

For No. 22 Georgia Tech (9-3, 6-2 ACC), the game represents one last hurrah for King and a chance at double-digit wins for the first time since 2014.

Similarly for No. 12 BYU (11-2, 8-1 Big 12), the Cougars have a shot at a 12th win for just the fifth time in school history and the first since 2001. Such a win would be Sitake's 57th since 2020 and 23rd in the past two years.

"When you're doing things the right way, people are going to want your guys," Sitake added. "That's why I'm really happy about the long-term deal at BYU, to be able to establish a foundation and make sure it's sustainable so that we are able to overcome anything."

The biggest change from Georgia Tech's regular season will come from the coaching roster. After offensive coordinator Buster Faulkner left for the same job at Florida, Key moved co-offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Chris Weinke into the primary play caller role for the bowl game.

"Coaches come and go, and that's going to happen," Key said. "I learned a long time ago, you can't control those things. My focus is on our team. We've got plenty of people on that offensive staff who have done a heckuva job."

Sitake, too, is facing his own coaching departures. Assistant quarterbacks coach Matt Mitchell is reportedly set to take over as quarterbacks coach and passing game coordinator at Colorado State, and the BYU head coach of the past decade knows the only constant in coaching is change.

"I can't foresee the future. I do know that I have coaches on my staff who want to be head coaches, and most of those opportunities will come along," Sitake said. "It's going to be really difficult … I just need to know how to sustain it, and now that the NCAA has given us an opportunity to have more than one coach at a position, we can have 20-30 coaches if we want. It's just a balance of how many, and who to replace them with."

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