HB Arnett’s
COUGAR SPORTSLINE
801
372 0819
hbarnett@fiber.net and hbarnett@xmission.com
1391
West 800 South –
Vol. 30,
Issue 23 – January 11, 2010
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WHEN IT
COMES TO BYU BASKETBALL, YOU CAN NOW USE SPLEEN AND SCREEN IN THE SAME SENTENCE
For Cougar fans,
the fact that a spleen is now more discussed than a screen is an indication of
just how good Jimmer Fredette and BYU basketball are.
If Fredette hadn't
lit up
Now that the
junior guard has been diagnosed with mononucleosis and an enlarged spleen is a
sign of its severity, Fredette's spleen is front page sports news.
The good news is
that his spleen isn't enlarged. The bad news is that while he could play
without any danger, he still doesn't have the stamina or strength to play like
his old self.
The physical
status of Fredette may still be in question. The fact that he put in a sub-par
cameo appearance in BYU's 77-73 win over UNLV in Provo last Wednesday and
didn't even dress in the 83-77 Cougar win against UTEP in El Paso later in the
week says even more about the medical condition of the rest of this current
Cougar basketball team.
High
Fever
Our diagnosis is
that they have an extremely high fever. They are on fire, even without
Fredette.
Jackson Emery is
very good. Jonathan Tavernari has proven he can play during the last three
years. In the last three games he has regained his star status and shot.
It has been years
since we have used the phrase good post play and BYU basketball in the same
sentence.
Good post play is
what BYU is getting with the performances of Chris Miles and Brandon Davies.
Noah Hartsock is
consistent and the bench play has been encouraging and essential.
Tyler Haws won't
be an all-conference selection this year, but he certainly has played like one,
especially when he put the Cougars on his back in
Now here is the
scary good part for BYU fans and just the scary part for the rest of the
Mountain West conference.
As well has BYU
has played, they can be much better.
UNLV
Good
UNLV is a very
good and talented team and gave the Cougars all they wanted in
If the Cougars can
shoot the ball like they have shown they can from the perimeter in other games
this season, we don't see why they can't run away and hide from UNLV in
BYU is showing
that they really are that good.
While Dave Rose is
hoping his team's current fever doesn't go away, he and the BYU medical staff
will continue to monitor Fredette's status and spleen.
The worst case
scenario is that he could be out of action for the rest of the season. The best
case scenario is that he will be back healthy and in form when the Cougars hit
the road later this month for games at San Diego State and New Mexico (See
Television Timetable below).
The next two
weeks, BYU will get Air Force at Colorado Springs this coming Wednesday, host
Colorado State in Provo on Saturday and then venture to Wyoming the following
Wednesday.
THE
FUTURES MARKET
Listed below are
BYU's most recent signees and future prospects and how they fared during the
last week. All except recent signee Anson Winder, are LDS.
Kyle
Collinsworth, 6-6 guard/wing, Provo HS...Collinsworth hit the
game-winning shot with seconds left in a 48-46 win over Lehi HS at Lehi last
Friday night. Collinsworth ended the game with 20 points. He is currently
averaging almost 21 points per game.
Nick
Emery, 6-0 freshman guard,
Anson
Winder, 6-3, guard, Bishop Gorman HS...Winder and his team
have yet to lose a game since dropping its opener against national prep school
powerhouse Findlay Prep. Last week Winder had 9 points in BG's 81-44 win over
Jabari
Parker, 6-5, wing, Simeon HS, Chicago...The frosh LDS phenom
finally made some apperances in box scores recently for
DeMarcus
Harrison, 6-4, guard,
Jordan
Chatman, 6-3, guard, Skyview HS, Ridgfield, WA...The sophomore
guard scored 20 in Skyview's 59-54 win over defending league champ Mountain
View. He is the son of former Cougar basketballer, Jeff Chatman.
Jordan
Smoot, 6-10, center,
FOOTBALL
FLUFF AND STUFF
Here are some
ramblings and rumblings about the BYU football program as the New Year begins.
Bronco Mendenhall
has confirmed that two former juco transfers, Bernard Afutiti and Jesse Taufi,
are no longer part of the program. Both had academic issues.
When it comes to
juco recruiting and this was baseball, BYU would be hitting sixth or seventh in
the batting order with its .266 average.
The Cougars under
Bronco have signed or brought in 15 juco recruits. Four have been starters and
or serious contributors. The four are Sete Aulai at center, Justin Robinson at
corner, Andrew Rich at safety and most recently, Brian Logan at corner.
The other juco
signees during the last five years of the Mendenhall era were Mosese Foketi,
Matt Johnson, Tico Pringle, Andre Saulsberry, Aveni Leung Wai, Levi Mack,
Bernard Afutiti, Jesse Taufi and most recently, Lee Aguirre, Jordan Atkinson
and Corby Eason.
After the first
week of the NFL playoffs here are the BYU and or LDS players still involved in
the playoffs.
Baltimore - John Beck,
BYU, Todd Heap, ASU; Paul Kruger,
NY Jets -
Dallas - Travis Bright,
BYU (on the practice squad)
Harvey Unga is
still enrolled in school, but will have to make a decision this week on whether
he will declare for the NFL. This is a big deal for BYU because if Unga does
declare, the Cougars are left with a running back stable that is anything but
spectacular.
Returning
tailbacks include Malosi Te'o, J.J. DiLuigi, Bryan Kariya and Mike Hague.
Joshua Quezada, a freshman tailback with great prep credentials is already
enrolled in school, but has yet to prove he can produce at the next level. We
think he can, but he still is unproven.
The bottom line
for BYU is that if Unga does go early, BYU will not be as good as they have
been the last couple of seasons in the running game.
BYU finished with
its highest rankings in the AP and Coaches polls since 1996. Both polls had the
Cougars at No. 12.
In all star games,
the BYU program was represented nicely, by Jake Heaps and Ross Apo in the Army
All American Bowl that was played last Saturday in
Speaking of spring
practice, it will get underway beginning March 15 and end with the spring game
set for April 10.
SIGNING
DAY JUST AROUND THE CORNER
With national
letter of intent day just around the corner and set for Wednesday, February 3,
here is another look at the players BYU expects to sign.
With Jake Heaps,
Ross Apo and Joshua Quezada already signed, sealed and enrolled in school, we
will not include them on the list of commitments.
Since the last
time we printed this list, there has been a mutual parting of the ways between
defensive lineman Hauoli Jamora, a 6-3, 235 pounder. He is now considering,
Here is the list
of players expected to sign with the Cougars in February.
Current Cougar Commits
Jordan Afo, DL, 6-4, 300,
Jordan Black, OL 6-7,
235, Alta HS, UT
Algernon Brown, RB, 6-1,
205, Skyline HS, UT
Tayo Fabuluje, OT, 6-5,
255, The
Alani Fua, LB 6-5, 210,
Oaks Christian HS, CA
Kori Gaines, DB, 5-9,
170, Grayson HS, GA
Toloa'i Ho Ching, LB,
6-0, 225, Alta HS, UT
Jacob Hanneman, DB, 6-1,
190, Lone Peak HS, UT
Jordan Johnson, DB, 5-10,
175,
Tuni Kanuch...DL, 6-1,
285, Bingham HS, UT
Bronson Kaufusi, DL, 6-6,
225, Timpview HS, UT
Teu Kautai, LB, 6-1, 200,
The
Collin Keoshian, LB, 6-2,
225, Santa
A.J. Moore...RB, 5-10,
190,
Manu Mulitalo, OL, 6-3,
305, Granger HS, UT
Joey Owens, LB, 6-2, 215,
Pleasant Grove HS, UT
Drew Phillips, RB, 6-0,
185, Boaz HS, AL
Graham Rowley, OL, 6-4,
270, Waialua HS, HI
Bryan Sampson, TE, 6-4,
210, Pleasant Grove HS, UT
Kona Schwenke, DL, 6-5,
210, Kahuku HS, HI
Zac Stout...LB, 6-2, 220,
Oaks Christian HS, CA
Sae Tautu, LB, 6-3, 215,
Lone Peak HS, UT
Travis Tuiloma, DL, 6-3,
290, Washburn Rural HS, KS
Blair Tushaus, OL, 6-2,
270, Notre Dame Prep, AZ
BYU still has an
offer on the table for Ricky Heimuli, a 6-3, 290 pound defensive lineman from
Brighton HS in
He is being
courted by BYU,
With most of the mystery
of this current recruiting class gone, BYU has already secured commitments for
next year's 2011 recruiting class. They include Austin Heder, LB, 6-2, 215,
Pleasant Grove HS, UT; Baker Pritchard, DL, 6-2, 240, Bingham HS, UT; Manoa
Pikula, LB/RB, 6-0 205, Bingham HS, UT.
They have also
offered a scholarships to Harvey Langi, RB, 6-2, 210, Bingham HS, UT. He is the
big fish of this next class.
BYU also just
recently offered Troy Hinds. He will be in the 2012 recruiting class and is a
sophomore defensive lineman at Davis HS in
TELEVISION
TIMETABLE
BYU vs.
Air Force
Wednesday, Jan 13 at Colo
Springs
Tipoff: 6:00 pm Mountain
Time
TV: The Mtn
BYU vs.
Saturday, Jan 16 at
Tipoff: 4:00 pm Mountain
Time
TV: The Mtn
BYU vs.
Wednesday, Jan 20 at
Tipoff: 6:00 pm Mountain
Time
TV: The Mtn
BYU vs.
Saturday, Jan 23 at
Tipoff: 8:00 pm Mountain
Time
TV: The Mtn
BYU vs.
Wednesday, Jan 27 at
Tipoff: 8:00 pm Mtn Time
TV: The Mtn
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