Provo • BYU’s season likely comes down to beating No. 5 Texas Tech in Arlington this week.
But will its top pass catcher be available?
Head coach Kalani Sitake believes star receiver Chase Roberts will play in the Big 12 title game this week.
“Chase will be back,” Sitake said. “I think we made the right decision, hold him out and be smart with his injury.”
Roberts did not play in the regular-season finale against UCF, which BYU won 41-21. Roberts was dealing with a hamstring injury he suffered against Cincinnati, where he sat out in the second half after feeling discomfort.
Roberts has 713 receiving yards and five touchdowns this year.
In his BYU career, he’s tallied 2,497 yards and 17 scores. That is good for eighth all-time in BYU history. He is 51 yards away from seventh place. BYU’s all-time receiving leader is Cody Hoffman.
“We felt good about the other guys picking up the slack,” Sitake said of why he sat Roberts out. “I just like the way the guys are bought into it, whether we ask them to run block or run routes. They’ve done everything we ask them to. They don’t complain about it.”
BYU will need its full complement of receivers this week. The last time the Cougars played Texas Tech, they lost 29-7 in Lubbock.
Roberts, after the game, promised BYU would beat Tech if it saw the Red Raiders again.
With a win, BYU would go to the College Football Playoff. In a loss, BYU’s position on the bubble is far more precarious. It will likely be out of the postseason and head to a bowl game.