were the keynote speakers. And then KS, DR, and TH held a Q&A session.

One of the questions directed at TH was about the Big 12. TH said that BYU is 1) "involved, deeply involved" in that process, and 2) they were counseled to keep doing it right; meaning, keeping things private.

KS said the team is not afraid of their schedule; they know fans and others are, but inside the locker room, they are not.

KS was asked about doing the Haka, and he's not generally in favor of it, because it's a war dance, and he thinks it's a bit disrespectful for those that have lost loved ones to actual war. Then he added that when BYU did it against Utah, it just fired Utah up.

Dave Rose talked about the process of committing both Childs and Dastrup. Rose said that a very unsuccessful recruiting recipe for them is a non-member Utah HS kid (primarily because reputation). Because of that, and because of what they had heard, Childs was not offered a schollie even though they had been watching him for several years. Then last year (earlier in the year IIRC), and after Childs had multiple offers from other schools, DR received a text from Childs asking what it would take for him to get serious consideration from BYU. Rose responded, "You just did."

The BYU coaching staff met with Childs and his mother the next day. In short, the mother told Coach Rose, on that first visit, that the last place (of those recruiting him) that she wanted her son to go was BYU. He said over the next several months, she eventually came around. One of the things she did like about BYU, even from the beginning, was that she had talked to people (whoever they were) and they all told her that Dave Rose would take good care of her son. After Childs committed, her mother started wearing a BYU sweatshirt around the house, but it took her about three weeks before she had the courage to wear it out in public.

DR also said recruiting a kid is easy; it's recruiting those around the kid that is hard.

In short, Dastrup's story is one of a young man who had always wanted to play for BYU that got caught up in all the recruiting craziness and junk out there and ended up choosing to go elsewhere, but then (paraphrasing) came to himself and de-committed from OSU and committed to BYU.

My favorite story of the night was told by Sitake about Nu'u Tafisi, our strength and conditioning coach. He said that Tafisi grew up a BYU fan, but things did not work out for him to play at BYU. He had similar positions at most recently USC and prior to that UofU. He had a reputation of being a really tough guy. When he was announced as BYU's coach, several players from both USC and UofU talked to our players and said he is going to be one tough dude, so be prepared. Sitake knew him from Utah, so he had had experience with it.

In BYU's first day of spring practice, as Tafisi was working with the players, he was calm and not yelling or getting after anyone. Ty Detmer leaned over to KS and said (paraphrasing), "I thought this guy was supposed to be tough as nails." [KS then had a quick quip about Ty only being the third best QB BYU has had, because Robbie Boscoe had won a natty]. In any even, the next day's practice/session was the same, Tafisi was active, but quite calm. Near or at the end of the work out, Sitake walks up to Tafisi and asks why he he's not been getting after them, and Tafisi responds (paraphrasing), "I haven't had to. These guys are so obedient to everything I'm asking of them, there's been no need."

Enjoyable evening.