If there's been one big storyline from the 2022-23 offseason for BYU football, it's been the offensive line. Losing Blake Freeland to the draft and the Barrington brothers to the transfer portal left gaping holes in the OL rotation, but the portal giveth as well as taketh away and the BYU coaching staff has been able to land impressive amounts of transfer talent to fill existing vacancies and then some. Which all begs the question—what will BYU's OL depth chart look like heading into the 2023 season? And could this be the Cougars' most talented line ever?
Guessing who will start on the offensive line was a lot easier before the Cougars were practically inundated with high-profile transfers in that position group. Now, things are a little less clear. There are so many potentially starting-caliber guys in the group at this point that deciding who will end up as the top five is a little tricky. Obviously, performances during the rest of the offseason might shake things up, but as I see it, this is roughly what a starting group might look like:
LT: Kingsley Suamataia
LG: Weylin Lapuaho -OR- Paul Maile
C: Connor Pay
RG: Paul Maile -OR- Weylin Lapuaho
RT: Caleb Etienne
Now, some thoughts on this chart. I think—think—it's safe to say that Suamataia, Lapuaho, Maile, Pay, and Etienne will be the Cougars' day 1 starters on the line. But the way I've penciled them into these positions is based on quite a bit of rumor, conjencture, and informed guesswork. Paul Maile was Utah's starting center last year, but initial word from those close to the program seems to indicate that Connor Pay will most likely start in that spot for the Cougars. And though Caleb Etienne started all 13 games at left tackle for Oklahoma State in 2022, it's pretty clear at this point that Kingsley Suamataia—the best overall player on the entire roster and a likely first round pick in 2024—will play that all-important position. I'm guessing Etienne will simply switch sides and play right tackle, leaving Maile and Weylin Lapuaho to take the guard spots. I have no idea which one of them will take which side and I won't try to guess.
And that's not even addressing the fact that there's no guarantee these will actually be the Cougars' opening day starters. BYU has quite the embarrassment of riches on the O-line behind those likely starters. Ian Fitzgerald and Jake Eichorn are two extremely talented FCS products who have joined the Cougars via the transfer portal, and Lisala Tai and Brayden Keim, a pair of juniors who were on the roster last year, are both noteworthy as well. Tai is an especially intriguing 6'7", 330 lb giant of a man. All four of these guys are arguably starting-caliber players, and it wouldn't shock me to see any of them steal a starting spot at some point in the season.
Assuming that my predictions for the starting five are correct, I would expect Tai, Keim, Fitzgerald, and Eichorn to get significant playing time off the bench. Junior Ben Ward and freshman Peter Falaniko are also names to keep an eye on. Add them to the previously mentioned quartet and you have a highly impressive ten- or eleven-man rotation on the offensive line. In fact, dare I say it, this might be the best offensive line top-to-bottom that the Cougars have ever fielded. That's a bold pronouncement to make with over four months left before this group plays its first snap against a live opponent, but it's a reflection of the remarkable job that BYU's offensive staff, and particularly Darrell Funk, have done both recruiting high-end talent and developing the talent that's already available.