“Lite” · any

BYU 49 WMU 18
The Potato Bowl in Pictures

This bowl game win epitomizes the evolution of Jeff Grimes as BYU’s offensive coordinator. Because of many reasons: injuries, ineptitude, lack of depth and lack of wins, Grimes has evolved from a rookie OC, to prove himself capable of changing what didn’t work at the first of the season and adapting and installing a new offense on the job and in the middle of the season.

It paid off handsomely in Boise and should even become more attractive next season. In case you missed what he did, here it is in pictures.

Grimes swatted away the early offense of fluttering and sputtering fly sweeps and went with a higher caliber offense to suit his offensive personnel and talent.

That new offense was designed to put Zach Wilson in the shot gun and let him throw bulls eye bombs down the field. Did it work?

You and the Western Michigan defense can be the judge by clicking to watch this:

Defensive Duct Tape and the Guy that Made it Work

Take a look at the starting defense against Arizona and then compare it to the starting defense against Western Michigan. The only thing that stayed constant in BYU’s defense this season was the defensive front.

The back end of this defense, including linebackers and defensive backs, was injury riddled from early on. The duct tape job Ilaisa Tuiaki did with his mix and match back end defense late in the year was remarkable. He has taken heat for his lack of aggression, but he needs some love for what he and his defensive staff put together as the season ended without the players they started with.

PROOF IS IN PUDDING AND PRODUCTION

From the day they arrived, Jeff Grimes and his offensive line coach, Ryan Pugh, said that the best players would play. They also said that the best player would be the guy that showed he was the best during the week of practice.

The most obvious example of that mantra was when Zach Wilson replaced Tanner Mangum. That same scenario took place at left guard on the offensive line. Thomas Shoaf started the season at that spot. After three games he was replaced by Keanu Saleapaga, the freshman redshirt, that switched from defense to offense at the start of the season. The last three games of the season it was Keiffer Longson who started.

All three will be back next year. Shoaf will be a senior. Longson will be a junior and Saleapaga will be a sophomore. Depending on how the play and show in the spring, one of these three may also be playing right tackle and replacing graduating senior Austin Hoyt.

Regardless, with the return of four starters on the o-line, coupled with the return of Zach Wilson, the prospects for productive pudding offensively looks good.

Last Man Standing and Sole Survivor

That’s how I describe BYU’s running back merry-go-round this season. They started with Squally Canada, tried Lapini Katoa, and went all in on Matt Hadley late in the season. All three couldn’t survive the injury bug.

That left the enigmatic Riley Burt. He looks like a running back and passes the eyeball test. He just never passed the production test…until last Friday against Western Michigan.

All Burk did was score a 37-yard touchdown while rushing for 110 yards on just 13 carries. That works out to an 8.5 yard per carry average. He actually looked like a running back that knew what he was doing and then did it.

BYU is still looking for a running back recruit and the chances of landing one is remote. Maybe Burk, if given the chance to be the change of pace with Wilson throwing the ball, could be an answer. We will see.

Recruiting Is a Pigskin Piñata

You never really know what you are going to get until you get it open and the goods on the field. This year was no different. They hype is always heavy, but it will take a few seasons to really evaluate what Kalani Sitake and company hauled in.

81-90
BYU Loses Again…This Time to SDSU

It’s safe to say that BYU basketball is not very good defensively. They have little problem scoring themselves, but a big problem defending their opponents.

Since we haven’t seen much defense this season from Dave Rose’s team, we might have forgot what good defense looks like.

Bruce Bowen was a spectacular defender during his college and NBA career. To refresh our memories of what defense looks like and likely won’t look like this Saturday again at Mississippi State when the Cougars go up against the Bulldogs. Click below to see the fundamentals of defense.

Culling the Herd

In the dairy business, they call it culling the herd. If a cow isn’t producing enough gallons of milk daily and if that milk is low in butter fat, she is sent to the auction and replaced with a better producing cow.

The same thing happens in college football, even at BYU. They used to call it non-renewal of scholarship. Now, the polite and face-saving nomenclature is “Transfer Portal”. This way both the player and coach get a politically correct way out of embarrassing situations for both. Here are 3 examples from the last few days.

Do We Actually Own It?

When it comes to critiquing and criticizing players, coaches and administrators of sports teams, that is what I have made a living doing for the last 35 plus years.

Based on letters to the editor and reading sport chat room writings. I have plenty of company. You would think that we own our favorite team and take full ownership of them, their play and their seasons.

I used to think that way and then I read an article written by Craig Calcaterra of NBC Sports. Here is the except that caught my eye.