So'oto undergoes surgery and other press conference notes
BYU's Monday morning press conference included coach Bronco Mendenhall and team captains Travis Bright and David Nixon.
A recap of some of the points Bronco touched upon:
* Linebacker Vic So'oto underwent surgery this morning for a broken foot. One doctor told Mendenhall that So'oto will be out four weeks, while another said eight weeks.
Snow College transfer Coleby Clawson will now get most of the reps at weakside linebacker. The coach said it will be determined this week who will get time when Clawson needs a break.
"There's quite a drop-off after Vic and Coleby," he said.
* He said the difficulty of playing UCLA for the third time in 370 days is alleviated somewhat by the Bruins' coaching change. Basically, it is the third coaching staff the Cougars will have faced, because Karl Dorrell was gone by the time the Cougars played the Bruins in the Las Vegas Bowl.
* He praised the play of running back Fui Vakapuna, not only for scoring the 11-yard touchdown, but for the way he picked up blitzes and acted as a lead blocker for Harvey Unga.
* Asked how the Cougars are leading the country in third-down conversions, nearly 80 percent, Mendenhall surmised that a lot of it has to do with offensive Robert Anae's planning. He said the Cougars have not been entertaining, but have been methodical.
* BYU hasn't allowed a sack in two games (Max Hall's fumble in the end zone against Northern Iowa was not ruled a sack), and Mendenhall said a big reason why is the job being done by line coach Mark Webber. "Washington didn't come close" to Hall, he said.
* Mendenhall said he isn't worried that BYU dropped from No. 15 to No. 18 in the AP poll. He said he hasn't watched, listened to or read any accounts of the controversy caused by the celebration penalty on UW's Jake Locker.
He repeated what he said after the game about that call not decided the outcome of the game. Rather, the blocked kick decided it, he said.
"It was a correct call made by an official within the rules," he said, and later added, "We do have rules for a reason."
However, he repeated that the ruling was "unfortunate" for Locker and Washington.
* Asked whether the controversy will harm the Cougars' standing in the BCS, he said he doubts it will matter if BYU keeps winning.
"The BCS is on everyone's mind, but hopefully outside of our team room," he said.
* Mendenhall acknowledged that the secondary's play the first two games is a concern. He said it seems like more receivers have gotten past BYU's defensive backs in the past two games than they did all of the last two seasons.
* He again praised Locker, saying it took all 11 of BYU's players to corral him at times.
* He said that he was impressed by UCLA quarterback Kevin Craft when Craft played at LaVell Edwards Stadium for San Diego State a few years ago.
* Asked if UCLA has an advantage this week because it had a bye last week, Mendenhall said he could see it both ways.
"If I were in their shoes, I would have rather played a game," he said.
* Asked about the two poor punts uncorked by punter C.J. Santiago against Washington, Mendenhall said the first one was a result of "too much leakage" into the three-man shield set up in front of the punter. The second one "was possibly rushed a hair" by Santiago.
* Finally, asked if he will wear the same dark blue warmup pants that he has worn in wins over Oregon, UCLA and Washington on Saturday, the coach was noncommittal.
"I'm not certain about that," he said.
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Linebacker David Nixon, ever quotable, said that he wasn't surprised the Cougars blocked the PAT because they work on it at least five minutes a day in practice.
He also said he isn't worried about the drop in the AP poll.
"A win is a win," he said. "Being 2-0 is a lot better than being 1-1."
Asked about playing against Kevin Craft again, Nixon said he remembered Craft having a great arm when he was on the run, but not being comfortable in the pocket.
So far, the players have received only one UCLA game to watch on DVD, the one on Labor Day against Tennessee.
Finally, Nixon predicted that Washington will turn out to be better than people think if Locker stays healthy.
"Washington is going to go on and win some games this year," he said. ------------------------------
Travis Bright said the offensive line thinks it played a good game but will still find areas it can improve on.
He acknowledged that the snaps from Dallas Reynolds to Max Hall were a little low at times, but said overall Reynolds has handled the move from left tackle to center magnificently.
He also said that Matt Reynolds, the new left tackle, has the potential to be the best Reynolds brother yet.
As far as playing UCLA for the third time in just over a year, he said he is just thankful to be facing a team of the Bruins' caliber again. He broke his leg in the Las Vegas Bowl against the Bruins, but said that means nothing now.
"We are different, and so are they," he said.
A recap of some of the points Bronco touched upon:
* Linebacker Vic So'oto underwent surgery this morning for a broken foot. One doctor told Mendenhall that So'oto will be out four weeks, while another said eight weeks.
Snow College transfer Coleby Clawson will now get most of the reps at weakside linebacker. The coach said it will be determined this week who will get time when Clawson needs a break.
"There's quite a drop-off after Vic and Coleby," he said.
* He said the difficulty of playing UCLA for the third time in 370 days is alleviated somewhat by the Bruins' coaching change. Basically, it is the third coaching staff the Cougars will have faced, because Karl Dorrell was gone by the time the Cougars played the Bruins in the Las Vegas Bowl.
* He praised the play of running back Fui Vakapuna, not only for scoring the 11-yard touchdown, but for the way he picked up blitzes and acted as a lead blocker for Harvey Unga.
* Asked how the Cougars are leading the country in third-down conversions, nearly 80 percent, Mendenhall surmised that a lot of it has to do with offensive Robert Anae's planning. He said the Cougars have not been entertaining, but have been methodical.
* BYU hasn't allowed a sack in two games (Max Hall's fumble in the end zone against Northern Iowa was not ruled a sack), and Mendenhall said a big reason why is the job being done by line coach Mark Webber. "Washington didn't come close" to Hall, he said.
* Mendenhall said he isn't worried that BYU dropped from No. 15 to No. 18 in the AP poll. He said he hasn't watched, listened to or read any accounts of the controversy caused by the celebration penalty on UW's Jake Locker.
He repeated what he said after the game about that call not decided the outcome of the game. Rather, the blocked kick decided it, he said.
"It was a correct call made by an official within the rules," he said, and later added, "We do have rules for a reason."
However, he repeated that the ruling was "unfortunate" for Locker and Washington.
* Asked whether the controversy will harm the Cougars' standing in the BCS, he said he doubts it will matter if BYU keeps winning.
"The BCS is on everyone's mind, but hopefully outside of our team room," he said.
* Mendenhall acknowledged that the secondary's play the first two games is a concern. He said it seems like more receivers have gotten past BYU's defensive backs in the past two games than they did all of the last two seasons.
* He again praised Locker, saying it took all 11 of BYU's players to corral him at times.
* He said that he was impressed by UCLA quarterback Kevin Craft when Craft played at LaVell Edwards Stadium for San Diego State a few years ago.
* Asked if UCLA has an advantage this week because it had a bye last week, Mendenhall said he could see it both ways.
"If I were in their shoes, I would have rather played a game," he said.
* Asked about the two poor punts uncorked by punter C.J. Santiago against Washington, Mendenhall said the first one was a result of "too much leakage" into the three-man shield set up in front of the punter. The second one "was possibly rushed a hair" by Santiago.
* Finally, asked if he will wear the same dark blue warmup pants that he has worn in wins over Oregon, UCLA and Washington on Saturday, the coach was noncommittal.
"I'm not certain about that," he said.
-----------------------------
Linebacker David Nixon, ever quotable, said that he wasn't surprised the Cougars blocked the PAT because they work on it at least five minutes a day in practice.
He also said he isn't worried about the drop in the AP poll.
"A win is a win," he said. "Being 2-0 is a lot better than being 1-1."
Asked about playing against Kevin Craft again, Nixon said he remembered Craft having a great arm when he was on the run, but not being comfortable in the pocket.
So far, the players have received only one UCLA game to watch on DVD, the one on Labor Day against Tennessee.
Finally, Nixon predicted that Washington will turn out to be better than people think if Locker stays healthy.
"Washington is going to go on and win some games this year," he said. ------------------------------
Travis Bright said the offensive line thinks it played a good game but will still find areas it can improve on.
He acknowledged that the snaps from Dallas Reynolds to Max Hall were a little low at times, but said overall Reynolds has handled the move from left tackle to center magnificently.
He also said that Matt Reynolds, the new left tackle, has the potential to be the best Reynolds brother yet.
As far as playing UCLA for the third time in just over a year, he said he is just thankful to be facing a team of the Bruins' caliber again. He broke his leg in the Las Vegas Bowl against the Bruins, but said that means nothing now.
"We are different, and so are they," he said.
11:31 AM
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1 Comments:
Jay,
I just wanted to drop a note thanking you for the great job you are doing covering the Cougars.
Well done!
A.W.
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