Shutdown defense a point of pride for BYU linebackers


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PROVO — Kyle Van Noy came into the 2013 BYU football season with loads of hype, a preseason All-American status, and having passed on a nearly assured first-round NFL draft potential.

Halfway into the year, Van Noy has lived up to the hype with BYU's defense, with 40 tackles, 10 tackles for loss, four sacks, 10 quarterback hurries and one interception — a pick-six on the first play of the game at Utah State.

But what's most important to the senior from Reno, Nev., is that his fellow linebackers have risen to the same level, having scored defensive touchdowns in three straight games.

"It's cool being a part of. Not many defenses can say they scored in three straight games, yet alone three times in one season," Van Noy said after Wednesday's practice. "But more importantly, we're doing it as a team. It's not just one guy, or a couple; it's all 11 on defense, taking their jobs very seriously and doing their part."

The shutdown defense is a source of pride in BYU's program, with one major defensive pillar of the week going to keeping opposing teams under 24 points.

"We don't make a huge deal about it; we talk about it as one of our pillars. But it just makes sense to keep points down," inside linebackers coach Paul Tidwell said. "That's something we've been doing now for quite some time. We'll talk about it on Monday, if we reached our pillars, and then we just go to work on the rest of the week to do the best we can to keep points down, no matter who we're playing."

Fellow senior Uani Unga adds 56 tackles, three tackles for loss and a forced fumble for the Cougars. Spencer Hadley returned last week from suspension to compile four tackles, one sack, 1 1/2 tackles for loss, a fumble recovery and a quarterback hurry while coming off the bench.

Even Van Noy's cousin, Alani Fua, got into the act with a 51-yard interception return for a touchdown against Georgia Tech. With those defensive scoring plays, BYU ranks 15th in the nation with 17.3 points per game.

Still, a defense's job is keep offenses out of the end zone.

"We take pride, as a defense, in not letting them score," Fua said. "We've been disappointed in some scores that have happened even this year. I think, overall, we're happy with what we've done, but not satisfied. I think there's a lot of improvement that we can make in our defense. We'll just have to see how we handle offenses; hopefully we can improve every week."

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Preparing for Houston (5-0, 2-0 American Athletic Conference) can be a challenge for many defenses, especially coming off a unique offense such as Georgia Tech's triple option.

Tidwell and the linebackers are looking forward to it, though.

"I think it was kind of a breath of fresh air to go back to a spread offense," he said. "We've been playing that all year, mostly, and against our own offense. It's something more familiar to them."

The familiar spread offense with a pocket-passing quarterback ‘excites' Unga, even.

"I think a lot of the guys are excited for this game, and think it will be really fun," Unga said. "We're out there grinding. A lot of guys can't wait."

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The Cougars haven't traveled outside the state of Utah since the first week of the season, a 19-16 loss at Virginia.

Traveling to Reliant Stadium, home of the NFL's Houston Texans, is more cause for excitement, though.

"I think it's pretty cool to play at one," Van Noy said. "It's a good environment, and a really cool experience."

BYU's leading tackler didn't lose sight of the reason for the mid-season road trip.

"I think we're looking forward to it. They're going to be a challenge for us," Van Noy said of the Houston Cougars. "They're 5-0, and we believe we can go down there and make some noise."

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You can listen to post-practice interviews from Kyle Van Noy, Uani Unga and ILB Coach Paul Tidwell by clicking on the links in "Cougar Cuts," above left.

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Sean Walker is a KSL Newsradio BYU intern.

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