Stanford vs. BYU Picks and Prediction for Saturday, September 6, 2025
Stanford Cardinal (0-1) vs. BYU Cougars (1-0)
Week 2 of the 2025 college football season is full of interesting matchups, and Saturday brings the non-conference showdown from LaVell Edwards Stadium in Provo, UT, so we have prepared the Stanford vs. BYU prediction to get you covered.
Stanford and BYU lock horns for the first time since November 26, 2022, when the Cougars defeated the Cardinal 35-26 as 6.5-point road favorites. The Cougars are 20.5-point home favorites this time around, while the total sits at 45.5 points.
Read more about this Stanford vs. BYU prediction, and check out all our NCAAF picks for Week 2. The kick-off at LaVell Edwards Stadium is set at 10:15 PM ET.
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Stanford struggled in its season opener
The Stanford Cardinal started their 2025 campaign on August 23. They visited the Hawaii Rainbow Warriors as 2.5-point underdogs and suffered a 23-20 defeat. Hawaii walked it off with Kansei Matsuzawa’s 38-yard field goal.
Stanford kept the ball in possession for 36:07 in Honolulu, but it wasn’t enough. The Cardinal racked up just 286 total yards and yielded 306 in return. They blew a 10-0 lead, scoring just seven points in the second half.
The Cardinal rushed 43 times for 177 yards in their season opener, and sophomore RB Micah Ford led the charge with 26 carries for 113 yards and a touchdown. Senior QB Ben Gulbranson struggled in his Stanford debut, going 15-of-30 for 109 yards and an interception.
Stanford hasn’t won more than four games since 2018. The Cardinal parted ways with Troy Taylor in the offseason and hired Frank Reich as their new head coach. It is Reich’s first job at the collegiate level, and the former NFL quarterback’s last job was with the Carolina Panthers in 2023.
Last season, Stanford went 3-9 overall and 2-6 in conference play, as the Cardinal had a rough first year in the ACC. They ranked 106th in scoring offense (22.8 points per game) and 116th in scoring defense (33.7).
BYU had an easy job in Week 1
The BYU Cougars hosted the FCS Portland State Vikings in their season opener. Last Saturday, the Cougars dismantled the Vikings 69-0, covering a huge 44.5-point spread with ease. BYU racked up a staggering 606 total yards and gave up just 53 total yards in return. Portland State had 22 carries for minus-three yards.
BYU rolled over the Vikings, posting 48 rushing attempts for 468 yards. Junior RB LJ Martin had eight totes for 131 yards, while sophomore WR Cody Hagen carried the pigskin two times for 57 yards and a touchdown. Hagen also had two receptions for 35 yards.
Freshman Bear Bachmeier enjoyed a nice debut, completing seven of his 11 passing attempts for 97 yards and three touchdowns. Bachmeier scored twice on his own while rushing five times for 32 yards. Interestingly, Bachmeier originally committed to Stanford out of high school, but he decided to transfer to BYU when spring practice was over.
The Cougars lost QB Jake Retzlaff in the offseason, as he transferred to Tulane. Last year, the Cougars went 11-2 overall and 7-2 in the Big 12. They beat Colorado 36-14 in the Alamo Bowl. The Cougars were scoring 31.2 points per game (40th in the nation) while allowing 19.6 points in return (18th).
This is BYU’s 10th season under head coach Kalani Sitake. Over the previous nine years, the Cougars have gone 72-43 and emerged victorious in five of their seven bowl appearances.
Stanford vs. BYU Pick
| # | Handicapper | Profit |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Rob Vinciletti | +1,570.00 |
| 2 |  Dan Kaiser | +1,223.00 |
| 3 |  Ross Benjamin | +1,000.00 |
| 4 |  Earle Sports Bets | +916.00 |
| 5 |  David Hess | +706.00 |
Spread Pick for Stanford vs. BYU
- BYU -20.5 (5 units)
BYU’s defense was excellent in 2024. The Cougars ranked 20th in the country in passing yards allowed (182.5 per game) and 33rd in rushing yards allowed (126.3). Week 1 clash against Portland State is not a proper benchmark, but BYU’s defense was truly dominant, so I expect the Cougars to shut the Cardinal down in Week 2.
BYU will torture Stanford in the trenches. The Cougars have a true freshman under center, but Stanford’s passing defense seems far away from an elite level. Last year, the Cardinal ranked 131st in passing yards allowed (280.6 per game). In their season opener, the Cardinal allowed Micah Alejado to throw for 210 yards and two touchdowns.
Stanford is 2-7-1 ATS in its last 10 games overall and 1-5 ATS in its previous six showings on the road. On the other side, BYU is 11-5 ATS in its last 16 games overall and 5-3 ATS in its past eight outings at home.
Over/Under Pick for Stanford vs. BYU
- Under 45.5 (5 units)
As I noted above, the Cougars relied on their defense in 2024, and we should see more of the same in 2025. With Ben Gulbranson under center, the Cardinal’s offense doesn’t breed confidence, and Stanford’s offensive line will have a tall task to slow the Cougars down.
Hereof, I don’t think the Cardinal will score enough to push the total over the line. Each of their last seven games played in September went under the total, and I will ride this betting trend, though the line is a tricky one at 45.5 points. The Cougars have kept their rivals below a 20-point mark in six of their last seven home games.
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