The BYU defense is getting some reinforcements for a top 10 clash with Notre Dame. On Saturday morning on College GameDay, ESPN's Pete Thamel announced that BYU star linebacker Isaiah Glasker and starting strong safety Raider Damuni will return against Notre Dame.
Glasker suffered an injury on an interception return against TCU and did not return to the game. Raider Damuni suffered a knee injury in the first half of the Utah Tech game in what appeared to be a potential season-ending injury. Fortunately, the injury was not as bad as originally feared and Damuni will return on Saturday.
Per Thamel, Damuni won't start but he will play key snaps on defense. The Cougars will start Tommy Prassas who has been playing in Damuni's place while he's been injured. Damuni is excellent in run support and could be especially important if Notre Dame finds success in the run game. Damuni's return bodes well for a safety room that was a little after Damuni's injury.
Isaiah Glasker will return to the starting lineup. Kansas State transfer Jake Clifton replaced Glasker in the starting lineup last week against Iowa State and played really well in his absence. It's safe to assume Clifton earned more snaps over the last few weeks. We expect him to remain a key piece in the BYU defense.
Other Injuries to Watch
There are other injuries to monitor ahead of the BYU-Notre Dame game. BYU running back Sione Moa returned to practice earlier this week. Moa, who suffered an injury in the first quarter of the season opener, would be a major boost to a BYU running back room that is dipping into its third and fourth-string running backs.
Moa has been cleared to play, per BYU offensive coordinator. However, his status is still up in the air for the Notre Dame game. BYU struggled in short-yardage situations last week. Perhaps Moa could take a handful of short-yardage carries.
The status of BYU starting nickel and punt returner Cannon DeVries has not been announced, either. BYU missed DeVries on defense, but they especially missed him as a punt returner. Tiger Bachmeier muffed a pair of punts last week against Iowa State. If DeVries can't go, we would expect BYU to put someone new at punt return. Preston Rex, Legend Glasker, and Evan Johnson were in the mix at punt return back in Fall Camp.
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