HB Arnett's 801 372 - 0819 <mailto:hbarnett@fiber.net> hbarnett@fiber.net 1391 West 800 South - Orem, Utah 84058 Vol. 35, Issue 26 - January 19, 2015 Click Here To Order or Renew Your Subscriptions <http://cougarclicks.com/product/Order-Cougar-Sportsline?ID=3173> It Has to Be Lonely Looking for Big Bodies that can Actually Play Too bad Dave Rose isn't a lonely farmer instead of BYU's Basketball coach. For Farmers looking down the bar for love, their answer is just a click away <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MBrEZ5LJXlM> . If it was only that simple for Dave Rose when he looks down his bench searching for big men that can actually play and produce. It was Rose's loneliness for Big Men last week against Saint Mary's that cost his BYU Cougars an 82-77 loss to the Gaels and likely a loss at a return trip to the NCAA tournament. No big men were required two days earlier against Pacific when BYU's guard play saved the day with hot shooting and a 93-80 win over the Tigers. During that game, Kyle Collinsworth recorded his fourth triple double of the season adding his name to the NCAA record book. Another repeat performance in that category and Collinsworth will need his own website; <http://www.willplayformoneynextseason.com> www.willplayformoneynextseason.com. Speaking of money, Tyler Haws was the Cougar cash that kept BYU's hope alive against St. Mary's. Haws hit the nets and floor with hard fouls for 28 points. Affected The lack of Anson Winder in both games definitely affected the four guard offense and took away some fire power. Winder is still nursing a bad knee and Rose hopes to have him back in time for the San Diego game on the road this coming Saturday. That is where the hope stops. With a 15-6 overall record and a 5-3 current conference mark, we have seen enough of BYU bigs on the floor and coming off the bench to know that there is no Cougar Big Men Calvary just over the hill to save this season. Rose has what he has in big men and it isn't enough to stay afloat much longer. We should probably feel sorry for the lack of big men and loneliness Rose is experiencing for his current paucity of post men. I probably would empathize with Rose and his coaching staff, but they have nobody to blame but themselves. It is all about recruiting, recruiting and recruiting. If you don't have any big men it is because you weren't able to recruit any. I know the hopeful mantra of wait until two years down the road and all of Rose's recruits, including big men, are on the roster. The fact is that poor recruiting or misevaluation of big men has put BYU in this spot right now. Yeah, I'm as excited as the next BYU fan about the bigs in the pipeline, but as excited as I am about that prospect, I am as disappointed now for the lack of bigs in the program right now playing against right now teams in the WCC. Wait Until Next Season Yeah, I know it is all about LDS missions and the difficulty in landing any recruit that isn't LDS to play in the post, but, in my opinion, those difficulties and those recruiting gaffes should have been addressed at least 2-3 seasons ago. We are seeing the result of recruiting mistakes from seasons ago now manifest itself on the court this year. The same happened to BYU football on both sides of the line. They were caught the last few years and especially this season with not enough good players to match up with the better teams. The beauty of being a BYU football and basketball fan is that we really do believe that we are always only a season or two away from being loaded and looking at a national championship. I think I am still a believer in all of that, but I now need a strong set of binoculars to see that far down the road. You can order yours at <http://www.waitutilnextyear.com> www.waitutilnextyear.com. Speaking of recruiting and hope for the future, here is what BYU's already signed recruit Zac Zeljaas and BYU's hope to sign recruit Frank Jackson have been doing so far this season. Seljass is a 6-7 wing from Bountiful HS in Utah and Jackson is the 6-3 guard from Lone Peak HS that the whole world now wants to sign. In Jackson's last four games he scored 31 points against Herriman, put up 41 on Lehi, added another 25 versus Westlake and scored 34 last week in a double overtime thriller loss against American Fork. Zeljaas' last four games went like this: He scored 32 against Bingham, had 19 when facing Kearns, put up 19 versus Judge Memorial and had 21 against East last week. Jackson is leading the state in scoring averaging 27.5 a game. Zeljaas is averaging 23.8 per contest. Hope this guy makes it happen Do Bigger Buns, Guns, and Awesome Abs Mean We Can Expect 3 More Wins per Year? I am familiar with weight training. For the last 10 years, I have been doing 2 liter Dr. Pepper curls daily from the top of my table to my lips. I hold the household record for 47 swigs and curls in an hour. I am very familiar with the "clean and jerk". I shower daily, but there is still seldom a day that goes by without somebody calling me a jerk. After publishing this newsletter for 20 plus years, it became readily apparent that I didn't know "squat" about sports. Now with the passage of another 15 years, I am even more convinced that when it comes to BYU sports, I now officially don't know "jack squat". With that kind of weight training background is it any wonder that I was intrigued by BYU's announcement last week of Frank Wintrich as the new BYU football strength and conditioning coach. I found his resume and methods, (Click here <http://byucougars.com/m-football/frank-wintrich-hired-byu-football-strength -and-conditioning-coach> ), interesting. Even more interesting were these comments. Click Here <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wit2DJFFUOA> to see what a former football player says about the new hire. Now for the $1 million question. Will this new guy make BYU win 2-3 more games a year? Don't count on it. It isn't about Wintrich not being good. It is about every other football program having their own strength and conditioning coach just as good. Some are better than others. Some get paid more than others, but all are competent. Alabama's strength and conditioning guy gets close to $1 million dollars a year. He also gets million dollar players to train. I don't discount the right strength coach making players better and less susceptible to injuries etc., but no coach can turn a sow's ear into a silk purse. To couch it in Cougar culinary jargon, you can't make chicken salad out of chicken waste products, even if you marinate it in Dr. Pepper for three days. BYU needs a strength and conditioning coach that is up to date on technique, mechanics and process. This new guy seems to fit the bill. Bronco Mendenhall made this hire because every program he goes against has their own strength guy and most are very good. Don't expect any miracles. It still all comes down to physical ability. A player with talent that has been trained well in strength and conditioning is almost always going to be better than the player with less talent that has been equally trained. After 3 consecutive 5-loss seasons, BYU fans are looking for anything to hang their hats and hopes on for improvement. This new hire is as good as anything else that will give Cougar nation their annual dose of hope during the summer. Not Coming Hosick Punts on BYU Trent Hosick had BYU football fans twitter pated when he announced several months ago that he would be enrolling at BYU this semester and participating in spring ball. Strike the pated from twitter. Hosick announced on his own twitter <http://ask.fm/Trenthosick/answer/123259995182> account that he won't be enrolling at BYU. He was gracious in his rejection remarks. He probably also realized that Taysom Hill won't be going to the NFL and will be back for this fall. I also think he did a little homework on Tanner Mangum, who also will be back from his mission in June and, in my opinion, is the heir apparent to Hill. If I was to speculate I think the fact that the BYU offense returned to its passing roots after Hill's injury, had an impact. Hosick has to know that Mangum can throw it. Christian Stewart showed that Robert Anae, after the Hill injury, demonstrated that he still knows how to use a proficient passer. There will be plenty of new faces on the football roster this spring however. BYU announced that 4 transfers and 7 previously signed players who are returning from LDS missions will be on campus this semester and ready for spring drills. They include: <http://www.hudl.com/athlete/1040989/highlights/35601382> Squally Canada, RB, 5-10, 195, transfer from Washington State.Here is BYU's official release on his transfer: A 5-foot-10, 192-pound freshman, Canada is a talented ball carrier who redshirted due to injury at Washington State. He will sit out the 2015 season due to transfer rules before having three seasons on the field at BYU. The Milpitas, California, native averaged 8.8 yards per carry to total 1,916 yards and 24 touchdowns while leading Milpitas High School to the CIF Central Coast Section Title with an 11-2 record as a senior. He was All-San Jose Mercury News First Team and All-Metro League (San Francisco Bay Area) Second Team as the Offensive MVP of the Santa Clara Valley Athletic League DeAnza Division. ESPN.com rated him a four-star recruit and the No. 32 running back in the nation after totaling 3,367 yards and 37 touchdowns during his high school career. <http://www.hudl.com/athlete/679894/highlights> Kamel Greene, DB, 5-11, 180, transfer from Washington State.BYU's take on him: A teammate of Canada's at Washington State, Greene comes to BYU as a 5-foot-11, 178-pound cornerback with 4.48 40-yard speed. The redshirt sophomore is eligible to play right away for the Cougars. Greene hails from Mountain View, California, where he prepped at St. Francis High School. As a senior he totaled 77 tackles, including 47 solo takedowns, along with two fumble recoveries and six pass breakups. <http://www.nmstatesports.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=1900&ATCLID=2051253 85> Jackson Kaka, TE, 6-4, 215, transfer from New Mexico State (After LDS Mission).BYU's bio: Kaka comes to BYU from New Mexico State, where he played as a freshman in 2011 prior to serving a mission in New Zealand for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The 6-4, 210-pound tight end started 11 games in 12 appearances for the Aggies while totaling 15 receptions for 122 yards, including one catch for eight yards in a start against BYU in LaVell Edwards Stadium. A native of Aotearoa, New Zealand, Kaka later lived on the Australian Gold Coast before moving to Hawaii where he attended Kahuku High School. He played both defensive line and tight end at Kahuku. He is eligible to play right away as a sophomore for the Cougars in 2015. <http://www.hudl.com/athlete/1743044/highlights/185040376> Eric Takenaka, DB, 5-10, 205, transfer from Snow College (Prepped at West HS SLC).What BYU says.Takenaka is 5-foot-10, 205-pound versatile athlete who will be a junior for the Cougars in 2015. This past season at Snow College he was named to the All-Western States Football League Defensive First Team and All-WSFL Special Teams Second Team while helping the Badgers achieve an 8-2 record and No. 8 national ranking. Named the NJCAA National Defensive Player of the Week in Week 3, Takenaka finished second nationally with eight interceptions while leading the nation in kickoff return average at 44.1 yards per return. He also returned his interceptions for an average of 30 yards each, including a 100-yard return for touchdown, and was used offensively on special plays where he carried the ball four times for 21 yards and pulled in six passes for 56 yards. He finished second on the Snow squad with 55 tackles. Returned Missionaries now enrolled in school <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y0EE_ZcWeJ4> Matt Hadley, DB 6-0 191 So. Connell, Washington/Connell HS <http://www.hudl.com/athlete/1060765/micah-hannemann> Micah Hannemann, DB 6-1 190 So. Alpine, Utah/Lone Peak HS <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9i3Sm7Z_yb8> Austin Hoyt, OL 6-7 268 RFr. Ione, California/Argonaut HS <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NY9OtdYVgZQ> Moses Kaumatule, DL 6-1 254 RFr. South Jordan, Utah/Bingham HS <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d2pkQ6F63Tg> Sawyer Powell, DB 6-1 203 RFr. West Richland, Washington/Richland HS <http://www.hudl.com/athlete/38579/rhett-sandlin> Rhett Sandlin, LB 6-2 220 RFr. Sandy, Utah/Alta HS <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KutLEEAuY0g> Josh Weeks, WR 6-4 200 Fr. Show Low, Arizona/Show Low HS Click on names above of these transfers and returned missionaries for highlights or additional info BYU Volleyball Brooms the Bruins The BYU men's volleyball team improved their early season record to 3-1 this past weekend by sweeping the then ranked No. 4 UCLA Bruins in two matches on Friday and Saturday. The Cougars clobbered the Bruins on Friday 3-0. It was never a match with BYU taking the three sets 25-11, 25-17 and 25-17. It was tougher the next night as UCLA put up a much stronger fight. The Bruins spanked the Cougars in the first set 17-25, but BYU came back to take the next three 26-24, 25-20 and 25-15. Next up for BYU will be two matches on the road, Friday, Jan. 23 and Saturday, Jan. 24 against UC Santa Barbara. Ben Patch the former freshman Phenom outside hitter was courtside at the matches this past week. After his early return from LDS missionary service, the report we have heard is that he will train with the U.S. Men's Junior National Team through the summer then enroll at BYU in the fall and be on the BYU men's team next January. He will be a sophomore in eligibility. Television Timetable BYU vs. San Diego Saturday, January 24 at San Diego Tipoff: 2:00 pm MST TV: Root Sports, Time Warner Cable, Comcast Sports Network BYU vs. San Diego (W BB) Saturday, January 24 at San Diego Tipoff: 2:00 pm MST TV: BYUtv BYU vs. San Francisco Thursday, January 29 at Provo Tipoff: 9:00 pm MST TV: ESPNU If you also want a PDF copy of this issue, email and request it.
