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Meeting the media for the first time since news of BYU running back Jamaal Williams' recent citation for underage drinking was made public, head coach Bronco Mendenhall on Tuesday said the issue "was addressed so long ago now between he and I that I really don't intend to address it again."
"He's in great standing with our program--was, and is now, and will be going forward," said Mendenhall.
Asked a follow-up question regarding Williams' status, Mendenhall said "there is no follow-up; I've already answered it."
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The 18-year old junior-to-be was charged with misdemeanor possession of alcohol by a minor in connection with an incident in mid-February; he later pleaded not guilty. A court hearing has been set for May 7. Williams has been a full participant in the Cougars' spring practices, which entered their fourth of five weeks on Tuesday, with an afternoon session on the team's outdoor fields in Provo.
The squad will practice again on Thursday, with the annual spring scrimmage planned for Saturday morning at LaVell Edwards Stadium.
"There will be some scrimmaging," said Mendenhall of the weekend game plan. "Most of our up-and-coming players will be the ones who will be tackling, but we plan on basically a format that you see out there now (in spring practices), with all of our team.
"So, there will be some tackling, some 'thud' (hitting without taking to ground) and maybe some practice. I reserve the right through Thursday, based on injuries, etc. to even tweak (the format) a little bit."
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Mendenhall, who doubles as BYU's defensive play-caller on game days, said the current offseason has seen him spend more time in the offensive staff room and with players on that side of the ball.
"I love it," said Mendenhall of the team's offensive progression in the offseason. "I've spent the entire offseason with our offense, from the end of our fall, until now.
"That doesn't mean I'm an offensive coordinator yet, but I'm trying to lend everything I know about what makes us more difficult to defend."
Quarterback Taysom Hill said offensive coordinator Robert Anae's second season of his second stint at BYU will feature some new wrinkles in an up-tempo attack.
Tight end Devin Mahina observed that "I've seen a lot of improvement in the offense; we're moving the ball really good. It's gonna be interesting when we can actually go full contact and see how many yards we can actually get now."
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Mendenhall and Hill both spoke of a recent sit-down in which the coach showed his incumbent signal-caller some video of current San Francisco 49ers QB Colin Kaepernick, who as a collegian at Nevada helped the Wolfpack to a win over BYU in Provo.
"I watched some of Kaepernick when he played at Nevada," said Hill, "when their offense was one of the best in the country--and that was based primarily on the run game."
"Kaepernick's ability to run the football obviously draws comparison (to Hill)," said Mendenhall. "(Nevada's former) scheme draws comparison. The difference is in Kaepernick's range in terms of size, but speed is similar, and I think proficiency and efficiency in how productive Kaepernick was in terms of number of wins is something Taysom would love to do in helping our team.
"The efficiency of how (Kaepernick) ran the offense, and positive plays, and decision making is what we were talking about."
Noting that Kaepernick was expert at using the sideline to his advantage and stepping out at the boundary to avoid contact, Mendenhall said the physical Hill may have to manage at a higher level his avoidance of contact.
"We're working on that a little bit," Mendenhall acknowledged. He says in showing Hill video of Kaepernick's sideline techniques, "I stopped it, rewound it, stopped it, rewound it, stopped it, rewound it, until Taysom said 'I got it, Coach.'
"I've heard that repetition builds habits...so I have a few more meetings with him."
Hill, who says he now weighs 228 pounds after offseason workouts, was recently named by the Sporting News as college football's 15th-best player in 2014, with the potential to become the best player in the game.
Of the national recognition, Hill said "it's cool but honestly I think the battle is with myself. I'm trying to be as good as I possibly can be."
"I'm more worried about how I feel I played than how the media, how the guys around think I played. I know how good I can be and that's what I'm trying to be."
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Hill bounced back from a serious leg injury in 2012 to start every game in 2013 and record one of the most productive offensive seasons in BYU history.
Hill set the school single-season record for offensive plays, while rushing for 1,344 yards and passing for 2,938 yards. He ran for 10 scores, passed for 19 more, and did so the season after an injury that required extensive rehabilitation and considerably limited his offseason activities last year.
Hill was asked if he had recently contacted BYU hoopster Kyle Collinsworth, who last week underwent surgery to repair a torn ACL.
"I have reached out to him," said Hill. "I was out there the Sunday after he tore his ACL and had conversations with him. I spoke with him a little bit about rehab and the ability to recover and get back. I know Kyle and he'll have a full recovery and come back and play well."
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Notes:
Tuesday's practice was another feisty affair, with a couple of scuffles enlivening the media-observation session. Mendenhall, on the occasionally contentious nature of the spring exercises:
"I love it; it's very competitive, very physical, very tough. I'd kind of be concerned if it wasn't that way. I like it. The only time it bothers me is if there is a single player that seems to be at the center of it the majority of the time, then it becomes more about him than the team."
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Offensive linemen Ryker Mathews (back) and Brayden Kearsley (academics) participated in their first spring practices on Tuesday. Mendenhall said both appeared "tired."
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On the retirement of longtime Director of Football Operations Duane Busby, Mendenhall said "you don't replace him."
"(He's a) personal friend, trusted adviser, and essential to our success over the past nine years--to me personally, and Holly, he's not replaceable. Duane is understated, and he asked me specifically not to make a big deal about it, so that's as big a deal as I can make but I'll miss him."
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Mendenhall said NFL team representatives were in town to work with potential draftees Kyle Van Noy, Eathyn Manumeleuna and Uani 'Unga on Tuesday. Asked about NFL interest in players from the 2013 team, Mendenhall said he's getting "great feedback coming back from NFL personnel people...the number of combine players is a good indicator that there's a lot of interest, and the number of offseason visits and workouts we're having is probably the highest ever, so I'm excited about it."
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You can hear post-practice interviews with Mendenhall, Hill and Mahina in "Cougar Cuts," above left.
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