HB Arnett’s
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West 800 South –
Vol. 33,
Issue 37 – April 8, 2013
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SPRING
FOOTBALL: TERSENESS AND TALENT
Bronco Mendenhall and Robert Anae will
never be confused as being charismatic with the press and public. Instead of
charisma, two more appropriate words come to mind: Candor and Cantankerous.
Both coaches are known for telling it like
it is. Neither coach is known for being effusive in evaluating the exploits of
their side of the BYU football. Both men are terse when talent is being
discussed.
“We’re a work in
progress” for Anae and “Hmm, we’ll see” for Mendenhall
is about as loquacious as these two guys get when talking about BYU football.
To say they hold their Cougar cards close to the vest is an understatement.
So when either drops a name or two during
spring football saying said player has performed well, it is time for picking
up ears and pencils to take notes of those names.
With spring football practice coming to a
close last Friday, here are names, in alphabetical order that leaked from the
lips of Mendenhall and Anae during the last four weeks of drills.
Terrance Alletto, OL…The 6-3, 270 pounder from
Ponderosa HS in Parker, CO is as alliterative as it gets. He also looks to have
nailed down a starting shot at being the center on the offensive line this
coming fall. He redshirted as a freshman in 2009 and then served an LDS
mission. He saw very limited action last season as a redshirt freshman. He will
be a sophomore this fall.
Craig Bills, S…You know that Mendenhall is
high on you when he says you will be a starting safety this fall even though
you are sitting out the spring rehabbing from surgery.
Bills saw significant playing time last
season, especially in the latter part of the schedule. He will team with Daniel
Sorensen to give the Cougars two experienced players at safety.
Bills will be a junior in the fall.
Alani Fua, OLB…The 6-5, 220 pound outside
linebacker has never been a heavyweight physically or in the linebacker playing
rotations. That should change this fall based on his play this spring. He will
give the Cougar defense another solid option to go along with returning outside
starters Kyle Van Noy and Spencer Hadley. Fua will be a junior this coming
season.
Mike Hague, DB…Hague and hurt seem to always
pop up in sentences describing the senior defensive back. The 5-10, 190 pounder
has been mentioned as the guy to fill the vacated boundary corner spot. BYU was
counting on Trent Trammell, the juco transfer, but he lasted just one day of
spring drills before tearing his ACL. While Hague is getting mentioned, BYU is
still trying to find juco corners this summer to use as alternative options.
Taysom Hill, QB…Let’s see. Bronco says
he and his staff are still evaluating whom they will name as a starter at
quarterback despite having Hill take every meaningful snap of spring except in
scrimmages and live contact drills. The rationale was to make sure Hill is
healthy for the fall. If he is not going to be your starting quarterback, why
take those precautions? Hill is the guy. I know it. You know it and so do Bronco
and his staff. The question is who will back up Hill? My money is on Ammon
Olsen. That is not a bad place to place your bets if Hill can’t
physically perform during the coming season. Hill will be a sophomore this
fall.
Adam Hine, RB…The 6-1, 205 pound running
back, is BYU’s witness protection player of the spring. After a
spectacular high school career, this promising back changed his name from Timo
to Hine and then disappeared off the radar due to two years in
Paul Lasike, RB…The former rugby
player’s story won’t rival that of Ziggy Ansah, but his pedigree
does. The 6-1, 230 pound punishing fullback only started putting on the pads
two years ago. He made waves last year, but put the ball on the ground too much
to see significant playing time. This spring he proved more trustworthy with
the pigskin. He is a punishing runner and will be used in short yardage
situations. It wasn’t too long ago that Iona Pritchard was going to be
the next good big back to replace Manase
Tanner Mangum, QB…The 6-3, 195 pound freshman
quarterback will be getting the keys to the Cougar car on offense. He just
won’t be getting them until he serves two years on a LDS mission and
Taysom Hill has used up his eligibility. High school hype is a hit and miss
thing. It usually doesn’t transfer to the next level for quarterbacks.
Mangum has proven this spring that his hype was justified. Giddiness is hard to
sustain for two years while Mangum is gone, but Mendenhall and the offensive
staff know what they have coming back when Mangum returns. What they have is a
serious playmaker at quarterback. Remember, BYU is only as good as their
quarterback. The pipeline is full for the future at the most important position
in BYU’s football program. Mangum will most likely redshirt upon his
return and wait out Hill’s last year of eligibility and regain his
physical tools during that redshirt year in 2014.
Remington Peck, DL…The fact that Mendenhall
singled out the spring play of the 6-4, 240 pound defensive lineman, is either
a signal that Peck has emerged as a player, or in my opinion, that the BYU
defensive line is in trouble. Peck is most likely a player if Mendenhall says
he is, but at only 240 pounds, it will have to be shown to me that he can stop
the run. I will side during this spring with Mendenhall’s assessment, but
reserve the right to judge again in the fall. BYU was without two sure starters
on the defensive line this spring in Eathyn Manumaleuna and Bronson Kaufusi. It
will take some Mendenhall magic in the fall to piece together a productive
defensive line in the fall, especially in the depth department. Peck will be a
sophomore in the fall.
Brett Thompson, WR/TE?...There were no names mentioned
this spring when it came to discussions about tight ends. The drought looks
like it will now go four years since Dennis Pitta last rained on opposing
defenses. Thompson, a 6-3, 220 pounder has made waves this spring as a big
option as an inside receiver. If you can’t have a productive tight end, a
productive big inside receiver gives you the next best option for creating
defensive mismatches for opponents. Thompson will be a junior this fall.
Michael Yeck, OL…The 6-8, 290 pound tackle has
gone from the anonymity of just a name on the roster, to a player that appears
to have earned himself a starting spot on the offensive line this fall. Chalk
it up to the new up tempo offense, the new coaching staff for the offensive
line, or karma, but Yeck kicked karma in the butt this spring. He and Alletto
were the surprises of the offensive line. This unit looked like it was just
going to bide time until the fall and new juco players arrived, but Yeck and
Alletto evidently didn’t get the memo. Yeck will be a junior this fall.
Names
not Forgotten…While
spring is a time for making noise and a name for yourself if you want to see
playing time in the fall, BYU had several players this spring that were held to
limited or no action during spring football drills.
Those players had no need to make a name
for themselves. Their names and games are already known to coaches and fans
alike. Oh yeah, they are also already known to the opponents appearing on the
Cougars’ 2013 schedule.
Kyle Van Noy jumped started his national notoriety
campaign for this coming season at the Poinsettia Bowl last December. ESPN will
be looking for ways to feature his play on their highlight reels this fall.
Cody Hoffman was BYU’s go to guy at receiver
last season. That won’t change this season. The only thing keeping
Hoffman from mega bucks at the next level is ordinary speed and the need for
more strength. If he can bulk up and learn to block, it is my opinion that he
could make serious money as a converted tight end at the next level.
Bronson Kaufusi is now done moonlighting as a basketball
player. Now he will get back to man handling offensive linemen in the fall.
Eathyn Manumaleuna has been making defensive plays since he
emerged on the scene with his game saving field goal block against UCLA in the
Las Vegas Bowl as a true freshman. There is more in the tank for this solid
defensive lineman if he can get back to 100 percent health from his knee
surgery of last season.
JD Falsev was BYU’s best football player
last year…based on a pounds per production model. There should be more
production in the model this coming season.
New
Names that will be Needed
There was a reason that BYU inked so many
juco offensive and defensive linemen. They will be needed next season. It
remains to be seen if any will turn out to be players but these are the juco
bodies with which BYU will be working with this fall.
Josh Carter, OL, 6-5, 290,
Edward Fusi, OL, 6-1, 285,
Sam Lee, CB, 6-1, 180, College of the Canyons (
Kalolu Utu, DL, 6-2, 285,
De’Ondre Wesley, OL, 6-6, 310, Diablo Valley JC (
High
School Names that may be Factors
Michael Davis, WR, 6-2, 180 Glendale HS (
Brayden Kearsley, OL, 6-5, 300, Aloha HS
(OR)…Highly touted and need for bodies on the offensive line may be the
combination that lets this guy play this season.
JonRyheem Peoples, DL, 6-6, 300, Rigby HS
(ID)…Extremely raw, but BYU’s desperate need for bodies on the DL
and Peoples size, may parlay into limited playing time.
NAMES
ON 2013 SCHEDULE
Aug 31, Sat,
Sep 7, Sat,
Sep 21, Sat,
Sep 27, Fri,
Oct 4, Fri,
Oct 12, Sat, Georgia Tech at
Oct 19, Sat,
Oct 26, Sat,
Nov 9, Sat,
Nov 16, Sat,
Nov 23, Sat, Notre Dame at
Nov 20, Sat,
FLUFF AND STUFF
Football
BYU and Bronco Mendenhall announced last
week that Geoff Martzen has been hired as the new Football Player Personnel and
On-Campus Recruiting Coordinator. Here is the official BYU blurb announcing the
hire:
A native
of
“Geoff
is young and energetic and has gained a great understanding of successful
recruiting processes from his experiences at
Martzen
assisted in the recruiting coordination of high school and junior college
recruits at
“I’m
excited about this opportunity at BYU,” Martzen said. “I’m
eager to get to work and build upon the great experiences I’ve had at
Prior to
going to Alabama, Martzen coached high school football in the Fresno, Calif.,
area from 2007-2011, serving four years as offensive coordinator and one year
as quarterbacks coach. He coached two years at
Martzen
has a bachelor’s degree in kinesiology from
Basketball
BYU also announced in basketball last week
that the Cougars will be participating in the 2013 CBE Hall of Fame Classic in
Here is the official announcement released
from BYU:
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – BYU will join Wichita State, Texas and DePaul at Sprint Center for the championship rounds of the 2013 CBE Hall of Fame Classic, Nov. 25 and 26, 2013. The National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) announced the field today.
The semifinal matchups will be held on Monday, Nov. 25. The finals will take place on Tuesday, Nov. 26, beginning with the consolation game, followed by the championship game. All four games will be broadcast on the ESPN family of networks.
Volleyball
Despite splitting two matches on the road
last week at UC Santa Barbara and UCLA, the Cougars clinched the outright title
in MPSF play. They earned the right to host all post season playoff games as
long as they keep winning in those playoffs.
The Cougars eked out a 5 game win, 3-2
over the Gauchos on Friday night, but were swept in 3 games by UCLA on Saturday
night. Next up for the Cougars are matches on the road at Pacific and Stanford
this coming weekend.
Baseball
After starting the WCC season with an 0-3
record, BYU upped their season mark to 5-4 in league play with a three-game
series sweep of
The Cougars are now currently at 17-14
overall and find themselves in the thick of the league race to earn one of the
four spots in the WCC post season baseball tourney. Here are the current WCC
Baseball Standings.
Pepperdine…6-3, 18-12
Gonzaga…7-4, 19-10-1
LMU…7-5, 16-15
BYU…5-4, 17-14
BYU previously took two of three games
from current league leader Pepperdine in a series played in
Television
Timetable
BYU vs.
Monday, April 8 at
First Pitch: 10:00 am Mountain Time
TV: BYUtv
BYU vs.
Friday, April 12 at
First Pitch: 6:00 pm Mountain Time
TV: BYUtv
BYU vs. Loyola
Marymount (Softball)
Saturday, April 13 at
First Pitch: 1:00 pm Mountain Time
TV: BYUtv
BYU vs. Loyola
Marymount (Softball)
Saturday, April 13 at
First Pitch: 3:00 pm Mountain Time
TV: BYUtv