For my sports radio job, I've been attending every BYU practice since the beginning of training camp eight days ago. Based on what I've seen during this time,I've narrowed the immediate challenges facing this team so far down to 5 topics:
1-The Quarterback Race
The "four man race" has clearly been whittled down to a two man competition (though Coach Mendenhall is trying his best to sell James Lark as still having a shot at the starting role). The true freshman phenom Jake Heaps, and the seasoned leader Riley Nelson. They both have their pros and cons, but I personally feel that Heaps is the guy. His pin point precision on the long ball, the natural ability to check through his progressions efficiently, and his confidence in the offense tell me that BYU would be best served having him be their starter NOW. Nelson is a great athlete, don't get me wrong. And he's no slouch as a quarterback, either. But his talents and abilities do not outweigh Heaps', and so I don't see why BYU would keep Heaps from progressing early this year, with Nelson ready to come in when needed.
THE BOTTOM LINE: Heaps needs to be named the starter, and soon, so that the team can get used to him being their leader on the field.
2. Wide Receivers Dropping Passes
The receiving corps at BYU this year are an incredible sight to behold. Tall, athletic, physical and FAST are attributes that could be used to describe each and every one of them. From veterans O'Neill Chambers and McKay Jacobson (not to mention back ups Spencer Hafoka, Luke Ashworth, BJ Peterson and Matt Marshall) to young up-and-comers Ross Apo and Cody Hoffman, whoever ends up being QB will not lack open targets on every play. HOWEVER, there have been WAY too many dropped passes in practice. It's not something that can't be fixed, but it needs to be fixed immediately. If you have a young QB like Heaps making great throws on the numbers to guys 60+ yards down the field, but the ball is being dropped time and again, that ruins a passer's mentality and poisons his confidence.
THE BOTTOM LINE: If this issue can be addressed and nipped quickly, look for a big year from the wideouts this season.
3. Place Kicking
The Cougars have two kickers on the squad this season: Mitch Payne (place kicker), and Riley Stephenson (punter). However, Payne went down with a sprained ankle late last week, and his prognosis is not yet known (originally thought to be a 7-10 days deal, but Mendenhall has said he can't be too sure as of yet). Even before he was injured, Payne missed a PAT and two semi-long field goal tries. Stephenson, coming off a somewhat roller coaster freshman year last season, has now been thrown into the place kicking position, and has not been able to produce a consistency you need from your field goal kicker. Actually, field goals between 35-40 yards don't seem to be as big a problem for him as PAT's. He missed all but one PAT's during today's practice, and afterward Mendenhall said he will probably open the issue up to the rest of the team to see if anyone kicked in high school and can step in to the place kicking role until Payne heals.
THE BOTTOM LINE: Every game is vital in college football, and place kicking is the LAST position you want to have to worry about. Close games are always dependent on field position, and a missed field goal attempt can leave your defense in tough spots with the odds stacked against them. Plus, PAT's should be automatic. If they're not, you might as well go for two everytime. Losing by one is still losing....
4. Running Backs
Each running back on this team has his own talents and abilities that make him unique from the other backs around him. Brian Kariya is more of a power back who will run through a defender. JJ DiLuigi is the fast, shifty, finesse runner who can leave defenders in the dust. Then there's freshman Josh Quezada (Juice, as the team calls him), Mike Hague, Zed Mendenhall, and David Foote. Quezada will need some time to learn and flourish, but his future is bright. Hague is powerful, but short and slow. Mendenhall is a fullback playing tailback, and Foote, while always hustling and giving max effort, would not be successful on a different team with less experienced offensive linemen in front of him.
THE BOTTOM LINE: Harvey Unga had it ALL. Speed, power, finesse, and swagger. While you cannot replace a special player like Unga, it is important to make the transition period as smooth as possible. Running back by committee may be the answer for now, but eventually you're going to want that every-down-back you can rely on to move the ball down field and open up the passing game for your offense. Combined: These backs=Harvey Unga. Individually: they have chinks in their armor.
5. "Blue Zone" Defense
This year's secondary and defensive backs are stacked with experience and talent, and I expect a big season from them. Cornerback Corby Eason told me last week that the DB's are the cornerstone of the Cougar defense, and judging by their game between the twenties, I like what I see. However, once the offense gets inside the twenty (red zone, or "blue" zone at BYU), the needed stops don't seem to happen as often for the defense. It's not a HUGE issue, just a little something that could use some tweaking.
THE BOTTOM LINE: For the most part the defense is able to hold their own against the offense, but their confidence seems to be shaky inside the Blue Zone. While it's great that the Cougars are able to keep teams at bay in the middle of the field, they need to find a way to spread that success from the twenties and in, when big stops are most critically needed.
*Stay tuned for an update on these topics following this week of practices*
1 comment:
A follow up to today's practice (Aug 17th): It was a bit chippy at practice today. I'm sure the high temperature fueled the tempers a bit, but receivers dropping a lot of passes AGAIN didn't help any. At the very end of practice, there was an altercation between a receiver and one of the QB's. The receiver made a few comments about the QB's ability (or inability) to make throws to the receivers' likings, and then continued to lament when the QB took off running rather than pass down field on the following play. The WR was asked to leave practice and had to be escorted from the field. What I drew from all this, without blowing it out of proportion, keeping in mind it is JUST practice and guys are probably sick of beating each other up, was that issue #1 needs to be addressed ASAP. As in five minutes ago at the earliest. This team needs to know who their leader is, and he needs to be given the opportunity to lead.
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