Camp Cougar, Day 2

BYU's second day of training camp concluded with a 30-minute media observation period that was highlighted by a session-ending deep-strike touchdown pass from Ammon Olsen to Ross Apo.

The junior wideout dove parallel to the ground to haul in the roughly 45-yard offering, and once safely on the turf with the ball in his possession, Apo was mobbed by teammates.

It was a seemingly satisfying end of the day for the offense, but within minutes, satisfaction turned to exertion, as their boss Robert Anae had them doing a series of up-downs on the sidelines, the early evening sun still sizzling to accompany their efforts.

*******

Head coach Bronco Mendenhall said the team's "execution, I thought, was cleaner overall today" than in Saturday's camp opener, with the coach adding that it "was a more physical practice, even though we weren't in pads. A few more bumps and bruises, a couple of hamstrings, but I thought the tempo was even faster than it was on Saturday, and the players handled that much better."

"As is usually the case," said Mendenhall, "once you see film and make corrections, execution improves, and that's what I saw today."

*******

What the media saw was another day for freshman Dallin Leavitt to take his turn with the first-string at cornerback--a position weakened by injury and departure since the spring.

While junior Jordan Johnson is back to man one of the corner spots, defensive coordinator and secondary coach Nick Howell is looking to replace Preston Hadley on the other side of the field (Hadley, by the way, is currently serving as a student assistant).

The candidates to replace Hadley include Leavitt, junior college transfer Robertson Daniel and safety/corner hybrid Skye PoVey. Senior Mike Hague is recovering from an IT band issue, while juco transfer Sam Lee is out with a back injury. Would-be corner Jacob Hannemann opted to sign with the Chicago Cubs for a million bucks, while junior college recruit Trent Trammell tore an ACL on the first day of spring practice.

"Yeah, who would have thought," said Howell of the personnel uncertainty at corner. "I felt as good as I ever felt about depth at corner here at BYU. Jacob's deal...shoot, I wanted him to go (to the Cubs), then the JC kids come in and get hurt, then Mike tweaks (his knee) a little bit, so you're looking, and you're wondering about depth, obviously."

"But you can't sit there and wonder; you can't recruit anymore. We brought in Rob(ertson Daniel), and I'm glad we brought in three JC corners, and then I've got some experienced guys. Skye will be just fine, I think we're going to get Mike back fast, and I think we're going to get (JC transfer) Sam (Lee) back fast, so it looks bad right now, maybe, but it's not--and we'll be okay. And shoot, Dallin has done a nice job."

*******

A true freshman from Oregon, Leavitt has impressed Howell so far in camp. The coach says Leavitt is all about "confidence, confidence, confidence...football junkie. As prepared as a freshman as...I'm going to make a comparison, and I'm going to say Austin Collie-ish, as far as drive, football knowledge. I would say the father-son relationship that Austin and his dad (former Cougar WR Scott) have is very similar to Dallin and (father, former BYU DB) Jared. Just, kind of a relentless, 'I have to know everything' (approach)...I think you've seen in camp, he makes plays on balls."

"He's still learning," says Howell, "you can tell. But shoot, he'll come up with a play on the ball in a critical moment, so I'm not afraid (to play Leavitt)--heck no, I'm not afraid."

"I think our mindset is 'I want to recruit guys who can come in and play right away, and I want to play the best player,' so I don't really care what grade they're in."

Asked if it's conceivable that Leavitt gets the start on opening day in Virginia, Howell said "sure, sure; it's wide open. He's getting reps right now. If he's the best guy, I'll go with him, and it might be a rotation of guys, but I'm going to play the best guy."

"We want to win. Our kids want to win. My job is to put the best players on the field that are going to help us win, and if (Leavitt) is that, then we're going. I'm not saying it is (his job), but it could be. He wants it to be, there are other guys that want it to be, which is good for me, because you have competition, and let's go for it."

*******

A BYU defense that has historically aligned to field or boundary side has looked a little different in camp, simply because the BYU offense moves so fast and runs plays so quickly--not affording time for Howell's defenders to shift and align to strength. Instead, the defensive approach has been a lot more 'left-right' than 'field-boundary.'

"It totally, completely depends on the style of offense," said Howell on Monday. "If they're going to slow down, and I can put our strengths where they need to be, then we're going to do it. If the tempo doesn't allow for it then we're going to line up and we're going to get after 'em."

"It is forcing learning and understanding on both sides (of the field), and it's also helping the safeties to understand both sides, so it's good. The more you know and the more you can do, the more you know and the more you can do. I want guys who know more and can do more, and if they can do it, that makes us better."

*******

Monday's practice was the second in helmets only; tomorrow is the first day on which shoulder pads are allowed, and Mendenhall says the players will be in pads for the single morning session.

"They're running into each other hard enough now that the shoulder tips are at this point what we would like to protect," said Mendenhall. "They'll bang into each other really hard for a couple of days, then that will kind of taper off."

"Then they'll go with full pads, and they'll go like crazy, then they'll adjust to that, and then we'll be ready to practice normally."

Mendenhall said when it comes to full contact, "I don't think we need as much as what maybe most people do. We'll probably scrimmage maybe a maximum of three times, and I think that will be enough with the volume of plays we're getting out there now in the amount of time we're having. I think we'll have plenty of repetition."

*******

BYU's kicking game is seeing a lot of camp attention, and in the media observation period on Monday, I don't think there was a miss in the 15 or so attempts from the group of Justin Sorensen, Trevor Samson and Moose Bingham. All were PAT or short field goal tries, but Mendenhall said "more balls are going through the uprights, and more are being struck well, than I've seen...Justin Sorensen has responded well."

*******

Another focal point is the nose tackle position, with the departure of Romney Fuga--one of Mendenhall's all-time favorites at that spot.

After spring ball, the coach said he might have to resort to using natural end Eathyn Manumaleuna at nose, because neither Marques Johnson nor Tuni Kanuch had done enough to claim an inside role.

Since, Johnson in particular has gone on to impress Mendenhall, and today, he said that Manumaleuna will like stay on the end, with Johnson, Kanuch, Meti Taliauli, Kalolo Utu and JonRyheem Peoples giving the coach enough confidence that the position can be handled by that collective.

"It will most likely be by committee, if I had to say today, but Marques has done a really nice job."

Such a platoon would see the end position manned by a primary trio consisting of Manumaleuna, Bronson Kaufusi and Remington Peck, "and that's a really good top three," said Mendenhall.

*******

Notes and quotes:

The Detroit Lions released an unofficial depth chart today, with former BYU defensive end Ziggy Ansah listed as a starter; Mendenhall said "man, it's an amazing story. I had a junior college player out there today, trying to decide if he wanted to keep hitting the sled, and it reminded me of Ziggy. His helmet was off, and he couldn't breathe and he was on his knee, and he was saying football wasn't very much fun. Ziggy looked like that a couple of years ago. It's been fun to see (him now); I'm happy for him."

Kaufusi will help to replace Ansah in 2013, and Mendenhall says the sophomore "looks really good; I'd anticipate that he'll have a really good season."

About filling Ansah's shoes, Kaufusi says "I don't really think about it too much. I just think more about just doing my job. When I do my job the plays are made; that's how I think."

--

WRs coach Guy Holliday on how the receivers' performance through two days of camp:

"My depth chart is day-to-day. You are as good as you were yesterday; we'll see what tomorrow holds. The worst thing about it for the first team is, you gotta fight to hold on. That's the great thing about competition. With competition, either you gonna accept it or turn it down. If you turn it down, you (are) not a college football player anyway."

--

WR JD Falslev on his expectations for the offense:

"We want to be one of the (most) prolific passing attacks there is in the country, but at the same time run the ball effectively. You guys don't like the term, but Coach Anae says 'go hard and go fast' and that's what we're gonna do. If you can't do that, if you can't keep up, then you won't be on the field."

--

RB Michael Alisa on his arm injury that will limit his participation in camp:

*******

Up next: Tuesday morning practice (shells; helmets and shoulder pads), closed session, no interviews. Wednesday's practice will be open to the media for the final 30 minutes, with interviews afterward.

*******

You can hear interviews with Bronco Mendenhall, Nick Howell, Guy Holliday, Michael Alisa, JD Falslev and Bronson Kaufusi, in "Cougar Cuts," top left.

*******

Photo: Jaren Wilkey, BYU Photo

*******

Related topics