Is Saturday's Big 12 opener a bigger game for No. 14 BYU or Arizona?

PROVO — By most accounts, or at least the first-hand ones offered publicly by the two coaches, BYU's Kalani Sitake and Arizona's Brent Brennan are about as close as coaching associates come in the modern era of college football.

When Sitake made the move to join Gary Andersen at Oregon State as defensive coordinator and assistant head coach, Brennan was the lone holdover from the previous staff whose unofficial charge was to help the new coaches settle into Corvallis.

Sitake and his family leaned on the outside receivers coach, even inquiring about neighborhoods and where to live for however long their Pacific Northwest stay would last. Brennan offered his advice — and the Sitakes found a home in his own neighborhood, about four or so houses down the road as he recalled.

"Our kids ran around the neighborhood together," Brennan told Tucson-area media before leaving for Provo. "It was so fun. All of our kids are grown up now ... but it was really a fun time, spending time with him and his incredible family.

"Our kids would run into the house at midnight and eat all of the ice cream out of our fridge," he added. "Then they'd run over to Kalani's and find out what kind of junk food they have on the shelf. We just had a lot of fun together, and I definitely think fondly on those times. It's been fun to get to compete against him the last few years."

No. 15 BYU (1-0) will open Big 12 play Saturday against the Wildcats, who similarly bested a Big Sky foe to warm up for the Week 2 conference game that could have massive implications on the year for both programs.

In many ways for Sitake, it will be another game against a close friend — something he's finding all-too-often as one of the more likable coaches in major college football.

"Brennan's a good friend of mine. We know each other really well, and we talk often and hang out at different events," Sitake said. "He's got a great staff, and a bunch of talent on his team. They're going to come here and we have to anticipate them giving us their best shot — so we've got to make sure that ours shows up as well."

It will be the 28th all-time meeting between the Cougars and Arizona (1-0), a series that dates back to the old Western Athletic Conference before the Wildcats and in-state rival Arizona State joined what was then the Pac-10 in 1978. Four of the last five games have been decided by one possession, including BYU's 33-27 double-overtime thriller played in the middle of Tropical Storm Priscilla a year ago in Tucson that helped spark the Cougars to Big 12 title contention and a 12-2 overall record.

The Wildcats, though? They haven't forgotten that game, when BYU guard Kyle Sfarcioc recovered a fumble near the end of regulation and Bear Bachmeier scored on a 2-yard touchdown with 19 seconds left to force extra sessions in the desert.

Arizona defensive coordinator Danny Gonzales, a former Rocky Long assistant at New Mexico and San Diego State now entering his second season on Brennan's staff in Tucson, even went so far as to tell the Arizona Daily Star that "the BYU game plan is done" — in July.

"Bear Bachmeier had his day last year against us," he told the newspaper, "and I can't wait for Sept. 12."

Brennan downplayed the comments on his own, saying it was "Danny speaking for Danny." But it's clear the veteran play caller of the 3-3-5 defense has clearly been eyeing the trip to Provo for some time.

"Let's have a hell of a time," he said this week, per the Daily Star, "because it's one of the cleanest and one of the neatest places to go play a football game ... I hope the referees keep the flags in their pockets and let them try and kill each other and see who wins at the end of the game. It'll be fantastic."

While BYU will be without a long list of players including starting safety Raider Damuni and reserve running back Sione Moa, the Cougars are expected to bring back linebacker Isaiah Glasker after the senior did not play in the opener against Utah Tech while eyeing the Week 2 start.

Neither Damuni nor Moa are expected to miss the season, according to Sitake and defensive coordinator Kelly Poppinga.

Arizona, meanwhile, will be adding a pair of key veterans to their lineup that did not suit up against the Lumberjacks. ESPN's Pete Thamel reported Friday that last year's leading rusher Ismail Mahdi and the team's third-leading tackler Max Harris have gained another year of eligibility through a court hearing and will be available Saturday.

The duo were part of a temporary restraining order granted Wednesday in nearby Pima County Superior Court that allowed for a fifth season of eligibility.

Madhi led the Wildcats with 859 rushing yards and four touchdowns a year ago, while Harris totaled 78 tackles and 3.5 tackles for loss in 12 starts en route to All-Big 12 honorable mention honors.

BYU offensive coordinator Aaron Roderick called the Wildcats' defense last year one of the best in the country, and adding a player like Harris only adds to an already unique defensive scheme under Gonzales after losing a school-record four defensive backs to the NFL draft.

"The guys that run this defense, they are so good at what they do that even when they lose a few players, the next year they are just as good as they were the year before," Roderick said. "They play super hard, and they stick to their identity; they don't change for anybody. I have a lot of respect for them, creating a lot of havoc and playing their butts off."

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BYU’s Big 12 opener vs. Arizona

Saturday will be a stricter test of the Cougars’ defense in the first FBS game for both squads in an early Big 12 opener that helps accommodate the Cougars’ Oct. 17 nonconference tilt against Notre Dame. Here’s how to watch the game on TV, radio, and online.

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