3 keys for BYU to beat East Carolina


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PROVO — After an embarrassing loss at Michigan, the Cougars pulled away late from UConn last week and won in a game that was much closer than the final score at 30-13.

This week, BYU has another scrappy opponent in East Carolina University.

Here are three keys for the Cougars to pick up a win.

Keep James Summers in the pocket

East Carolina is currently implementing a two-quarterback system, with usual starter Blake Kemp. He is more of a traditional pocket passer and has limited mobility.

The second quarterback is James Summers, who in the last two weeks has led the Pirates to come-from-behind victories. Summers is a dynamic athlete who does his best work when he is on the move. The Cougars will have to prepare for two very different quarterbacks.

The key to shutting down Summers will be to make him beat the Cougars in the pocket. If BYU can be assignment-sound and maintain containment, it will have a good shot at victory.

East Carolina's James Summers (11) breaks the tackle of Virginia Tech's Ken Ekanem (4) for a gain with Pirates' Quincy McKinney (72) looking on during the second half of an NCAA college football game in Greenville, N.C. (AP Photo)
East Carolina's James Summers (11) breaks the tackle of Virginia Tech's Ken Ekanem (4) for a gain with Pirates' Quincy McKinney (72) looking on during the second half of an NCAA college football game in Greenville, N.C. (AP Photo)

Create turnovers

BYU's defense has seen its fair share of ups and downs. Against Nebraska and Boise State, the Cougs struggled to stop their opponents' passing game. Against UCLA and Michigan, the D was gashed by the running game. Last week, the defense probably played its best game against a weak UConn offense.

One thing that the D has consistently done is get takeaways. In every game but the Michigan game, Cougar defenders created turnovers. Many of these turnovers shifted momentum in favor of the Cougars.

Last week, BYU's offense was struggling to score for most of the game. An interception by Bronson Kaufusi gave the offense a short field to work with and allowed the team to finally start putting the Huskies away. The Pirates have had some issues with ball security in the young season as Kemp has thrown five interceptions. The Cougars need their defense to create turnovers to take some of the pressure off the offense and the still-developing freshman quarterback Tanner Mangum.

Establish the run

Against UConn, the Cougars got back on track in the run game after a pitiful showing in their matchup with the Michigan Wolverines. BYU was bolstered by a healthy Algernon Brown in the back field. The bruising tailback gained 95 yards and was a workhorse with 18 carries. Likewise, Francis Bernard got the job done as he ran 11 times for 69 yards and a touchdown.

BYU's ability to run opened up the passing game for Mangum. Mangum played well overall in one of his better showings of the year. The Pirates run defense is not great, as it is giving up nearly 200 yards on the ground a contest. If the Cougars can run on ECU, they have a great chance to pull out a victory.


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**About the Author: Dylan Cannon** ----------------------------------

Dylan Cannon is a regular KSL.com contributor and can be reached at DylanCannon86@gmail.com or via twitter @DylanCannon11. Listen to his weekly podcast, "Cougar Talk," on YouTube.

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