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BYU Preview
2009 overall record: 11-2 The BYU Cougars have a lot to prove when they meet Washington on September 4th in Provo, Utah: (1) that BYU deserves to be in the Pac-10, not Utah; (2) that true freshman Jake Heaps -- if he should play, that is -- is the best quarterback to come out of the state of Washington in the last ten years, Heisman Trophy candidate Jake Locker notwithstanding; and (3) that the Cougars (13-0) deserved to be named national champions in 1984, not the Huskies (11-1-0). In recent years, playing on the road at LaVell Edwards Stadium (seating capacity 64,045, grass field) has proven to be an inhospitable place for Pac-10 teams, with Arizona losing 20-7 in 2007 and UCLA being hammered 59-0 in 2008. Former Air Force head football coach Fisher DeBerry has said of Edwards Stadium, "Probably the loudest and best stadium is whenever things are going good for BYU and their fans start beating on the metal bleachers. That can be a very tough place to play." In their last meeting, the season before last, the Cougars posted a 28-27 win over the Huskies in Seattle. The last seconds of that game were particularly frustrating for Husky fans, with BYU's Jan Jorgenson blocking Ryan Perkin's 35-yard try for point with the clock running out. This came after Locker had run the ball in from 3-yards out, and the Dawgs looking to tie the score and carry the game into overtime. However, Locker was flagged for excessive celebration, which resulted in the long try for point and the one-point loss, and after that the Huskies imploded, in what eventually turned out to be a disastrous 0-12 season. On that fateful day, RB Harvey Unga ran for 136 yards and QB Max Hall passed for 338 yards. Fortunately, for the Huskies both of them won't be playing for the Cougars when the two teams clash on September 4th. Hall has graduated and Unga has voluntarily left the program after violating the school's honor code. Reference Bob Condotta's Seattle Times' blog for Washington's positional analysis by clicking here. Quarterback: Any of the three who participated in spring ball -- Jake Heaps, Riley Nelson and James Lark -- could start. Playing mop up in six games last season, Nelson threw 10 passes and completed 7 for 99 yards and 1 touchdown. "For the spring, Nelson completed 57 percent of his passes for 389 yards and five touchdowns, while Lark and Heaps each converted on 59 percent of their attempts for 253 and 774 yards, respectively. Heaps completed seven scoring throws during the spring," according to one site I researched. With the experienced Locker at the helm, give the Dawgs the edge here. Running Back: Freshman running back Joshua Quezada's play this spring gives the Cougars much-needed depth at a position that’s now in the process of retooling with Unga out of the picture. J. J. Di Luigi (5-foot-9, 198), who backed up Unga last season, rushed for 248 yards and 3 touchdowns. Back from a mission in 2007 and a medical redshirt last season, recycled RB Mike Hague (5-foot-10, 223) -- not to be confused with actinide recycling at La Hague, France -- rushed for 166 yards, averaging 7.3 yards per carry in 2006. With RB Chris Polk (1,113 yards in 2009) healthy again and a committee of studs backing him up, give UW the nod here. Receivers: Although Tight ends Dennis Pitta (829 yards in 2009) and Andrew George are gone, true freshman Devin Mahina (6-foot-6, 225) is back from a mission and, with his size, looks to present matchup problems near the goal line. Mendenhall says that true freshman Mike Muehlmann (6-foot-5, 225) was dead even with Mahina at the end of spring ball. With Austin Holt (6-foot-6, 230), a U. S. Army All-American, back from a mission in the fall, the Cougars should be reloading at tight end, as opposed to rebuilding. The threesome lack experience, however. Senior McKay Jacobson (5-foot-11, 192) was second in receiving last year with 23 catches that went for 556 yards and 4 touchdowns. His two years' spent on a mission adds to an edge in maturity that Brigham Young possesses, which is an important factor at the college level. Add Junior WR O'Neill Chambers (376 yards) to the corps, along with Senior WR Luke Ashworth (387 yards). Condotta ranks the Huskies' receiving corps as the third strongest positional unit on the team behind running back and quarterback. The Huskies receivers should prevail, but not by a whole lot. Offensive line: The Cougars return four starters to the OL, along with All American candidate Matt Reynolds (6-foot-6, 329), who is an NFL prospect. Reynolds has been named to the preliminary watch list for the 2010 Rotary Lombardi Award presented to the nation's top offensive or defensive lineman or linebacker
Give BYU the edge here since Washington's OL is
lacking
in overall quality and still looking to get more push off the line of scrimmage,
especially in short-yardage situations. Call this position a push between the two teams. Linebacker: On the negative side, the Cougars lose Matt Bauman, Shawn Doman, Coleby Clawson and Terrance Hooks. Bauman, Doman and Clawson combined for nearly 200 tackles last year. Cushioning the blow at the linebacker position, Junior Jordan Pendleton -- with 52 tackles, six tackles for a loss and three sacks -- will be turned loose to make life miserable for opposing signal callers. Shane Hunter (6-foot-1, 229) will take over for Doman in one the middle spots, and there are some young players ready to fill the void after some seasoning. UW gets a slight edge here. Secondary: With three starters back, the secondary promises to be the most productive unit on defense. Junior Andrew Rich (6-foot-3, 223) at strong safety is big enough to lay the proverbial leather to the opposition, earning second team All-Mountain West honors last season. He was named to the 2010 Lott Trophy Watch List, as announced by Ronnie Lott and the Pacific Club IMPACT Foundation in April. What senior CB Brian Logan (5-foot-6, 176) lacks in size, he makes up for with 4.4 speed and springs in his legs. Senior Brandon Bradley (6-foot-0, 200) is a big hitter and the number one corner on the team. In April, Cerritos Junior College cornerback DeQuan Everett (6-foot-2, 195, 4.42) signed a scholarship agreement to enroll at BYU and will join the team this fall. Proven backups are lacking, however. Give the Dawgs a slight edge in the secondary. Outlook: UCLA posted 9 yards rushing at Provo in 2008 and had the ball for just 22 minutes and 24 seconds? Give me a break. The Huskies haven't won on the road since November 3, 2007, when they beat Stanford, 27-9, so they have something to prove too. On my card, this is one of six games that Washington has a good chance of winning in 2010, with games against Syracuse, Stanford, UCLA, Arizona State and Washington State being the others. The Huskies look better on paper, and I know BYU is retooling at quarterback, running back, tight end and linebacker. With that said, however, I'm giving BYU a three-point edge because of the metal bleachers, the Huskies' road jinx, the ominous UCLA pratfall in 2008 and the long-lingering questions about the strength of Washington's defense -- which, in 2009, ranked 79th in the country and eighth in the Pac-10. Richard Linde can be reached at malamute@4malamute.com |
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