Cougar Passion--BYU Sports Blog

Final Post, Again

2009-02-07T20:59:00.003-07:00

It is only coincidence that I am once again deciding to discontinue this blog almost exactly a year after I did so previously before reconsidering several months later. The reasons are very much the same, although I have even less time for non-essential writing than before before due to a demanding church calling.

One of the things I put ahead of writing about BYU sports is a desire to write a book about my autistic son, which I also mentioned a year ago. To that end, I have actually started a blog about him to put down in print some memories and ideas to compile later.

The reason I knew for certain that I could not continue with this blog was that I have felt some strong opinions about Manti Te'o's decision not to come to BYU. I had let go of them until I yesterday read an opinion piece by Matt Payne, who I presume is the same person who was the great punter for BYU a couple of years ago. Even as strongly as I feel about rebutting Matt's article (and am going to do it here), I don't feasibly have the time.

So, this is it. Last post, countering Matt Payne's view about the choices great athletes make.

Matt made an analogy to a person who wants to be a lawyer. If a person wants to be a lawyer, who are we to complain about him choosing to go to Harvard instead of BYU? By the same token, Matt posits that a football player should not choose BYU over Notre Dame because the latter regularly sends more players to the NFL.

There, however, is where Matt is wrong. An analogy only works if the situations are analogous. These two are not. People do not see law students competing on a regular basis nationally representing their schools. People do see football players doing that. Not only that, but the opportunities for success for a particular person in law can have a direct correlation to the school he chooses, regardless of his or her talents. Success in football is almost entirely decided on actual talent.

Schools like Notre Dame and USC send players to the NFL with more frequency than does BYU because they recruit more talented players from the start. When is the last time that Notre Dame or USC did not have a highly-ranked recruiting class? When is the last time BYU did?

Great players can go to the NFL from virtually anywhere, even from (formerly known as) Division I-AA schools. BYU has put its share of players in the NFL as well. It has even sent them as first-round draft picks. Two quarterbacks have won Super Bowls, and one has been inducted into the Hall of Fame. One may say, "sure, but those are quarterbacks". But BYU has had a linebacker (Rob Morris) chosen in the first round in recent memory. If Manti Te'o progresses as could be foreseen, he would certainly be regarded at least as highly as Rob Morris, and likely more so.

I do not pretend to know the full story behind Manti's decision to go elsewhere, so I will speak generally. When the San Francisco 49ers played the San Diego Chargers in the Super Bowl, I was impressed, and wondered what the general public thought, when not one but two offensive starters were announced with their alma mater, Brigham Young University. Steve Young and Bart Oates played on that team. Now consider an LDS player that eventually goes to the Super Bowl with any team besides BYU. It is true that some might wonder if a player is listed as having played at Utah. But the only school that people will automatically identify with the LDS Church is BYU. So, no matter how great an LDS player is, unless a fan follows that particular player extremely closely, he or she will not automatically make the association between that player and the Church.

Now, what if an LDS player never makes it to the Super Bowl? What of college achievements? If it is established that a player can make it to the NFL from any school if that person is good enough, then why not help the profile of the Church through the school that represents it? BYU does well with players that are, for the most part, not top-flight. What could they do if they had more players that were? I have said it before, and I will say it again, here, for the last time. All things equal, BYU will be more successful with more talented players. Again, I don't know the situation with Manti Te'o. In general, LDS players should do what they can to boost the position of their church. The best way to do that is to play at BYU.

Thank you again to those of you who have read this blog. If I decide at some point to write again, I will start a new blog and give the link here. I apologize if this last post is not very polished or cohesive. I have chosen not to spend any more time on it than simply to get the basic point across.

Top 15 (Plus One)

2008-11-09T21:07:00.004-07:00

I often view the rankings as travesty; I regularly see teams being penalized for losing close games on the road, for instance, when that should not be the case. I believe the rankings should reflect who would likely defeat whom at a neutral site. With that in mind, I present my thoughts on how the rankings should look, with comments following. In order, with records listed:

1 Florida 8-1
2 Texas 9-1
3 Oklahoma 9-1
4 Texas Tech 10-0
5 Alabama 10-0
6 USC 8-1
7 Boise State 9-0
8 Oklahoma State 8-2
9 Penn State 9-1
10 Ohio State 8-2
11 Georgia 8-2
12 Missouri 8-2
13 TCU 9-2
14 LSU 6-3
15 Utah 10-0
16 BYU 9-1

I know that Florida stumbled badly earlier in the year at home, but I now think they would beat anybody on a neutral field--and often at an opponent's site. Other than that, I don't think the SEC is as strong as it usually is. Alabama looked extremely impressive winning at Georgia earlier this season, but Georgia has subsequently shown that mediocre defense is their norm rather than the exception.

The Big 12 is an incredible conference this year. I don't think Texas Tech beats Texas or Oklahoma on a neutral field. Of course, I will have to admit my mistake if they manage to win in Norman.

USC has shown that their loss to Oregon State was perhaps not as much of a fluke as they would like voters to believe, as the only teams they have really dominated in conference play are the weak schools in the state of Washington.

Based on low opponents' scores, I feel Boise State is the real deal. They aren't just about great offense. Since they have already won on the big stage as well, I feel they could beat a great many schools from the "power" conferences.

Oklahoma State should not be ranked as far down in the national polls as they are. Their loss at Texas Tech was really the first time this year that they have not been in position to compete at the end, and their only other loss was a close one at Texas. Surely they would defeat many other teams around the nation.

Penn State and Ohio State come from a weak conference. The Buckeyes barely won at what has proven to be a very average Wisconsin, and the Nittany Lions barely won in Columbus. Remember also that Ohio State looked pathetic at USC early on.

TCU is one I am not quite sure about after the game against Utah. The previous three weeks led me to believe they were a Top 10 team. Although I predicted that Utah would beat the Horned Frogs due to a loss of some composure in Salt Lake City, I did not foresee a virtual meltdown. If they bounce back from that, though, I think TCU is the class of the Mountain West, and the best team on a neutral field.

LSU. Yes, the Tigers played Alabama close despite throwing three interceptions in regulation, but that simply shows to me that the Crimson Tide are not quite deserving of the top ranking. Georgia won handily in Death Valley, and LSU was never in the game at Florida. Nevertheless, the SEC is not so bad that the Tigers' three losses should relegate them to a ranking of 19 or 20, as the national polls have done.

Utah is quite good. But they aren't a Top 10 team, and I don't say that as a BYU fan. I just don't see anything that indicates they would beat the teams I have ranked above them if they were to meet in a bowl game.

And then there is BYU (not Ball State--beating nine weak teams does not make one great; consider Tulsa, who failed miserably at also-ran Arkansas). The game against San Diego State was a step forward, although the Aztecs admittedly have problems. If SDSU had been more consistent on offense, I would have compared their performance to that of Wyoming when they visited Provo. The Cowboys failed to score any points against the Cougars, but that was due to turnovers, which the BYU defense has not produced lately in numbers similar to earlier in the year. The remainder of BYU's season will be determined by the ability of the Cougar defense to return to form. That may be difficult due to the number of injuries currently sustained. At this point, I am not confident that BYU would beat Utah. Thankfully, the game will not be played for two more weeks.

A Blessing In Disguise?

2008-10-27T21:00:00.000-06:00

As painful as the recent loss to TCU was, this could be best for the conference, and thus BYU's future, in the long run.

BYU had its way in conference play the last two seasons. Although some of the victories were too close for comfort, the only statistic that most who determine important matters in college football will remember is that no one beat the Cougars. I was wondering if another team anywhere in the country had gone undefeated in their conference the last two years. Ohio State lost to Illinois last year, and mighty USC lost two conference games in each of the last two years. Neither the Big 10 nor the Pac-10 have been considered recently to be in the same league as the SEC or the Big 12, so BYU's dominance of the Mountain West--and, before that, other teams going undefeated in conference play--can only lead many to suspect that the overall strength of the conference is not on par with those of leagues that currently comprise the group of automatic BCS qualifiers. One could make the argument that different teams going undefeated proves its strength, and I agree with that argument. However, others will likely say that one team "got hot" and dominated other good-but-not-great-schools.

Frankly, the best scenario for the Mountain West is now to have Utah beat TCU, and then BYU beat Utah. If each team has no other losses, that would leave TCU with two (one coming against Oklahoma on the road), and BYU and Utah with one each. The SEC and Big 12 might be able to match that, but could any other conference?

A conference with three strong teams, plus a couple of decent schools like Air Force and New Mexico--although the Lobos admittedly don't look quite as solid this year as they have in recent seasons--would need to be given consideration as an automatic qualifier in the BCS. I certainly think such a league would not take a back seat to the Big East, and an argument could be made that the ACC would not be significantly better, either--as long as Florida State and Miami are in their current state of less-than-national-championship caliber.

To further strengthen their position, though, the Mountain West Conference should allow Boise State to join their club (I would have added Fresno State as well, but I understand that is out of the question because the Bulldogs accept academic non-qualifiers). The Broncos have proven they are not a flash in the pan. Not only would this strengthen the MWC, but it would likely keep BSU from periodically coasting into a BCS bowl (which may well happen this year) as they annually have to deal with BYU, TCU, Utah, and Air Force. Current reasoning among non-automatic BCS qualifiers is that any team in such a conference essentially needs to go undefeated to reach a BCS bowl game. The MWC would force a re-evaluation of that logic with the addition of one more strong team. The reason conferences with champions that automatically qualify for the BCS do not have to go undefeated to be considered quality teams is that it is expected that the level of competition in their leagues would make an undefeated season rather unlikely. To illustrate, nobody bats an eye when SEC teams are in the Top 10 at the end of the year with two conference losses, because the league is that good from top to bottom. Could anyone feasibly expect to regularly see an undefeated MWC champion if the top half of the group includes BYU, TCU, Utah and Boise State, and then Air Force and New Mexico are thrown in for good measure?

Accurately Predicted, Sadly

2008-10-18T22:26:00.002-06:00

This falls under "I hate it when I'm right". I wrote in January about the difficulty I foresaw in running the conference table a third consecutive season. I asserted that BYU would win its non-league games this year, but that the task would be even harder to go undefeated in the Mountain West again.

I think Bronco Mendenhall is an amazing coach, but I hope the 32-7 loss to TCU, and Horned Frogs coach Gary Patterson's admission that his staff had been preparing for BYU since January--along with the TCU tackle dummy wearing a BYU helmet--illustrates what I wrote about teams targeting the Cougars. Mendenhall is great, but not perfect. I hope he will see the value in deflecting attention to other conference teams where he can, talking about how good they are, etc. and not coming up with slogans like "Quest For Perfection" that make other teams so overjoyed when they finally beat BYU. Or was I the only one who noticed TCU's defender in rapture after sacking Max Hall and recovering a fumble late in the game when the outcome was hardly in doubt?

I suppose if Mendenhall could always get his team to walk the walk to match the talk, he could disregard how the opposition feels about things. So far, however, I haven't seen a coach anywhere who can do that all the time. I continue to believe he improves his team's potential for success by publicly showing humility, even as he builds up his troops behind closed doors.

Rankings And Championship Musings

2008-09-29T18:35:00.007-06:00

I was asked today what I thought about Penn State leap-frogging BYU and Texas Tech into the #6 spot in both polls (the person asking knew it was my nature to analyze anything affecting BYU sports). At first glance, I suspected a bias toward a "traditional" power, and perhaps an awareness by both sportswriters and coaches that BYU entering the Top 10 this early could create problems for some at the end of the season, à la 1984. Comparing BYU and PSU, though, shows that both have played only one away game thus far. Both away opponents, Washington and Syracuse respectively, have struggled. While BYU squeaked by the Huskies, Penn State crushed the Orange--no pun intended. The Nittany Lions just beat a lower-ranked team at home, and the results were about what one might expect, so I would hope that did not influence voters' opinions. However, they may have taken the victory over Oregon State, who just beat USC, into consideration. I think, given the Beavers' previous home triumph over the Trojans, that should not mean much. Nevertheless, I cannot find fault with choosing PSU over BYU.

I was shocked to see all four losing Top 10 teams fall below BYU. Most surprising was USC ranked at #9. I don't agree that losing a conference game on the road is an indication of significant weakness; league schools are the ones who best know how to attack a rival. Perhaps the Trojans were penalized for not being sufficiently prepared to avoid a repeat loss at Corvallis. Still, I expect USC to jump back above BYU in a week or two unless the Cougars look extremely impressive. A shutout of Utah State with a score similar to the UCLA game would be a good start. Regardless, USC's remaining tougher games are all at home. They will likely work their way back into the title game, perhaps at the Cougars' expense, against Oklahoma, which is in the same fortunate situation regarding their stronger opponents. LSU will lose at Florida; Alabama will lose at LSU; Missouri will lose at Texas or in the Big 12 championship; Texas will lose at Oklahoma; Penn State will lose at Ohio State; and Texas Tech--please. They do get Texas at home but will likely lose; they may well lose before that at Texas A&M; and they will most certainly lose at Oklahoma. If BYU is exceptionally strong through the remainder of their games--routing TCU at Fort Worth would compare nicely to Oklahoma's 35 points in Norman--and USC struggles at home against a couple of teams, the Cougars might get into the title game. Nevertheless, the best I see for them this year, is a #3 ranking, with the Sooners and Trojans duking it out in the BCS Championship game.

This actually brings up another interesting discussion, of course. Here's the scenario: BYU finishes with a Top-5 ranking, wins their BCS bowl game--like Boise State a couple of years ago, the opponent might be better, but BYU will find a way to win--and enters the 2009 season again in the Top 10 (I'm certain there will be those who simply can't resist ranking some SEC teams higher). If BYU wins at Arizona State, they will play in the championship game. They play at home, and will beat, an improving Florida State team, TCU, Air Force, and Utah. They do play at New Mexico, but they always find a way to win in Albuquerque. And Max Hall will win the Heisman Trophy.

New Post--BYU vs. UW Comment

2008-09-06T22:43:00.002-06:00

I guess I am "repenting of my oath" not to write any more. I continue to see hits to this blog (not many, of course), and I do still have the urge to write. I am not quite as overwhelmed as I was previously, but I nevertheless can't bring myself to do this on a regular basis. So, anyone who has occasionally checked this blog for an update can now expect to see something new from time to time.

I didn't like the officials' call on Jake Locker after scoring the touchdown with two seconds left to give the Huskies a chance to tie. They later issued a statement to the Washington coaching staff claiming that their hands were tied by an increased emphasis on this rule this year. If that is the case, I anticipate seeing more of that this season, and a revision of the rule next year. I remember that when the celebration rule was first instated, there was universal disgust with the application of it, and it was subsequently revised.

Nevertheless, it was as though the TV commentators were nearly certain of the longer extra point attempt being unsuccessful, which it ultimately was due to BYU blocking it. I almost wish that it hadn't been blocked, that the attempt had gone through, and that the game would have gone to overtime so we would not be subjected to all this crying about it--and I don't mean by Washington fans, actually; it is the media like ESPN claiming the game was lost on this call that bothers me.

What is the probability of a 35-yard field goal, straight down the middle, failing in college football? Even with the problems BYU had in the kicking game last year--the Cougars attempted fewer field goals than any other team due to Mitch Payne's injury, if I remember correctly--I would like their chances in that situation. The likelihood of such a kick being blocked is even less than the ball simply missing the mark.

Ultimately, Bronco Mendenhall's analysis was spot-on. He had said at halftime that the game would be won with execution. At the end of the game, he said there were plenty of calls that could have been made that weren't, the officials' call was not wrong, and BYU made the play they needed to win the game. I am impressed with them for blocking that kick. I frankly suspect that BYU would still have won the game in overtime; their offense was more consistent than that of Washington. For the Cougars to not even let it go to overtime by producing the surge necessary to end the game is noteworthy, and deserves far more attention than it has received.

Final Post

2008-02-02T12:40:00.000-07:00

I have very reluctantly concluded that I do not have the time necessary to continue writing about BYU sports. Articles about athletics usually need to be posted in a timely fashion, but my work schedule and other priorities prevent me from being able to write in such a manner.

I have often felt the urge to write, but knew that by doing so I was using time that I might otherwise spend with my children. My efforts to do my "real" job well, and to put myself in a position to advance and so ensure the coverage of my children's future education expenses, leaves me with very little time during the week. Thus, my only free time comes on Saturdays. By letting go of my passion for commenting on Cougar sports, I can hopefully interact more with my children. The likely alternative will have me looking back after they are grown and wishing I had done things differently.

One of the reasons I have less free time than some might, is that my oldest child is autistic. He is "low-functioning" (a term that anyone who is somewhat familiar with autism will recognize), and thus requires attention for things that other children his age would not: he is unable to bathe himself, put on his own clothes without direction, or brush his teeth, among many other things.

The reason I started blogging is that it is said that one should do something for which one is passionate. I had hopes to bridge this blog to a website, http://www.cougarpassion.com, for which I intend to maintain rights to the URL. If circumstances in the future change for me, allowing me to do something that requires timeliness, I will work on that again. Until then, if I do have occasional free time, I have decided to write a book on life with my autistic son. If nothing else, it would provide people a glimpse into a situation for which, in the experience of my wife and myself, many have some interest but very little knowledge.

Finally, I would like to thank all of you who have read this blog. Obviously, a person who writes wants to see people reading it. I appreciate those of you who have done so. Thanks again.

BCS in 2008?

2008-01-13T18:46:00.000-07:00

It seems that everywhere I turn, I see people talking about BYU getting into a BCS game next season. Bronco Mendenhall has stated--admirably, in my opinion--that his goal is to elevate the program from the conference champion that plays a middling Pac-10 team in Las Vegas, to one that goes to top-tier bowls, and then eventually finds itself in a position to once again compete for a national title. The not-so-subtle message is that, after consecutive years as conference champion, the Cougars should expect nothing less than a BCS bowl in 2008. Players of course repeat this mantra, and media such as the Sporting News and the New York Times are picking up on the idea as well.

This frankly concerns me greatly. Coach Mendenhall has conceded that the current path to a BCS game will likely not include even a single loss--although, this past crazy year, the Cougars may well have gotten there if they had lost only to UCLA. What he hasn't acknowledged is the improbability of BYU going undefeated in the Mountain West Conference a third straight time.

BYU will win at Washington early on. Tyrone Willingham's crew could be more formidable later in the year (and I hope they are, since I am a fan of Coach Willingham, and his job is on the line), but I suspect they will not be ready to pull out a win versus a good team at the beginning of September. I believe the Cougars will also beat UCLA again; surely Bronco and Robert Anae will confer on how to better attack the stingy Bruin defense. Certainly Utah State and the other non-conference opponent will not prevail against BYU either.

But league play is a different animal, at least this year. I don't think that any team will be superior to BYU, but that isn't necessarily the point. The great Cougar teams of the past went undefeated in consecutive seasons only once in the Western Athletic Conference, and the teams to do that were National Championship level: 1983's version with Heisman Trophy runner-up Steve Young lost a close first game and ended up ranked #7, and the 1984 squad of course won it all.

The WAC of the early 1980's was not nearly as strong as the MWC is now. For instance, the 1983 Cougar team defeated Utah 55-7, and New Mexico 66-21. Such poundings are unimaginable now. In fact, BYU needed all they had (and more, some say) to beat both clubs this past year. The Cougars have home-field advantage against New Mexico this coming season, and that is probably sufficient to ensure a win. However, Utah should once again field a potent team. That matchup will take place in Salt Lake City, but location perhaps isn't as important as the task for any team to win a quality rivalry game in successive years, especially if the teams are evenly matched.

None of this conversation even takes into account the big bulls-eye on BYU that gets enlarged substantially with national discussion of their lofty aims. It isn't bad enough that the BYU game is the one that virtually every other team in the league already circles on their schedules. Being viewed as possible Top-10 and BCS material will produce a tear-down-the-goalposts fervor by most opponents to knock the Cougars off their pedestal.

The 2008 team should be very good. The offense will be closer to that of 2006, and the defense should be acceptable despite the loss of many seniors. But I don't think they will be good enough to run roughshod over each challenger. All things considered, I wish Mendenhall and others would do everything they can to not put themselves in the spotlight. Talk about their ambitions behind closed doors, but stress the level of competition in public. I understand that it is a lot to ask, but I do very much want to see them get into a BCS bowl. Anything that facilitates that result is worth the effort, because I don't think they are quite there yet.

In 2009, though. . . Rise and Shout.

Fourth Time Not a Charm

2007-12-31T20:15:00.000-07:00

Preceding the basketball game at Boise State, I had competing thoughts regarding the contest. The first was concern that BYU could well lose again in Idaho; they had not seemed completely in synch since losing in the final minutes to North Carolina.

The second thought was that my first impression was folly: the Cougars were certainly more than capable of beating the Broncos. Given their hard-earned national ranking, surely they would step up and come together again as a very good team should; this would be a statement game about the quality of BYU basketball away from their comfortable Marriott Center (or Energy Solutions Arena).

But this game turned out only to be the next in what is becoming a dishearteningly familiar pattern. What do last year's conference championship loss against UNLV, the NCAA Tournament loss to Xavier, this year's loss in Salt Lake City to Michigan State, and Saturday night's loss at Boise State have in common? In all four games, BYU held sizable leads at the break--the smallest being six points against Xavier; the others, at least ten.

The results of competition are based on a combination of what players do and what coaches do. Superior players will produce superior outcomes for a given coaching staff. Quantifying that argument is as easy as comparing the margin of victory of last year's football team to this year's squad. At the same time, it is also clear that a superior coach will produce better outcomes with a given set of players. I know I wasn't the only fan that wondered how the football team could continue to lose eminently winnable games in the last three years under Gary Crowton.

I was happy to hear Dave Rose, when he was promoted, say that he would not be the one to tell his team they couldn't beat a particular opponent. And, I still feel that some of what I wrote about him previously remains true. Nevertheless, the four distinctly similar losses from two clubs with different identities indicate that the fault may not lie with the players.

The negatives I see toward the end of games include a prolonged reliance on 3-point shots when they stop falling, not getting a second player in the post to take pressure off Trent Plaisted, and neglecting to send players driving to the basket to either create sinkable foul shots--Plaisted is a horrific liability when he goes to the line--or dish back out to players who might now be more open.

Dave Rose is a very good coach in preparing for the start of a game, but he is not showing the ability to match adjustments made by opposing coaches after halftime. His in-game strategy requires considerable development if Cougar basketball is to reach its potential.

A Must-Read Post

2007-12-26T17:43:00.000-07:00

I don't anticipate doing this very often, but I saw a post today that I feel everyone should read. "Cruiser" of Cougar Legion detailed the fireside given at the Red Rock Stake Center the night before the Las Vegas Bowl. A very short excerpt follows:

When Coach Mendenhall finally spoke, he did so in a rather straight-forward, almost severe voice. Soon enough, it became clear why.

If you haven't seen this yet, you owe it to yourself to visit this link: A Holy Night at Red Rock.

Thoughts on the Las Vegas Bowl

2007-12-23T01:13:00.000-07:00

I don't feel too badly about my prediction for how UCLA's offense would fare, other than Kai Forbath is even better than I thought. I was indeed aware that he was a fine kicker, but he was frankly nothing short of spectacular in this game--the last (blocked) kick notwithstanding. That block was all about the determination of the Cougar defense to preserve the win.

UCLA did not score a touchdown that they earned. When BYU got the ball with a few seconds on the clock before halftime, I said, "They'll take a knee and head into the locker room." Why one would EVER consider running a play when the possibility of scoring before the half is infinitesimal defies comprehension. What a different game it might have been without that gift to the Bruins.

BYU got to 17 points faster than I expected. I then anticipated that they would end up with 30 or more points because I believed the offense would get better as the game went on. Who knew that they would go scoreless in the second half--or that they would win the game while doing so?

I was very disappointed in the offensive output. I also based my prediction for a strong running game on the view that the offensive line had measurably improved since the previous meeting with UCLA. Yet this game was frankly won instead primarily because Max Hall had improved in the interim. I was amazed to see UCLA's defensive front consistently wreak havoc with the Cougar offense. I thought that the offensive line would at least hold its own against them, but that was not to be. Likely correlated with that was Robert Anae's seeming lack of confidence in utilizing the running game as an integral component of the game plan. The offense's one-dimensionality played right into the hands of UCLA. It was also readily apparent what kind of play was coming when Hall called audibles; a tightening of the gaps between lineman meant a run was coming, and a widening of gaps indicated a pass. More needs to be done to keep an opposing defensive coach, especially one as good as DeWayne Walker, guessing.

The last thing I did not foresee was BYU being able to block a kick with a game on the line. Coach Mendenhall, however, said he could see that in his players' eyes. That, it goes without saying, is a good thing. Cougar football is in very good shape indeed when its players believe they will find a way to win. The value of such a belief cannot be underestimated with regard to the success of the program going forward.

Las Vegas Bowl Predictions

2007-12-15T12:53:00.000-07:00

On the surface, this year's bowl game is easier to predict than was last year's. Last year, there were real questions as to whether BYU would win the game, due to the potential for Oregon to score a lot of points despite having struggled the last half of the year. This year, the initial reaction of many to the re-match with UCLA was one nearing disdain because of the Bruins' plethora of injuries and extreme underperformance at times during the season, coupled with the firing of head coach Karl Dorrell.

There are, however, still some variables to consider. The first is that BYU lost to UCLA earlier in the season, and the Cougars have never beaten the Bruins since their first meeting with future Hall of Famer Steve Young leading the way; despite the different directions the respective seasons have taken, there has to be at least a small amount of psychological uncertainty regarding playing UCLA again. Also, DeWayne Walker showed last year the ability to put together a defensive scheme capable of beating USC. Ben Olson, who will start against BYU, undoubtedly has an unspoken desire to not lose to the Cougars and thus perhaps be regarded inferior to Max Hall, who is frankly at BYU only because Olson left. Finally, this game will be viewed as Coach Walker's audition for a head coaching position, whether at UCLA or elsewhere. He surely recognizes that his ability to motivate his squad to perform under adverse circumstances will be closely correlated to the quality of job offers he receives going forward.

It is with this backdrop that I see BYU sputtering somewhat to begin the game. I can even see a scoreless first quarter unfolding. I do see the Cougars beginning to warm up after that, though, finding a rhythm, and starting to put points on the board. Meanwhile, the relatively-unsung BYU defense also continues to seek to prove itself. I expect them to hound Ben Olson, perhaps even knocking the injury-prone quarterback from the game as it becomes apparent the Bruins cannot effectively run the ball on their opponent and Olson is asked to do more.

In the second half, as the Cougars build their lead, I anticipate them running more effectively, and relying increasingly on that ground game to control the clock and methodically put points on the board. I look for at least 80 yards and 120 yards on the ground from Taufui Vakapuna and Harvey Unga, respectively, with a very real possibility for both to go over 100, depending on how much Vakapuna is used--and how often passes are thrown to both instead of being handed the ball. I believe Fui is back and hungry to show that he is a punishing runner along with his partner-in-crime Unga.

On the other side of the ball, I think the UCLA offense is in for a long night. I can see Mendenhall's charges holding them without a touchdown, regardless of who gets the most time at quarterback.

In the end, it may not be a very exciting game, with regard to the score. My heart says BYU 34, UCLA 3, but my mind takes one touchdown off that score: BYU 27, UCLA 3. Perhaps they will be in position to score again late in the game, but Brendan Gaskins takes a knee on consecutive posessions to run out the clock.

Anxious About Michigan State

2007-12-08T12:13:00.000-07:00

I recently wrote a post asserting that the BYU basketball team may be good enough by the end of the year to make it to the Final Four. They beat the #6 team in the country, and played even with the #1 team until the very end. I also, however, stated that I anticipated some bumpiness along the way.

BYU takes on Michigan State in less than two hours today. I wish this game were a little later in the season. The Cougars have not played particularly well in wins over Portland or Weber State. I am concerned that perhaps they have not come back to the confident level of play they displayed against Louisville and North Carolina.

This team is still forging its identity. I was very pleasantly surprised to see how well they competed with the two high-ranking teams a couple of weeks ago. I felt they were farther along than one could reasonably expect.

Do I think BYU is capable of beating the Spartans? Yes, certainly. But I will not be surprised if they come up a little short today. I hope I am wrong, and that Dave Rose is an even better coach than I have already seen.

Cartoon: Most happening place in Provo

2007-11-28T09:36:00.000-07:00

This is from the Daily Utah Chronicle, by Kurt Francom. Here is the link to the original.

Cougars In Final Four?

2007-11-26T11:41:00.000-07:00

I know, it is extremely early to start this kind of talk, but BYU's basketball team just took out the #6 team in the country, and went toe-to-toe with the #1 team for all but the last two minutes of the game.

Given that this squad is considerably different from last year's, it shouldn't be nearly this good yet. But it also seems likely that the team will get much better as the year goes on, just as any team with new pieces (and new roles) normally does.

Coach Dave Rose is still finding out what he has with this group. Jonathan Tavernari will probably learn to choose his shots better. Coach Rose will ensure that the team won't rely exclusively on three-point shots at the end of a game when they are tired--missing all of them essentially handed the game to North Carolina at the end. Jimmer Fredette and others will find their places on the team.

And when the team comes together in late-season form, I don't see them being inferior to many teams at all in the country. I do anticipate a little bumpiness as their identity is forged--I can't say that I expect them to go entirely undefeated in conference play. But I believe that this year's version, as early as it is in the season, is very close indeed to the level of team that finished last year, which had a winning record on the road and was undefeated at home.

Finally, Coach Rose demonstrated that he knows what to do with his team when playing a reputedly superior opponent, including calling timeouts to get them to regroup when Louisville appeared in position to pull away from them. And we know what happened to Louisville.

BYU in the Final Four this year? That might not be considered Madness when March arrives.

Class Or Crass, Continued

2007-11-24T18:56:00.000-07:00

I was able to attend the BYU-Utah game today, and, wow--what another exciting finish. I'm to the point where I expect gut-wrenching games every year, and this was no exception. Perhaps I will just watch the last minute of every BYU-Utah game from now on to minimize the stress.

I observed a few things that slightly marred the day, though: One was Utah coach Kyle Whittingham not being man enough after the game to give Harvey Unga his proper due after Unga's stellar performance almost single-handedly won the game for BYU. Whittingham responded that Unga was "pretty good" when asked to comment on his play. He later half-heartedly said that Unga "really hurt us", but it seemed clear that Whittingham still could not bring himself to be fully complimentary of this great player that originally committed to play for him. Somehow I cannot see Bronco Mendenhall being anything less than completely commendatory of an opposing player, even if he had lost a recruiting battle for that player.

Why do I mention that? If any LDS Utah fans visit this site, I want to continue to hammer home the point that their school and coach probably do not represent them very well.

More disturbing than that was the twenty-something Utah fan standing on a street corner near the stadium before the game waving a sign that read "BYU sucks" on one side--OK, I admittedly don't expect better than that from many of those in red--but "Bronco likes little boys" on the other. Nice.

Unfortunately, though, I also saw a couple of college-age BYU fans wearing shirts that I had recently heard about. One said "U Suck", and the other--I have forgotten what it said--was no better.

I am concerned when I see BYU fans stooping to the level of many Utah fans, allowing for the likelihood that none will ever stoop so low as to approximate the depraved joke about our coach noted above. Not one BYU supporter should be derogatory of a rival. There is a minimum level of refinement, if you will, expected of Latter-day Saints, and, by extension, BYU fans. Does this mean we should all be model citizens? Well, yes it does.

We should frankly be cautious when dealing with colleagues who are Utah fans when we return to work. It is great to be victorious. We should be gracious in victory, regardless of how those colleagues may have been when the tables were turned. A broader perspective needs to be considered when dealing with human relationships. In the end, we should be representative of our faith at all times, including after the emotionally charged rivalry game.

As a minor postscript, behavior representative of a BYU fan should also include cleaning up our trash at the stadium when we leave. People seemed conscientious in that regard when I went to a game earlier in the season, but I didn't see many around me picking up after themselves today.

Class Or Crass?

2007-11-13T19:42:00.000-07:00

I am writing today about the Cougars' main rival, the University of Utah, for a specifically BYU-related purpose.

Before the recent Wyoming vs Utah football game, Wyoming's coach guaranteed to a group of Wyoming students that his team would beat Utah. That bit of bravado quickly reached the Utah locker room and apparently ruffled a few feathers. After thoroughly dominating Wyoming to the tune of 40-0(!) at halftime, Utah's coach Kyle Whittingham decided to try an onside kick after a field goal increased their lead to 43-0 in the third quarter. The reaction to that utterly classless act was unanimous condemnation.

Or so I thought, until I read the comments to an article by Gordon Monson in the Salt Lake Tribune. I would probably be conservative to say that 80% of the Utah fans leaving comments were in favor of Whittingham's actions, which apparently included several long bombs to try for quick scores. Some fans tried to justify what he did by comparing his actions to that of other coaches, even though most examples given were taken out of context.

The Tribune allows users to rate comments positively or negatively. Comments that showed any kind of reasonable thought, whether by Utah fans or otherwise, showed multiple thumbs down. Comments in favor of the petty actions of their coach showed multiple thumbs up. Not surprisingly with Utah fans--based on experience--a fair number of them compared their actions to something that BYU had done or might be perceived to do. One went so far as to say that if Wyoming's coach had guaranteed a victory against BYU, the LDS Church would send its missionary force to Wyoming to conduct another Mountain Meadows Massacre. To its credit, the Tribune did remove that comment after I (and, hopefully, others) clicked on the "Report Abuse" link, but not before it had gained several thumbs up.

Now I'm getting to the point. Why would a member of the LDS Church support a program that is so heavily dominated by this type of fan? If you are a Mormon Utah fan, do you think that this school may once again become the type of school that it was years ago--the school of choice for those of your faith, a school for whom the majority of supporters share your beliefs or at least your values? Have I been told incorrectly that many LDS don't want to take their children to Utah games--especially involving the school owned by your church--because of the foul language coming from more than a few of your fellow fans? Has it not crossed your mind that these people tolerate you at best and despise you at worst?

If you are LDS, the University of Utah is not YOUR school, in the sense that it reflects your values or even really wants you there, other than for the fact that it requires a student population, which is supplied to a fair extent by Mormons--the U's previous (non-LDS) president even admitted that a sizable portion of the school's quota was filled by students that had first applied to BYU. And if that sounds like veiled arrogance on my part, please understand that, although I did attend BYU, I would not even have applied if the grades required today for admission were the standard when I was in high school.

If you are a Mormon Utah fan, what is keeping you from supporting the school that fosters your values? How do you justify supporting a school for which the majority of fans do not share your values and are in fact against much of what you stand for? If it is because you were denied admission to BYU, is that really a valid reason? Is it really right to be against BYU because there is incredible competition to get in these days? If you have another reason, does it hold up to serious scrutiny?

There's a bigger picture to consider than one of a provincial nature. Rarely does a Utah coach, even an LDS one, as we are coming to recognize, reflect the type of person that we hopefully aspire to be. BYU athletics means something on a national level, and even abroad. People recognize that it represents the LDS Church institutionally. With the alternative here in Utah, can you, a Mormon, recognize that and align yourself with the program that far more promotes your values and beliefs rather than the one that is in many ways against them?

Is BYU a Top 25 Team?

2007-11-04T18:44:00.000-07:00

I read an article recently about efforts of BYU's athletic department to lobby for votes in the national polls. I, as much as anyone, would of course like to see BYU re-join the Top 25. Unlike last year, though, I'm not sure that the team deserves to be ranked at this point.

A point could be made regarding the up-and-down year for many teams, and the fact that several three-loss teams have more votes than two loss-BYU, although each of them is a member of a so-called BCS conference (most being in the SEC, as it happens). I am also not sure that one-loss Boise State, ranked number 19, would beat BYU if they were to play. Nevertheless, the issue for BYU is one of decided under-performance. Earlier in the season, I felt that if the Cougars could just eliminate penalties and turnovers, they would play to a very high level. I also felt they would likely be unbeaten if not for those issues.

Somehow, though, they haven't reached their potential despite subsequently cutting down on penalties and turnovers. The had enough in them to convincingly defeat an Air Force team that wasn't as good as some were beginning to think. They showed some satisfying tenacity in winning at the home of a New Mexico team that had been playing solid football, and always gives them stiff competition. But the passing game struggled against UNLV, and they pounded their way on the ground to 24 points and a win. Against lower-division Eastern Washington, they ended up with 42 points, but one of those touchdowns came from an interception return, and the passing game was again not particularly effective--Max Hall completed only 50% of his passes. They should have had 42 points by halftime with an interception return factored in. Finally, the Cougars scored only 35 against struggling Colorado State yesterday. Perhaps I should give BYU the benefit of the doubt on that one, however, as CSU did soundly trounce UNLV in Las Vegas two weeks ago and, although they couldn't muster any offense against Utah, the Utes scored only 27 points against them. It may also be worth noting that the BYU team that routinely routed opponents last year could only manage 24 points against the Rams--who have been weak for some time now--so perhaps a low point total against CSU is not worthy of alarm.

Nevertheless, I will not be surprised if BYU is unable to crack the Top 25 until they are 8-2, with wins over TCU and Wyoming. More importantly, if they have not come to play "cleaner football", as Coach Mendenhall is fond of saying, they may very well lose--horror of horrors--to an improving Utah team the week after the Wyoming game. Then the desire for a national ranking will have to be put on hold for another year.

Questioning Our "Investment" Strategy

2007-09-16T09:25:00.000-06:00

I was going to write a post last week after the loss to UCLA entitled something like, "Nothing Left to Play For". That was my initial feeling after the Cougars likely blew their possibilities at a BCS bowl with penalties, turnovers, and questionable officiating. But as I examined the situation, I realized that there was plenty left to play for, in terms of BYU's future as a program. There might still even be an outside chance at a BCS bowl if the Cougars won the rest of the way, thanks to changes made after the 1996 Bowl Alliance snub of a similar BYU team (which, coincidentally, lost only once, on the road, against a good Pac-10 team). And yes, Utah and Boise State, you're welcome for the good fortune afforded you by BYU.

However, the question of whether or not the Cougars will do well the rest of this season for the future of the program is now not so clear.

I'm sure I am not the only one who will say this, but I think it needs to be said, regardless. I can live with BYU losing because things didn't go their way despite their best effort. I can live with the team not being as good as I would like due to lack of experience. I can even live with the team losing because of turnovers; sometimes there doesn't seem to be much than can be done about those, somehow. What I cannot accept is penalties playing an integral part in losing.

Despite three turnovers and drive-killing penalties, they had managed 47 points and were in position yesterday to tie the game against Tulsa on a final drive before yet another turnover. Despite similar problems with penalties, turnovers, and the aforementioned questionable officiating, they last week gave UCLA a terrific run for their money--yes, I am fully aware that previously winless Utah routed the same UCLA team at Salt Lake City 44-6 the next week (yesterday). That Twilight Zone outcome can only be attributed to a combination of Ben Olson's and UCLA's extreme inconsistency (especially when they don't feel the type of threat posed by "upset special" BYU), and Utah's propensity to exchange their customary uninspired play for an occasional out-of-their-minds performance when it appears they have little chance to win.

The point is, BYU has considerable talent, probably enough to have won both of the last two games. Why then aren't they winning?

Coach Bronco Mendenhall has made execution and discipline the foundation of his program. BYU has steadily gotten better in both regards over the last two years, so much so that the athletic department voluntarily reworked his contract. Now, however, the team seems to be revisiting some of the horrors of the Gary Crowton era, and I believe this presents a dilemma for Cougar fans. At least under Crowton, we recognized that there were issues in the program that required serious attention. But those issues seemed to be resolved under the new regime.

Now we are faced with a new potential for real disillusionment. If Mendenhall's philosophies emphasize rock-solid steadiness to the extent that, as he says, they should be to the point where new components can be inserted to maintain the established level of play, how is it possible that the result of their efforts now produces a disconnection that manifests itself in personal fouls and other penalties that either hurt themselves or help the opposition? BYU fans have bought into Mendenhall's vision; we are "fully invested" in the program. But anyone knows that if a popular investment does not produce anticipated returns, investors will dump it en masse.

Fully Invested?

2007-08-25T11:57:00.001-06:00

As we approach another college football season, I believe it is appropriate to reflect on the raison d'etre of BYU athletics (did I impress anyone with that phrase? I'm trying to). From Ezra Taft Benson suggesting that BYU's athletic success should become a focus after the favorable press given the LDS Church following BYU's 1951 NIT (and de facto National) basketball championship, to then-BYU president Rex E. Lee telling not-yet-LDS Ty Detmer that he, by winning the Heisman Trophy, had done more for missionary work for the Church then any other BYU player--or something like that--I am of the view that athletics continue to exist at BYU because of the potential for positive exposure to the Church. I apologize for not being able to provide references to the preceding attributed comments, by the way. Some things don't lend themselves to quick discovery.

Let's examine support for BYU sports. Most Cougar fans are LDS. I imagine that, at least at the core, those of us who are LDS root for BYU because we see it as an extension of our identities: we love sports; if we could play Division I sports, we would certainly do so; if we played Division I sports, what school would better represent who we are than the one which represents our religion?

Now, are we "fully invested" in our support of BYU athletics? Of that, I have little doubt. Are we fully invested in the religion underlying the school? That's a different matter, isn't it? It is possible to see BYU just as another school playing sports. I have even met a couple of confused souls who said they liked BYU football and University of Utah basketball. My admitted initial reaction to such is to view them as Mormons with the second "m" missing in that word, but then I remember that I'm supposed to be Christlike to everyone. . . .

Before we played Arizona last year, I posted a commentary about a couple of Cougar fans that disparaged the Wildcats and those that hate BYU. Their remarks were not what one would hope from people who belong to a religion both demanding a high level of commitment and claiming to be the restored gospel of Jesus Christ.

Living the teachings of the Church is extremely difficult--no doubt about it. I struggle constantly to try to live my religion which, by definition, means that I should always be looking to better myself, love others, and eliminate shortcomings (among other requirements). But the fact that it is hard doesn't exempt us from the responsibility to do so, and I think that responsibility is frankly greater for those of us who proclaim ourselves BYU fans because of the religion the school represents. I hope we all remember that for the coming year.

The Importance of an NCAA Tournament Win

2007-06-06T20:28:00.000-06:00

BYU basketball coach Dave Rose recently announced new recruits signed to letters of intent to join the Cougars. Conspicuously absent from that list was Brad Garrett.

Brad Garrett just finished his freshman season at the College of Southern Idaho. He was highly recruited, but his family and friends expected him to go to BYU--he even played one year in high school for current BYU assistant coach John Warden. However, he surprised people by signing with Oklahoma State instead.

Why didn't he choose the Cougars? I will go out on a limb and speculate that he saw a solid program at Oklahoma State, one that has made a couple of trips to the Final Four in this generation. When he looked at BYU, he saw a team that underachieved in the NCAA Tournament, losing the one game they played after leading at halftime.

I argued in January regarding the value of a bowl win to the football program. I think a victory in the NCAA Tournament may hold similar significance to the basketball team.

While Steve Cleveland was head basketball coach at BYU, the Cougars were able to sign every LDS player they targeted. I can remember one player who Cleveland didn't recruit despite some impressive scoring from the point guard position, and it is possible that he had been told not to bother, because that player had always wanted to go to Utah. It is also possible that Cleveland felt that a scoring point guard wasn't as high a priority as the other players he was recruiting. Regardless of the reason, it remains true that I did not once hear of BYU missing out on an LDS recruit once Coach Cleveland got the program going again.

However, the Cougars couldn't get past the first round in the NCAA Tournament. Admittedly, the deck was stacked against them--each time they were invited, they were paired with previous Final Four entrants, with two of the three opponents actually having won the National Championship. And they lost each time, despite valiant efforts in 2003 and 2004. Any potential recruit might reasonably conclude that if BYU got a break, they would end their Tournament woes, and that their decision to attend BYU might help the Cougars to do just that.

But this year was different. This year, they got an eighth seed. An argument could be made for them being granted a higher seed, but they didn't win their conference championship at UNLV despite leading at halftime. It could once again be said that they were being given a raw deal by being matched with Xavier, a school only two hours away from the tournament site. Xavier also had a history of knocking off higher seeds. Nevertheless, the Cougars had a winning conference record on the road, including winning at Air Force when there was nothing really on the line except pride.

BYU led at halftime against Xavier, but they couldn't hold the lead. Not only could they not maintain the lead, but they seemed to fall apart at the end of the game. Coach Rose said they gave their all, but that didn't seem to be the case, especially based on the aforementioned conference success on the road. An anticipated matchup with the top team in the country (awaiting the victor) also apparently wasn't enough motivation to find their best game.

Thus, a great year finished on a couple of negative notes, first because they lost their conference championship when they led at halftime, and second because they could not redeem themselves with a win against a team that they obviously could have beaten, despite a great deal on the line.

And so what looked like progression from the Steve Cleveland years was perhaps not so, and a player that, by all accounts, should have ended up in a BYU uniform, did not. BYU needs to prove they can win with the players they have, before they will get all the players they want.

An Acute Irony

2007-02-18T21:24:00.000-07:00

I support BYU sports because the success of the athletic program provides positive exposure to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which should increase the number of people who join the church. Of course, living the gospel of Jesus Christ is ultimately about doing good to and for others. So why is my first attitude towards LDS fans of the University of Utah--the Cougars' archrival--admittedly one of wanting to whack them on the back of the head and ask, "Wake up! What's your problem?"

Now, I know how that sounds. Before any of the aforementioned start trying to find out where I live so they can make me regret writing that, please allow me to explain--the final analysis hopefully won't be nearly as inflammatory as it currently appears.

I probably identify with BYU because I grew up outside of Utah--in other words, a religious minority as a "Mormon". BYU football was rising to national prominence as I entered my teen years, and people would make the connection between BYU and Mormons. Athletic success, legitimately achieved, is widely respected. I also like football, so BYU was a natural fit for me.

I know there can be many reasons for Latter-day Saints not to be Cougar fans. One prominent reason that I am aware causes Mormons to be against BYU is having been rejected entrance to the school--I am all but certain that was the reason for a colleague from years ago hating BYU. However, the fact that most LDS U of U fans are from Salt Lake City--and most LDS Utah State fans are from the Aggies' hometown of Logan, Utah--indicates to me that a large percentage of LDS fans who support one of the Utah schools at the expense of BYU do not fully comprehend what it means to be a religious minority and, more importantly, the significance of the Cougars' success nationally.

I have even found that recognition is not limited to our borders. I was midway through my mission to Japan in early 1985. My companion and I sometimes rode our bicycles past a university where they had an organized American football team. On one occasion, I heard one of the players say something (in Japanese, of course) about BYU as he saw us go by. I was momentarily amazed, but realized after further thought that the Cougars' national championship in the recent January must have made news among sports fans even in Japan.

So BYU's success increases exposure to the church, and I maintain that is a favorable outcome because more people ultimately come to the church. But to what end? It should be to make the world a better place as more people live the "two great commandments" of loving the Lord and loving their neighbors. So how can I reconcile that with the natural irritation I feel toward LDS fans of BYU's main rival?

The answer, of course, is that I can't. I wish that more of them recognized what BYU's success in the high-profile sports really means to the missionary efforts of the church. I wish more of them would look at the big picture beyond rooting for the local school against the one that represents the LDS Church in the minds of the vast majority of those outside the church both domestically and abroad. But going against the directive to love my fellow men because I disagree with their choice of school to support is highly unlikely to persuade them of the validity of my views, and will surely serve only to make them more antagonistic (or at least less favorable) toward BYU. Even more than that, my primary responsibility is to live that commandment to love others, regardless of the circumstances.

And The 2009 Heisman Trophy Goes To. . .

2007-01-28T21:05:00.000-07:00

John Beck didn't get serious consideration for the Heisman Trophy this year, despite having a magnificent year statistically and winning nine straight games (ten, counting the bowl game, which would not have factored into the voting) after starting the season losing two very close contests away from home. One of those went into overtime against another school (Boston College) that was ranked in the Top 20 most of the year. A similar campaign for Jim McMahon, Steve Young, Robbie Bosco, or Ty Detmer would have garnered them ample Heisman attention.

The main difference between those other quarterbacks and John Beck is that BYU had a recent history of winning. Strangely enough, the strength of the football program itself, combined with a good year for the player concerned, seems to be more important than just how great the individual himself played. Robbie Bosco finished in the same spot (third) in the Heisman balloting both years he started, despite the fact that his second year was not nearly as successful as the first. One could also look at the 1992 Heisman going to Gino Torretta of Miami. Marshall Faulk would have beaten Torretta easily instead of finishing second if he had played at USC or Texas rather than San Diego State.

But the combination of Bronco Mendenhall as head coach, and John Beck leading the team to great heights this year, will actually prove beneficial to future BYU quarterbacks when it comes to the Heisman balloting--and a Cougar signal-caller may win the award sooner than many might think.

Max Hall has been leading the scout team for BYU this year, preparing the defense to face the opponent each week. At the end of the season, defensive players said Max was better than any quarterback that they faced during the season. That means he is better than at least thirteen other Division One quarterbacks (fourteen if you count two that played for Oregon), including two for ranked teams.

Max Hall is said to have the intangibles, which are often more important than the physical skills themselves. He will be leading a team with some experienced players, which should allow them to have a decent season in his sophomore campaign next year. By his third year, 2009, he will likely have established himself as one of the premier quarterbacks, if not the very best, in the country. Starting with this just-completed season, BYU should have had four good years when the 2009 season ends. So you heard it here first: The 2009 Heisman Trophy goes to Max Hall, Brigham Young University.

The Importance of a Bowl Win

2007-01-04T21:44:00.001-07:00

I recently read an article in the Provo Daily Herald that asserted that BYU's Las Vegas Bowl victory over Oregon held little real significance for the program. I vigorously disagree. Bowl wins are the last link in the chain to ultimately greater success.

A bowl win raises the year-end ranking, or at least keeps it from dropping. A ranking at the end of the year is highly correlated to the ranking at the beginning of the next year. I have seen teams start the year highly ranked, and not drop out until they lose their third consecutive game--the "must have been a fluke" effect. Conversely, a team that is lower-ranked or unranked has to work much harder to climb the rankings, and falls faster when it loses--the "I told you so" effect. Many knowledgeable football fans will agree that this year's Cougars are a legitimate Top-15 team, but their assent has been slow because they have had to prove themselves every week (and the lack of television exposure didn't help in the convincing of voters). Anyone who doesn't think that a high ranking is valuable need only recall the BCS snub of the 2001 BYU team while it was still undefeated, and, conversely, the BCS bowl invitation extended to Utah three years later because it was ranked higher. Going back further, BYU's history of being ranked in the early 1980's got them in the position to win the National Championship in 1984, despite vehement opposition to that scenario. Hopefully I don't have to explain the importance of playing in a BCS bowl or winning the National Championship.

Winning the bowl game also establishes a standard that future teams will feel obligated to meet. Success breeds success, which goes back to the rankings argument above.

Also, winning bowl games, especially against certain opponents, can be the final factor in recruiting superior players. Would (then non-LDS) Ty Detmer have chosen to come to BYU if Robbie Bosco--bad ankle and all--had not led the Cougars to the final victory to cement their championship season? And then there's JJ DiLuigi, star running back for the team that just won the California high school championship over all-powerful (and previously #1 in the country) De La Salle. I beg someone to argue that he didn't watch with singular pleasure as BYU thrashed what was supposed to be a good Pac-10 team. BYU got this recruit (also not LDS, by the way), because he's considered too small by the Pac-10 schools. He'll play in Nate Meikle's slotback spot, and he's going to turn some heads when he does. Like Curtis Brown, he has a consuming desire to prove the naysayers wrong.

I feel compelled to continue. Oregon, with Gary Crowton as offensive coordinator, has pushed hard to get Austin Collie to leave BYU. Collie was a secure recruit, but, if he weren't, the Cougars' win over the Ducks would have undoubtedly solidified his allegiance. Some recruits, like Ben Olson, aren't as committed to BYU if the Men in Blue aren't setting the football world on fire. Although I believe they will be fine going forward at quarterback, Olson's departure likely didn't do them any immediate favors.

Having better players doesn't always equate to winning (ask Oklahoma about Boise State). All other things being equal, however, a team with better talent will beat a team with inferior talent. How I wished BYU had Boise State's opportunity recently in a BCS bowl game. Boise State is similar in mindset and heart to BYU, but with less talent. That isn't meant to be derogatory to the Broncos, because no team does as well as they have the last few years without ability. Nevertheless, the Cougars will likely put a few more players into the NFL than will Boise State. And with that talent, and mindset and heart equal to that of the Idahoans, I believe there aren't many teams that BYU wouldn't have prevailed over in their final game this year.

Winning a bowl game perhaps is not as important if the regular season wasn't great, actually. A team's pursuit of the highest goals obviously starts with the regular season. But long-term goals for greater success cannot be achieved without winning the bowl games as well.

Faith, Plus Work, Precedes The Miracle Finish

2006-11-26T14:03:00.000-07:00

When BYU started on their last drive with 1:19 left in yesterday's 33-31 win over archrival Utah, I told my wife that they would win. Knowing only BYU's history since we moved back to the States from Hong Kong in 1995 (and not having experienced firsthand the great years under Jim McMahon, Steve Young, Robbie Bosco and Ty Detmer), she was not so sure and left the room temporarily to do something else. She came back with nine seconds left, and I told her she needed to stay in the room--that she was about to experience history in the making. I was completely sure BYU would score and win the game at that point.

After a spike ran the clock to seven seconds, I must admit my confidence level wasn't quite 100% when the next pass was deflected and we were down to three seconds, but I still felt that I would be very, very surprised if BYU didn't pull it out. Of course they did, in what was such an incredible finish that it became ESPN's play of the day.

I believe the significance of this finish cannot be overestimated, with regard to the future of BYU football and anything that might be affected by it. Like the 1980 Holiday ("Miracle") Bowl finish, it will transcend time. Without that miracle comeback, BYU would not have won a national championship four years later.

The belief ("faith") in what BYU was capable of achieving was what drove them during the early 1980's. It also influenced BYU's future a little down the road as a non-LDS high school sophomore quarterback in Texas drew inspiration from Robbie Bosco's gutsy performance in the 1984 Holiday Bowl (which clinched the National Championship). A couple of years later, Ty Detmer committed to BYU. He won the Heisman Trophy in 1990.

The years between Robbie Bosco graduating in 1985 and Ty Detmer coming onto the scene in 1988 saw the Cougars unable to find or produce star quarterbacks. At the time, the 1986 and 1987 seasons were considered aberrations. The period after Detmer's departure in 1991 until this year confirmed that mediocre quarterback play had become the rule rather than the exception. Questions arose as to the capability and/or suitability of Norm Chow as offensive coordinator.

Since leaving BYU, Chow has certainly proven his capability when working with great talent, akin to Phil Jackson with Michael Jordan or Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant. But there were valid reasons for him not being considered to succeed LaVell Edwards as head coach, and many of those reasons were also directly related to BYU's lack of sustained success. As the reasons for Chow's unsuitability have been chronicled elsewhere and by multiple writers, I will not reiterate them.

Regardless of the reasons, BYU's legacy of success had been squandered. No longer did BYU have quarterbacks or teams that could do the highly improbable, until now.

Why was I quite confident that they would pull off the miracle finish? And what was the difference between this year and last year, when Beck likely could have won the game against Utah in regulation, or at least tied it in overtime?

The elements of BYU's dramatic finish have been some time in the making. Credit goes partly to Gary Crowton. He hired people--when he was allowed to; his hands were somewhat tied for the first couple of years--that better suited BYU and Polynesian recruits, who are certainly a boost to the Cougars' success.

Most of the credit, however, goes to Bronco Mendenhall, who, of course, was one of Crowton's hires. Mendenhall has believed that BYU could win with the best BYU-type players, whether LDS or not, whereas Crowton's emphasis was on pure talent first and then suitability to BYU second, which turned out to be a disaster from the dual viewpoints of BYU's image and recruits lost to dismissal.

Mendenhall not only went with the talent best suited to BYU, but the discipline and execution-based emphasis he has instituted fits BYU as well. The results have not been immediate and probably could not have been anticipated to be so. But two years is frankly not too much to allow to see such a dramatic turnaround.

I was confident that BYU would pull off the miracle finish yesterday because of the incremental steps they have made both this year and last. Last year, I could see that perhaps they weren't completely there, because the belief based on the preparation was not quite sufficient. I was a little concerned this year when they didn't win the Boston College game. But the TCU game proved that they were back. In yesterday's victory, it was only a matter of looking back at what they had accomplished, and knowing that they were capable of doing it.

John Beck said, "I remember telling myself, 'John, you've prepared forever for moments like this.'" Johnny Harline, who made the winning catch, said, "Everyone on the sideline kept telling each other, 'We're going to be all right.' We knew we would come back and win it." They believed. They prepared. And the result was a magic moment that will be remembered for a long, long time.

Now, can I apply this to my own life (which is almost as important as football)?

Not Your Average White Band (of Brothers)

2006-11-10T20:35:00.000-07:00

BYU's immense improvement on defense this year can be attributed in part to Bronco Mendenhall's switch to the 3-4 alignment to take advantage of talent at the linebacker position, and certainly that group's contribution could have been anticipated. The big surprise is in seeing the defensive backs hold their own as an integral part of the defense, and that is a direct reflection of the tutelage of new secondary coach Jaime Hill.

Although I am not an expert on the subject, I see Hill's crew playing with confidence and coming up with interceptions and pass deflections at key moments. And this is from an average group of guys, as far as secondary talent goes. I thought of Cougar players calling themselves a band of brothers, then thought of the stereotypical BYU athlete, and came up with the "average white band of brothers". (Uncommonly clever, I know. I'm sure everyone is just as impressed with my wit as I am. . . .) The point is that BYU's defensive backs, regardless of race, have never been confused with those at USC or Miami, but don't tell this year's group that.

I'm concerned that Jaime Hill is going to do so well with BYU's secondary going forward that he will quickly be recognized for the work he's done, and will have other programs trying to lure him away.

The idea of actual time with his family outside of football--don't you just love day-of-rest Sundays and Monday family nights?--reportedly was the biggest incentive in drawing Coach Hill to BYU. But schools in better conferences dangling more money might nevertheless trump that. Thus, I feel drastic measures might be in order.

I'm going to contact Coach Hill. The message: Get a Book of Mormon, and read it. Coach Hill isn't LDS. A high percentage of those who read the Book of Mormon all the way through believe it. If he accepts my request to read it, there is a good chance he will "become a statistic" and also believe it, at which point he would have to admit that he needs to convert. He wouldn't be the first to fall into that category, by any means--my wife is also a "statistic", but that's yet another subject for another time.

If Coach Hill converts, the likelihood of him staying at BYU is much higher, and I can rest assured that the Cougars will continue to have strong secondaries for the long haul. Never mind that those who convert to the LDS religion and live its teachings to the best of their ability uniformly find a happiness they would not have thought possible--I love having a killer defensive backfield!

Vakapuna's Example

2006-10-28T18:03:00.000-06:00

After Fui Vakapuna scored BYU's first touchdown today in the win over Air Force, I told my 4-year-old son that Vakapuna had been a missionary here in Orange County (actually in the Carlsbad Mission, which extends into southern OC), and that I had seen him when he was assigned to another ward at the church building we previously attended. When my son heard this, he said, "That's neat that he was a missionary here!"

What a great example. My son has begun to show an interest--thankfully, from my standpoint--in watching BYU football with me. Any time someone in a higher-profile position does (or has done) something worthy of praise, it can be an influence for good. I'm glad to see a high percentage of LDS players on the team going on missions, and I wish that virtually all LDS players would go on missions. I'm reminded of the fact that, when LDS leaders have said that every worthy young man should go on a mission, they didn't say, "with the exception of athletes".

I incidentally resisted the (considerable, for me) urge to go up and talk BYU football to Fui when I saw him at church, as I had heard that he was commendably focused on his mission and downplayed his status as a football player.

Incidentally #2: I was whoo-hooing after Michael Reed scored BYU's second touchdown today, when my 4-year-old initiated this exchange: "Daddy?" "Yes?" "Sometimes you're a little loud."

I Think He's Got "It"

2006-10-04T16:55:00.000-06:00

In a post from March, I questioned whether John Beck had "it", the intangible quality that great quarterbacks have that allows them to win games even if they don't have all the physical tools. As recently as the Boston College game, I would still have said "no". Beck has been able to make a great number of plays, but hasn't appeared to have the ability to make them when it counted. I saw something different in the TCU game, however, and it was something that has been documented in articles from both the Deseret News and the Salt Lake Tribune, wherein he is reported to have had separate heart-to-hearts with Robbie Bosco and Brandon Doman.

In the TCU game, I saw a quarterback who made less errant throws to receivers. I saw a quarterback who audibled out of the called play to produce sensational touchdowns. In short--here's the hyperbole--I saw a winner. Never mind that the victory wasn't a matter of producing a last-minute drive that the great quarterbacks are associated with. To me, it is every bit as impressive to go into hostile territory, against a ranked opponent, and put your team up by so much late in the game that the opponent has no real chance of coming back, and that is what Beck and company did against TCU. BYU scored a final touchdown with 7:27 left in the game to go up by three scores. I can't imagine a more convincing victory on the road against a team that deserved to be ranked in the Top 20.

I also couldn't be happier for John Beck. From a self-serving standpoint, I as a fan have needed this to greatly increase the likelihood that BYU will have a great season. But for John Beck himself, this should be the entrance to the hallowed halls of quality quarterbacks that have played at BYU--something that he has so long desired. I believe he's finally learned what it takes, and he will likely end his BYU career the way he wants it.

Why There Are Those That Hate BYU

2006-08-30T21:06:00.000-06:00

I read an opinion post today in the Arizona Daily Star written by a Utah State fan, telling why he grew up hating BYU. The article itself wasn't that bad, but a couple of comments really bothered me. The trouble is that the offensive comments were by BYU fans.

A "Wayne R" disparaged our upcoming opponent, the Arizona Wildcats, by saying that the standards at BYU are very high and that most Wildcat players wouldn't even get a recruiting visit to Provo. Whether or not that is true, it's arrogant. He then added to his arrogance by saying "there is no doubt that win or loose [sic], they will be the best team on the field." An "Aaron P" compounded the insult by referring to those who hate the Cougars as "degenerates".

Perhaps some BYU fans think that you can separate being a football fan from what you hear in the Sacramental prayers on Sunday--maybe it's not that important. But if these fans haven't noticed, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is not the type of religion about which one is generally casual. One of those who commented on the aforementioned article understandably termed LDS doctrine "wacky". Without going into details, those that come to the conclusion that the LDS Church is what it says, do so because they've had experiences that overpower arguments against the improbability that, for instance, a 14-year-old boy saw God and Jesus Christ.

Because the LDS religion is one that people either "really believe" or "really don't", you would think that people would take seriously central tenets such as taking upon oneself the name of Christ--and that they would recognize that applies even with regard to football. It's no wonder there are those that hate BYU: it takes only one hypocrite to leave our opponents with a sour taste. If a person experiences more than one disagreeable attitude, which would be the case by reading the comments after the Utah State fan's article, their antipathy towards us could easily become permanent.

Where Can He Find "It"?

2006-03-11T11:50:00.000-07:00

I don't watch a lot of TV, but I did recently see a commercial saying whatever "it" is, you could find it on a popular online auction site. I was reminded that some quarterbacks seem to have "it", and some don't. The question is, can you get "it" when you don't have "it" to begin with?

Most people would agree that Jim McMahon had "it". Same for Steve Young, Ty Detmer, and Brandon Doman. Brandon Doman won games many others wouldn't have--the aforementioned three excluded, of course--including the last game of LaVell Edwards' final season, against Utah. He essentially told his team they weren't going to lose, and got them to join with him to make improbable plays to pull the game out. He also did what was necessary to win the game at New Mexico the following year when Luke Staley was out, including scrambling for the first down on fourth-and-11.

It's true that regardless of how good one player is, or whether he has "it", he can't do it all, and will not win every game. But an example of a game that very likely would have been won by Doman was this last year's game against Utah. BYU had the ball with a chance to go up by a field goal or a touchdown toward the end of the game, and John Beck couldn't do what was necessary to put points on the board. Any points likely would have won the game, but no points meant overtime at best. He had a second chance with more pressure in overtime after Utah had scored, and, as we know, was no more successful with that opportunity. I frankly am not as concerned about not being able to match Utah's score in overtime. More telling to me is that he did not have "it" when the pressure was not as great, and he also had the chance to put the pressure on the opponent with a short clock in regulation.

After the Utah game, Beck mentioned something that he had touched on before, and that is that the difference between success and failure can be minute, with a slightly high trajectory on a pass possibly being the difference in a game, for instance. Surely being a top quarterback is not something that just anybody can achieve. Yet few would argue that Beck doesn't have the physical tools, or even the desire. So why is it that someone like Brandon Doman or Ty Detmer, who admittedly didn't have all the physical tools, were so often successful when it counted?

Brandon Doman was hired as a coach precisely to help BYU's quarterbacks with the intangibles. So far, I can't tell a difference with John Beck. Beck had mixed results before Doman coached him, and he's had mixed results since. Does that mean "it" cannot be coached? If Beck is going to become a great college quarterback, he has no more than this coming year to show it. I sincerely hope he will become great, and that Doman is able to impart "it", because not only will that be important to BYU football, it will also be important to John Beck personally and career-wise, and I'd like to see him succeed.

A Man For All (Basketball) Seasons

2006-02-26T00:55:00.000-07:00

This post was meant to be written shortly after the BYU-UNLV game a couple of weeks ago. As this blog isn't something I do for a living, a lot of things managed to get in the way of writing the last two weeks. In the meantime, what was perhaps not completely obvious has become more readily evident. That said. . .

I was happy to have Steve Cleveland at BYU. I will be forever grateful to him for resurrecting the BYU basketball program. The game that perhaps stands out as an example of the best of Cleveland's coaching ability was the 2000 conference tournament victory ending a 12-game losing streak against the University of Utah. Cleveland and his assistants went over several scenarios into the early hours of the morning on how to beat Utah, and nothing clicked. Finally Cleveland determined that Eric Nielsen, a steady but generally unspectacular player, could beat Utah's best player, Hanno Mottola, off the dribble. Three new plays were drawn up for Nielsen. He finished with a career-high 17 points, and the rivalry was back.

But although the team got back to a respectable level, there was always something lacking. Perhaps the best team under Cleveland was the 2003-2004 version with a future NBA first-round pick in Rafael Araujo. That team beat Oklahoma State (which later made it to the Final Four) and had then-USC coach Henry Bibby saying that BYU was one of the top three teams in the West, along with Stanford and Arizona. As much talent as that team had, however, they were inconsistent. They also continued a trend under Cleveland of losing their only game in the NCAA tournament. You could blame the latter two losses on getting matched against teams that were used to tournament-level play (UConn and Syracuse), and maybe that was just bad luck. Nevertheless, BYU's loss to Syracuse came despite many thinking that the Cougars would take the Orangemen out. That Cougar team was the aforementioned group that beat a future Final Four entrant.

Last year saw BYU take a major step backward, and, after leaving for Fresno State, Cleveland said he had accomplished everything that he felt he could at BYU. Enter Dave Rose. What I see with his team this year is passion and toughness. After a loss at Utah that seemingly stopped BYU's momentum, the Cougars jumped all over UNLV at home. Then the Rebels fought their way back and took the lead. I suspected that, as in years past, BYU would not be able to pull this one out--they wouldn't be mentally tough enough. To my very pleasant surprise, BYU turned the tables on UNLV and were the tougher team down the stretch. Since that game, they've won twice on the road and beat San Diego State at home, pulling away at the end by making all eight of their free throws in the last 53 seconds.

As most know, Dave Rose played for the "Phi Slamma Jamma" Houston Cougars team with Hakeem Olajuwon and Clyde Drexler. As talented as that team was, they lost in the championship to North Carolina State, a team that kept winning close games. Rose has taken that lesson learned and applied it to his philosophy of coaching. He says that he won't be the one to tell his team they can't win. That right there, I believe, is the difference between Dave Rose and Steve Cleveland. Steve Cleveland felt he had done all he could at BYU. He didn't feel he could do any better with the talent pool he could get there. Dave Rose doesn't feel that way. He believes the "better" team doesn't always win, and that, even if his team isn't "better", what's to stop them from playing better than the other team in any given situation? That succinctly illustrates why he is likely the right man to coach BYU for a long time to come.

The Man Who Would Be Star QB

2006-02-08T21:25:00.000-07:00

BYU once recruited an all-state quarterback who was 6'4", had gone undefeated his senior year, and was going to receive not an athletic scholarship but a Gordon B. Hinckley scholarship--the most prestigious awarded at BYU. If that combination of athletic success and smarts wasn't enough to make you figuratively drool over his prospects as a BYU quarterback, surely you would after hearing that his father had made it to the NFL as a quarterback.

Jump ahead a few years. The new starting quarterback has a great first game, but plays poorly thereafter and gets benched in the middle of the year. The man who should be next in line, a sophomore with some game-time experience the previous year, shows in live action that he isn't ready to step up. Not only is he not ready to play, but he isn't even able to beat out a redshirt freshman a few months removed from his mission. He gets some playing time in a few games that year and the next, but in his highest-profile appearance it is obvious he doesn't have it--he throws more than twenty passes, with only 20% being completed (along with an interception). It appears that he has been instructed to look downfield as often as he can to try for quick scores since the team is way behind, but he is seldom even close on his throws. During his junior year, he isn't seriously considered in the running to start, even though the player who eventually won the starting job the year before was inconsistent, and another player being considered is fresh off his mission with no college football experience. Due to injuries and lack of experience, the team struggles.

Of course the quarterback in question is the same one who looked fantastic coming out of high school. So what was the issue?

This quarterback maintained his perfect grades in college, graduating summa cum laude. He also was gifted musically, to the point of composing and producing a piano album. He pursued a Rhodes scholarship, and was a national finalist (with two others) for the $21,500 Walter Byers Postgraduate Scholarship. Getting perfect grades is uncommon in college, and exceedingly rare for the student with the additional demands of sports. Being able to compose and produce one's own album as well is altogether unheard. I think the issue for this student-athlete, who by all accounts was a stellar human being, was one of spreading himself too thin with pursuits outside of football. I can't fault him for wanting to get the best grades possible; there is life after football, and very often life without football regardless of how good the player has become if injury or bad luck gets in the way. But, he was taking a scholarship spot on the team despite his being based on academics rather than athletics. He was one of only a handful of quarterbacks--the most important position--on the team. As such, he should have recognized the importance of, and obligation to, devoting all the attention he could to the success of the football team. That means he needed to become the best quarterback he could reasonably be.

College football only lasts four to five years, and then it's over. Other endeavors can wait. This quarterback's time passed without him becoming the star that I expected, and the team needed, him to be. If another quarterback with similar credentials comes to BYU, I hope he will realize his importance to the team, and direct his energy accordingly.

We Appreciate Your Concern, But. . .

2006-01-28T19:25:00.000-07:00

I mentioned in my first post of this blog that I didn't completely agree with Gordon Monson's article about Stanley Havili. In line with the Salt Lake Tribune's penchant for taking the glass-is-half-empty view of anything regarding BYU, Monson looked to have Cougar fans thoroughly wring their hands over the loss of Havili to USC. He blamed it on the state of the program, concluding that, "Three straight losing seasons, followed by an unconvincing 6-6 year, during which new coaches were attempting to learn on the run likely wasn't - and isn't - the best sell for top recruits, even top LDS recruits."

Bronco Mendenhall is of course looking to sell the entire BYU package: spirituality, academics, and athletics (see Dick Harmon's Deseret News article) rather than the current won-loss record. And, what do you know--some top athletes are buying it. BYU was a consistent quarterback away from an 8-4 year, and I hope to see the day when great success nets BYU all the LDS players it recruits. Yet if that never happens, it unfortunately didn't happen in the Edwards era either. Quarterback Sean Salisbury made the interesting choice to go to USC when the Trojans offered anything but the quarterback-friendly environment that BYU did, for instance. Nevertheless, it's hard to argue that Mendenhall is currently losing the recruiting wars. Pete Carroll gets one from Utah, and BYU gets one from Carroll's backyard. Romney Fuga was the LA Times lineman of the year. Do you suppose Pete Carroll didn't want him? But wait, there's more: Stanley Havili's opinion that the pastures were greener elsewhere didn't deter another top Pac-10 prospect, Matangi Tonga of northern California, from susbequently choosing BYU either. Fuga and Tonga were looking at the same 6-6 record Havili was, so maybe there is more to it than the immediate success of the football program.

Why Havili went back on his supposedly firm decision to serve a mission is something I'd like to know. But there are certainly different levels of commitment, and different reasons for wanting to serve a mission. As Monson accurately pointed out, BYU wasn't really at the top of his list to begin with. It was reported well before Havili gave his oral commitment that he was quite interested in Iowa--and the fact that a kid from Utah was looking at a Big Ten school other than Michigan, Ohio State, or Penn State in itself says that perhaps his search criteria was unusual from the start. Surely the Cougars wanted Havili, as they would any top LDS player. But the fact that BYU is able to woo recruits away from their home schools and conferences despite a currently inferior athletic offering indicates that the loss of a targeted LDS athlete going forward will be the exception rather than the rule.

Congratulations to Women's Basketball

2006-01-22T00:32:00.000-07:00

Congratulations to the women's basketball team for finally being recognized with a Top-25 ranking. The lack of a ranking for them had been a running travesty. Until losing at home to North Carolina State, they were undefeated, including a victory on the road at then-ranked UCLA. How does a team be undefeated, win on the road against a ranked team, and not get ranked themselves? They finally made people wake up by beating ranked Utah at their place for the first time in four years. It helps also that the team that beat them (by two points) is now also ranked.

Stanley Havili and More

2006-01-21T19:05:00.000-07:00

Stanley Havili's decision to attend USC over BYU has been on my mind more than it probably ought to be. That plus Gordon Monson of the Salt Lake Tribune writing an article about him that I didn't completely agree with, joined forces with several other elements to cause me to decide to start this weblog. Among those elements are my passion for BYU sports in general, a long-held desire to write, and my wife's experience with her own blog.

My wife, who did not grow up in the Church and missed the "glory" days of BYU football, told me that if our son grew up and had the choice between playing for USC and BYU, she would be for him going to USC, based on the current state of Cougar football. My response to her was that if a kid is "all that", he was going to be a star regardless of what school he played for. I gave her numerous examples of guys that played for less than top-notch schools, yet did great things for their schools and ended up doing well in the pros. Among them were Jerry Rice (Mississippi Valley State), Barry Sanders (Oklahoma State), and Ben Roethlisberger (Miami of Ohio). I also mentioned that it's yet to be seen if Stanley Havili will be as good as one Luke Staley, who did all right for himself at BYU.

Which brings me to the real point of this post: I believe LDS athletes should be using their talent for the benefit of the Church, which is best done representing the school that people recognize represents the Church. Ben Olson should be at BYU. I didn't think he'd play right away when he returned, because I frankly expected John Beck to be as good as Ben, with two years game experience to boot--I wish that expectation had been accurate. So I understood Ben's desire to go somewhere else where he thought he could play sooner, his stated lack of fear regarding competition notwithstanding--note that he didn't consider going to USC, despite their recent reputation for making good quarterbacks great. Whatever Ben is, he's not stupid. He wouldn't have played behind Matt Leinart and John David Booty, the guy who held the title of Best High School Quarterback his senior year, just as Ben had his senior year. Nevertheless, Ben should be at BYU, and not just because he had an obligation to the school that didn't get other quarterbacks to come because Ben had committed. He should be at BYU because his success should benefit BYU, which benefits his Church. Stanley Havili should be at BYU for the same reason. Haloti Ngata, who apparently was named All-American, should have been at BYU. So should JT (Johnathan) Mapu--glad to see JT Mapu on a mission, by the way. If these kids have the talent to go to the NFL from UCLA, USC, Oregon, and Tennessee, they will go to the NFL from BYU (see the number of players from BYU in the NFL in this article). If these kids would collectively pull their heads out of the sand and realize that collective talent wins football games--something that Gary Crowton could attest to in his first year, with a Doak Walker award winner, all-conference quarterback, two future NFL defensive ends and a tight end that started for a Super Bowl team the next year--they would realize that they could make BYU a great team, not just contribute to the greatness of other schools. It's a serious shame that they don't realize that.