Shedeur Sanders expects 'exotic things' from BYU defense

Colorado star quarterback Shedeur Sanders will face off against BYU on Saturday in the final game of his college football career. Sanders would love to go out on a high note, but he expects a tough challenge from the Cougars defense.

Ahead of the Alamo Bowl matchup, Shedeur Sanders explained how he and Colorado will try to attack the BYU defense and what kind of problems it presents.

“For me, it’s problem-solving,” Sanders said. “We know they’re going to do a lot of exotic things and a lot of different things we probably haven’t seen on film, but we just have to always stick to the basics and do what we do best.”

Sanders has had an incredible year to this point. He enters the matchup with BYU completing better than 74 percent of his passes. The senior has thrown for 3,926 yards and 35 touchdowns, with eight interceptions. He also has four rushing touchdowns on the season.

Sanders is being talked about as the potential No. 1 overall pick in next year’s NFL Draft and is without a doubt one of the top quarterbacks in the country. But that doesn’t mean he expects to have his way with the BYU defense.

“They’re a talented team, and they listen to their coaches and do everything 98% right. It’s defense, so defense — eventually somebody is going to bust a coverage, and that is what it is,” Sanders said. “Watching film on them, it’s very hard to find a tell and very hard to find a flaw when it comes to them because of the way they go about their business, the way they get in their stunts, the way they’re able to move and react different ways.”

BYU enters the Alamo Bowl with a top-20 passing defense, allowing 180.3 yards through the air per game. The Cougars are also in the top-20 in total defense at 317 yards per game. Sanders is impressed with the way BYU disguises its defenses to try to keep the offense guessing.

“You don’t know who is doing what, you know, so they have a great scheme,” he said. “They have a great everything. I’m very blessed for my final collegiate game to go against that type of challenge.”

Colorado and BYU will kick off Saturday night at 7:30 p.m. ET. The game will be televised by ABC.