One of the most underrated stories of the early college football season has been the start to the season for the BYU Cougars. The Cougars are a perfect 5-0 and are now ranked 18th in the nation.
They will put that unbeaten record on the line Saturday night when they travel to Tucson to take on the Arizona Wildcats.
The Wildcats got off to a 3-0 start before suffering a 39-14 loss to the Iowa State Cyclones. They rebounded with a resounding 41-13 win over the Oklahoma State Cowboys last week to set up this key Big 12 showdown.
Productive Quarterbacks Lead BYU, Arizona
Arizona will be led by quarterback Noah Fifita, named Big 12 Player of the Week last week, going 28-of-38 for 376 yards with five touchdowns and one interception. On the season, he’s completed 64.6% of his passes (106-of-164) for 1,341 yards with 13 touchdowns and three interceptions.
Freshman Bear Bachmeier leads BYU. Bachmeier has had a fantastic season thus far, completing 68.7% of his passes (79-of-115) for 1,048 yards with seven touchdowns and just one interception, with that lone pick coming in last week’s 38-24 win over the West Virginia Mountaineers.
Another potential storyline to watch is the rumors that BYU head coach Kalani Sitake is being linked to some of the open jobs in college football, specifically at UCLA.
BYU vs Arizona Game Details
- Date: Saturday, October 11, 2025
- Game time: 8:00 p.m. ET
- Location: Arizona Stadium (capacity: 50,782), Tucson, Arizona
- Predicted Weather at Kick: 78°, mostly cloudy with a flood watch running from Saturday into Monday
- How to Watch: ESPN2
- Announcers: Mike Couzens (Play-by-Play), former NFL linebacker Kirk Morrison (Analyst), and Dawn Davenport (Sideline Reporter)
BYU vs. Arizona Head-to-Head Record
The teams have met 26 times and have played almost as evenly as possible. BYU leads the all-time series 13-12-1.
They last squared off in 2024 with BYU dominating the second half en route to a 41-19 victory. The Cougars forced four turnovers, propelling them to a win and a 6-0 start.
Fifita was 26-of-52 for 275 yards with one touchdown and three interceptions in the loss. But this match-up could be a little different.
As informed by Cougars Insider, Mitch Harper gave an update on the weather situation in Tucson. He said, “The remnants from Hurricane Priscilla could produce 1 to 3 inches of rain this weekend in Tucson. And the National Weather Service in Tucson laid out some maps of probability of 1 plus inches of rain Saturday through Monday.”
BYU vs. Arizona Grades
Below are the PFSN team and quarterback grades set to be featured in BYU vs. Arizona.
- BYU (80.0, B-)
- Arizona (75.6, C)
- BYU (84.4, B)
- Arizona (87.3, B+)
- Bear Bachmeier, BYU (77.3, C+)
- Noah Fifita (74.4, C)
How Will Weather Impact The BYU-Arizona Matchup?
With Hurricane Priscilla’s presence still looming, weather could be a significant factor in the game.
According to Justin Spears of the Tucson Star and The Wildcaster, “remnants of Tropical Storm Priscilla, which is moving north through the Pacific Ocean near Baja California, will make its way to Southern Arizona this weekend and is expected to bring 1-3 inches of rain.”
The National Weather Service forecasts “showers and possibly a thunderstorm” for Saturday night.
Per Spears, the “Big 12 is monitoring the incoming storm and its possible impact on Saturday’s game,” but “as of Friday morning, the kickoff time for the Arizona-BYU game wasn’t affected.”
Also Read: Kalani Sitake Learns Strong Bear Bachmeier Verdict Amid Rich Rodriguez’s QB Room Crisis
Of course, that doesn’t mean things can’t change in the next 24 hours.
Spears wrote on X, “For now, the Arizona-BYU football game will kickoff on Saturday at 5 p.m., but the Big 12 is monitoring the situation with Hurricane Priscilla. We’ll know more on Friday, because it’s still too early. Last season, the Big 12 moved the ASU-Oklahoma State kickoff time up 3+hours for inclement weather.”
The Big 12’s move to move the game last year set a precedent. Therefore, it is worth monitoring the situation throughout the evening and into Saturday morning.