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PROVO — The BYU Football team is days away from the start of its 2014 campaign, and as the game against the University of Connecticut approaches BYU head coach Bronco Mendenhall is excited to see where this current group is headed.
Entering his 10th season as head football coach Mendenhall knows there is a clean slate, but also recognizes the expectations as well.
“A good year every year at BYU is top 25, 10 or more wins and that’s just what’s expected. Anything above that becomes a great season,” Mendenhall explained on Tuesday during the season’s first 'BYU Football with Bronco Mendenhall' radio show.
Who places those expectations on his team?
“I think this is what needs to happen at BYU and I express that to the players and I think for the most part they agree with it and even want more than that," he said.
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The season starts Friday at 5 p.m. MDT with the Huskies, who finished with a 3-9 overall record last season. The Huskies have a new head coach in former Notre Dame defensive coordinator Bob Diaco, who is hoping to re-energize the program with a win over BYU, and Mendenhall is not overlooking this American Athletic Conference opponent.
“I turn on the film and watch them play and they have Division I football players," said Mendenhall. "They’re really well coached."
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Mendenhall also addressed the importance of quality depth and how the new additions of incoming freshmen and transfers, along with the current players in the program, have given his team the needed depth his teams have sometimes lacked, especially on offense.
“We have more speed on the outside, we have more speed in the slot, we have more threats on the perimeter, we have a really physical running game on the inside, we have Taysom (Hill) to run the ball on the outside, and then when you can throw the ball for width and depth in addition to that I think we’re harder to defend,” Mendenhall said.
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One of the key areas of needed depth against UConn will come on the offense side of the ball. Starting running back Jamaal Williams will miss the opener due to team-rule violations. Junior Adam Hine will step into Williams' role. Hine, along with Algie Brown and Paul Lasike, will be the featured backs.
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Senior safety Craig Bills, the show’s player guest this week, talked about his excitement for the season and his chance to play both the kat and free-safety positions.
“I love when I play free (safety)," he said. "I can get back and see the whole field and kind of just play the quarterback and make a play at the ball,” he said. “There are times at kat that I love specific coverages where I’m very integrated in the run."
Physical play and the ability to play both the pass and the run will be needed after one of last season’s starter safeties, Daniel Sorenson, departed for what looks like a soon-to-be NFL roster spot with the Kansas City Chiefs.
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Speaking of Sorenson, Mendenhall spoke of the former captain and his current situation under former BYU assistant coach and now Kansas City head football coach Andy Reid. It appears that Sorenson is going to make the Chiefs' final roster and Mendenhall credits Sorenson’s efforts by praising his diligence to work hard both while at BYU and now with the Chiefs.
“Danny is the most respected rookies in their program,” Mendenhall said he has been told of Sorenson. “They love him because they call him the ultimate professional.”
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Staying on the defensive side of the ball, Mendenhall talked about defensive coordinator Nick Howell taking over the defense play-calling responsibilities. Mendenhall, who only relinquished his defensive play-calling duties once for a brief period of time under former defensive coach Jaime Hill, explained the timing is simply right.
“He knows our defense really, really well, he knows what my expectations are and I think it’s time and he’s ready," Mendenhall said. "Not only is it time for him, it’s time for me. We’re looking forward to watching how it plays out."
Howell has been rumored to be preparing the defense for a more aggressive blitz-style play calling under his direction, but Mendenhall was quick to point out it takes a lot of execution on downs one and two to be able to blitz as effectively as they did on third down last season: “When you blitz there is a higher likelihood there could be a touchdown so I still reserve the right to put a governor on if necessary," he said. Mitch Davis is a KSL Newsradio BYU intern
