Cougar Tracks - Daily BYU Cougars Football, Basketball Podcast

KSL Newsradio

Cougar Tracks gives you a daily insider look into BYU Cougars football and basketball. KSL Sports BYU Insider Mitch Harper hosts the show. Harper has been covering BYU athletics for more than a decade. He brings you everything from the latest happenings in the BYU football and men's basketball programs, to the latest insight on the recruiting trail.  Cougar Tracks is your go-to podcast for the best daily BYU conversation.

  1. 19h ago

    Potential position battles for BYU football during the bye week + Basketball season is here

    No. 9 BYU football enjoys a bye week this week before facing the TCU Horned Frogs on October 3 in Fort Worth. KSL Sports BYU Insider Mitch Harper discussed potential positions to watch during the bye week for the Cougars. This will be BYU's only bye this season, before battling through nine straight games. BYU basketball season is off and running as official practices are underway. Mitch shares his initial thoughts on year three of the Kevin Young era tipping off. Subscribe to the Cougar Tracks Podcast sponsored by Zions Bank to stay up-to-date with all the daily episodes. Cougar Tracks is on YouTube every weekday at Noon (MT), and KSL NewsRadio at 6:30 p.m. (MT). Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/cougar-tracks/id1146971609 YouTube Podcast: https://kslsports.com/category/podcast_results/?sid=2035&n=Cougar%20Tracks Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2NCF1KecDsE2rB1zMuHhUh Download the KSL Sports app Google: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.bonneville.kslsports&hl=en_US  iOS: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/ksl-sports/id143593 Mitch Harper is a BYU Insider for KSLsports.com and hosts the Cougar Tracks Podcast daily on KSL Sports YouTube and KSL NewsRadio (SUBSCRIBE). Harper also co-hosts Cougar Sports Saturday (12–3 p.m.) on KSL NewsRadio. Follow Mitch’s coverage of BYU athletics in the Big 12 Conference on X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram: @Mitch_Harper. Want more coverage of BYU sports? Take us with you wherever you go. Download the new and improved KSL Sports app from Utah’s sports leader. Allows you to stream live radio and video, keeping you up-to-date on all your favorite teams.

    Potential position battles for BYU football during the bye week + Basketball season is here
  2. 1d ago

    BYU football flying high after 3-0 start + Closing the book on derogatory chants

    BYU is 3-0 and sitting exactly where it wants to be. KSL Sports BYU Insider Mitch Harper opens Monday's show from the other side of a dominant Saturday night in Fort Collins by breaking down what the 41-23 win over Colorado State means for the Cougars as they head into a bye week with momentum, health questions to answer, and a trip to TCU on October 3 looming on the other side. The final score says 18 points, but it wasn't that close. BYU raced out to a 21-7 first-quarter lead, extended it to 31-7 by halftime, and scored on the opening drive of the third quarter to push the advantage to 38-7 before Kalani Sitake began emptying the bench. The starters played roughly two and a half quarters of competitive football, and in those two and a half quarters, BYU looked like a legitimate top-10 team. The Cougars rolled up 559 total yards, rushed for 332 on 41 carries — an 8.1-yard average — and scored five rushing touchdowns. The defense held Colorado State to 302 total yards and just 82 on the ground, a 3.4-yard average, against a Rams offense that had been putting up 537 per game.  In the second segment, Mitch addresses the derogatory chants one final time, then closes the book on it. Before Saturday's kickoff — which was delayed 37 minutes by a thunderstorm — a segment of Colorado State's student section directed anti-Latter-day Saint chants at BYU's players, coaches, and fans. Videos circulated on social media almost immediately. Finally, Mitch closes the show with the Cougar Stock Exchange heading into the bye — who's trending up, who's trending down, and what to watch for when BYU returns to action. Subscribe to the Cougar Tracks Podcast sponsored by Zions Bank to stay up-to-date with all the daily episodes. Cougar Tracks is on YouTube every weekday at Noon (MT), and KSL NewsRadio at 6:30 p.m. (MT). Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/cougar-tracks/id1146971609 YouTube Podcast: https://kslsports.com/category/podcast_results/?sid=2035&n=Cougar%20Tracks Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2NCF1KecDsE2rB1zMuHhUh Download the KSL Sports app Google: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.bonneville.kslsports&hl=en_US  iOS: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/ksl-sports/id143593 Mitch Harper is a BYU Insider for KSLsports.com and hosts the Cougar Tracks Podcast daily on KSL Sports YouTube and KSL NewsRadio (SUBSCRIBE). Harper also co-hosts Cougar Sports Saturday (12–3 p.m.) on KSL NewsRadio. Follow Mitch’s coverage of BYU athletics in the Big 12 Conference on X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram: @Mitch_Harper. Want more coverage of BYU sports? Take us with you wherever you go. Download the new and improved KSL Sports app from Utah’s sports leader. Allows you to stream live radio and video, keeping you up-to-date on all your favorite teams.

    BYU football flying high after 3-0 start + Closing the book on derogatory chants
  3. 3d ago

    Postgame reaction from Fort Collins: No. 11 BYU 41, Colorado State 23

    3-0 feels oh-so-good for BYU football. KSL Sports BYU Insider Mitch Harper hosts a special postgame reaction show live from Canvas Stadium in Fort Collins after No. 11 BYU overpowered Colorado State 41-23 on Saturday night, moving to 3-0 for a fourth consecutive season and the 20th time in program history. BYU is now 3-0 for the sixth time under Kalani Sitake — and this one was never in doubt. Mitch opens with the performance that had the CBS broadcast crew running out of superlatives. LJ Martin put on a clinic, rushing for 176 yards and three touchdowns on just 15 carries — and 173 of those yards came in the first half. On BYU's second offensive play of the game, Martin broke free for a 56-yard touchdown run to set the tone less than a minute into the contest. He followed it with a 2-yard scoring plunge to make it 14-7, then ripped off an 8-yard touchdown to cap a six-play, 73-yard drive and give BYU a 21-7 lead before the first quarter was over. All three touchdowns came in the opening 15 minutes. The reigning Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year carried the ball just once in the second half with BYU up big.  On the defensive side, Kelly Poppinga's unit held Colorado State to just 302 total yards — more than 200 fewer than the Rams' season average entering the game. CSU managed only 82 rushing yards on 24 attempts, a 3.4-yard average, after coming in averaging 225 per game. The Rams, who had scored 93 combined points in their first two wins over Wyoming and Southern Utah, were limited to just seven points through three quarters. The BYU defense held Hauss Hejny largely in check after CSU's opening-drive touchdown response. Colorado State has now lost 28 consecutive games against ranked opponents — their last win over a ranked team came in 2002 against No. 7 Colorado. Mitch also addresses a segment of Colorado State's student section that directed anti-faith chants toward BYU's players and fans during the pregame. Colorado State issued a public statement after the game: "Mocking anyone's faith has no place at CSU. It runs counter to our community's values and to who we are. BYU's players, coaches and fans deserved better. We are addressing this with our students." Sitake took the high road in his presser, noting that the chants came from a "mostly minority" of the crowd and that his players are "self-motivated" regardless of the environment.  Subscribe to the Cougar Tracks Podcast sponsored by Zions Bank to stay up-to-date with all the daily episodes. Cougar Tracks is on YouTube every weekday at Noon (MT), and KSL NewsRadio at 6:30 p.m. (MT). Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/cougar-tracks/id1146971609 YouTube Podcast: https://kslsports.com/category/podcast_results/?sid=2035&n=Cougar%20Tracks Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2NCF1KecDsE2rB1zMuHhUh Download the KSL Sports app Google: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.bonneville.kslsports&hl=en_US  iOS: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/ksl-sports/id143593 Mitch Harper is a BYU Insider for KSLsports.com and hosts the Cougar Tracks Podcast daily on KSL Sports YouTube and KSL NewsRadio (SUBSCRIBE). Harper also co-hosts Cougar Sports Saturday (12–3 p.m.) on KSL NewsRadio. Follow Mitch’s coverage of BYU athletics in the Big 12 Conference on X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram: @Mitch_Harper. Want more coverage of BYU sports? Take us with you wherever you go. Download the new and improved KSL Sports app from Utah’s sports leader. Allows you to stream live radio and video, keeping you up-to-date on all your favorite teams.

    Postgame reaction from Fort Collins: No. 11 BYU 41, Colorado State 23
  4. 4d ago

    No. 11 BYU vs. Colorado State: Preview, storylines to watch, score prediction

    It's game day eve. KSL Sports BYU Insider Mitch Harper delivers the comprehensive breakdown of everything you need to know before No. 11 BYU (2-0) travels to Sonny Lubick Field at Canvas Stadium in Fort Collins to take on Colorado State (2-0) on Saturday, September 19. Kickoff is set for 5:30 p.m. MT on CBS & KSL NewsRadio. Mitch opens with the stat matchup that tells the story of this game — and it starts with two of the most efficient offenses in the country crashing into each other under the lights. BYU is averaging 45.5 points per game (28th nationally) on 443 total yards per game (43rd), while Colorado State is putting up 46.5 points per game (23rd) on a whopping 537 total yards per game (13th). Both teams are averaging 225-plus rushing yards per game. Both teams are elite at protecting the football — BYU's turnover margin of plus-5 is fifth nationally, and Colorado State's plus-7 margin is second in the entire country.  To close the show, Mitch gives his score prediction for the matchup. Subscribe to the Cougar Tracks Podcast sponsored by Zions Bank to stay up-to-date with all the daily episodes. Cougar Tracks is on YouTube every weekday at Noon (MT), and KSL NewsRadio at 6:30 p.m. (MT). Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/cougar-tracks/id1146971609 YouTube Podcast: https://kslsports.com/category/podcast_results/?sid=2035&n=Cougar%20Tracks Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2NCF1KecDsE2rB1zMuHhUh Download the KSL Sports app Google: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.bonneville.kslsports&hl=en_US  iOS: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/ksl-sports/id143593 Mitch Harper is a BYU Insider for KSLsports.com and hosts the Cougar Tracks Podcast daily on KSL Sports YouTube and KSL NewsRadio (SUBSCRIBE). Harper also co-hosts Cougar Sports Saturday (12–3 p.m.) on KSL NewsRadio. Follow Mitch’s coverage of BYU athletics in the Big 12 Conference on X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram: @Mitch_Harper. Want more coverage of BYU sports? Take us with you wherever you go. Download the new and improved KSL Sports app from Utah’s sports leader. Allows you to stream live radio and video, keeping you up-to-date on all your favorite teams.

    No. 11 BYU vs. Colorado State: Preview, storylines to watch, score prediction
  5. 5d ago

    BYU on upset watch? + Where Kalani ranks on 'handsome coaches list' + Jake Clifton interview

    Should No. 11 BYU be on upset watch Saturday night in Fort Collins? KSL Sports BYU Insider Mitch Harper opens Thursday's show with the question that nobody in Cougar Nation wants to ask but everybody is quietly thinking about.  Next, Mitch has some fun with the viral story of the week. RotoGrinders published its "Most Handsome College Football Coaches" rankings on Sunday, analyzing 414 images of all 138 FBS head coaches using facial landmark technology that mapped 468 facial landmarks per image against neoclassical facial proportions and Pallett-Link-Lee ratios. Duke's Manny Diaz took the No. 1 spot with a 75.9 out of 100 final score. Indiana's Curt Cignetti landed second. Clemson's Dabo Swinney came in third and had the quote of the week when a reporter told him about the ranking at his Tuesday press conference: "As in good looking? Finally something comes my way. I thought you were gonna say, like, 'most hated guy' or whatever."  In the third segment, Mitch runs through his Week 3 Big 12 picks. It's a loaded slate with 13 games involving Big 12 teams, headlined by the Friday night showdown between No. 22 Houston and No. 13 Texas Tech in Lubbock. Saturday's slate features the inaugural Union Jack Classic at Wembley Stadium in London, where Arizona State takes on Kansas at 10 a.m. MT on FS1, the first Big 12 conference game ever played on foreign soil. Finally, Mitch wraps the show by pivoting to basketball and sharing his takeaways from the 2026-27 Big 12 men's basketball schedule. Subscribe to the Cougar Tracks Podcast sponsored by Zions Bank to stay up-to-date with all the daily episodes. Cougar Tracks is on YouTube every weekday at Noon (MT), and KSL NewsRadio at 6:30 p.m. (MT). Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/cougar-tracks/id1146971609 YouTube Podcast: https://kslsports.com/category/podcast_results/?sid=2035&n=Cougar%20Tracks Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2NCF1KecDsE2rB1zMuHhUh Download the KSL Sports app Google: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.bonneville.kslsports&hl=en_US  iOS: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/ksl-sports/id143593 Mitch Harper is a BYU Insider for KSLsports.com and hosts the Cougar Tracks Podcast daily on KSL Sports YouTube and KSL NewsRadio (SUBSCRIBE). Harper also co-hosts Cougar Sports Saturday (12–3 p.m.) on KSL NewsRadio. Follow Mitch’s coverage of BYU athletics in the Big 12 Conference on X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram: @Mitch_Harper. Want more coverage of BYU sports? Take us with you wherever you go. Download the new and improved KSL Sports app from Utah’s sports leader. Allows you to stream live radio and video, keeping you up-to-date on all your favorite teams.

    BYU on upset watch? + Where Kalani ranks on 'handsome coaches list' + Jake Clifton interview
  6. 6d ago

    'Powerhouse' BYU prepares for CSU + Get to know the Rams with an insider + Reggie Frischknecht interview

    Colorado State's first-year head coach dropped a word this week that tells you how far BYU football has come. KSL Sports BYU Insider Mitch Harper opens Wednesday's episode with the storyline driving the national narrative around Saturday's game in Fort Collins: Jim Mora called BYU a "powerhouse."    No. 11 BYU will be the highest-ranked team to ever play at Canvas Stadium when the Cougars visit Fort Collins on Saturday at 5:30 p.m. MT on CBS. It's the first meeting between the former WAC and Mountain West rivals since November 13, 2010.   BYU leads the all-time series 39-27-3, including a seven-game winning streak dating back to 2004. Mitch breaks down why the "powerhouse" label matters for BYU's playoff positioning and what it means that opposing coaches are no longer tiptoeing around the compliment. In the second segment, Mitch sits down with Kevin Lytle, the veteran Colorado State athletics reporter for The Coloradoan in Fort Collins. Lytle has covered the Rams for years. Finally, Mitch closes the show with a one-on-one interview with BYU wide receiver Reggie Frischknecht, just days removed from hauling in his first career collegiate touchdown. The 6-foot-4, 207-pound redshirt sophomore from Ephraim, Utah, took a short pass from Bear Bachmeier over the middle and turned it into a 25-yard score early in the second quarter against Arizona, giving BYU its first lead of the game at 14-10. It was a moment that crystallized one of the most unconventional paths to the BYU roster in recent memory.  Subscribe to the Cougar Tracks Podcast sponsored by Zions Bank to stay up-to-date with all the daily episodes. Cougar Tracks is on YouTube every weekday at Noon (MT), and KSL NewsRadio at 6:30 p.m. (MT). Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/cougar-tracks/id1146971609 YouTube Podcast: https://kslsports.com/category/podcast_results/?sid=2035&n=Cougar%20Tracks Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2NCF1KecDsE2rB1zMuHhUh Download the KSL Sports app Google: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.bonneville.kslsports&hl=en_US  iOS: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/ksl-sports/id143593 Mitch Harper is a BYU Insider for KSLsports.com and hosts the Cougar Tracks Podcast daily on KSL Sports YouTube and KSL NewsRadio (SUBSCRIBE). Harper also co-hosts Cougar Sports Saturday (12–3 p.m.) on KSL NewsRadio. Follow Mitch’s coverage of BYU athletics in the Big 12 Conference on X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram: @Mitch_Harper. Want more coverage of BYU sports? Take us with you wherever you go. Download the new and improved KSL Sports app from Utah’s sports leader. Allows you to stream live radio and video, keeping you up-to-date on all your favorite teams.

    'Powerhouse' BYU prepares for CSU + Get to know the Rams with an insider + Reggie Frischknecht interview
4.8
out of 5
186 Ratings

About

Cougar Tracks gives you a daily insider look into BYU Cougars football and basketball. KSL Sports BYU Insider Mitch Harper hosts the show. Harper has been covering BYU athletics for more than a decade. He brings you everything from the latest happenings in the BYU football and men's basketball programs, to the latest insight on the recruiting trail.  Cougar Tracks is your go-to podcast for the best daily BYU conversation.

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