PROVO -- After a narrow, double-overtime loss to Boston College, BYU head coach Bronco Mendenhall addressed the media about playing Utah State for the first time since 2002.
Opening Statements:
BM: "Our football program is looking forward to the game this week against Utah State. We will be renewing a rivalry and a tradition of the beehive boot, which was in effect for so many years. We've had a good week of practice and we're anxious to play our next football game."
Q: Can you breakdown Utah State's offensive problems of not yet scoring this year and a little bit of their defense?
BM: "From an offensive perspective, there is some youth in terms of their depth and quite frankly some miscues. There have been a number of dropped passes and assignment mistakes. I have seen that they are capable of making stretches but the consistency of execution has led them to where they are. Their schemes are sound and have been receiving good coaching. I think it is a matter of youth, inexperience and miscues that are contributing to a lack of point production."
Q: Can you get into the status of John Beck?
BM: "It is day to day. He didn't practice at all yesterday and probably won't today. The medical staff told me that the earliest he can go is probably tomorrow. I think it will go down to a game day decision. Each day fills in more blanks but as of right now it will probably be a game time decision."
Q: Considering the quick turnaround to Dallas next week with the conference opener what is the motivation to play John Beck?
BM: "I think everyone can improve on our football team. If he feels like he can play then I will play him. I would do the same with any player on our team. This game right now is the one we're focusing on. I would not put any risk on any of our players, even our quarterback. If he wanted to play and was capable of playing then I will play him."
Q: Did you go more out of the shotgun last week because of John's mobility?
BM: "What you saw was within the normal plan whether he was hurt or not."
Q: So with the possibility of Jason playing more will you go under the center more often or will go to the shotgun more often?
BM: "We plan on making no considerations or compromises even though there is a new center and quarterback in there. From what I've seen in practice yesterday it looks like the situation will be fine and we'll do whatever the offensive situation calls for."
Q: What are Jason's strengths and will you cater the offense around the fact that he can run the ball a little?
BM: "I'm not sure we'll cater it, maybe it will be slightly influenced around it. If you take a look at his junior college background I really don't view him as a backup, especially since he is a senior. There is no question that he has a command of the game. He's also confident and quite mobile compared to John. I believe John might have a slight edge at arm strength but Jason is difficult to rattle and I think he has excellent composure."
Q: Any changes defensively this week?
BM: "It stands about what you saw last week with little substitution in the secondary. I like the way the secondary is playing right now and they are executing well. We will still continue to substitute on the defensive line even though the volume of plays are more balanced out now than in the beginning of the season. The linebackers will remain fairly standard. At our outside linebacker positions it will be a rotation of Kelly Poppinga, David Nixon and Brian Kehl performing at a very high level and Chris Bolding being the fourth.
Q: Eddie Keele is now out for the season; can you talk about how that will effect the offense this week?
BM: "I'm not sure it will have any impact on what we do offensively, but we have a big brother program where each player writes to me once a week on behalf of another. I read those letters last night and Eddie was mentioned in double digits in those letters. Losing Eddie was a big blow to our football team. Not necessarily as an offensive lineman but as a senior and one that is well liked and cared about by this football team. Will it change what plays we run on offense, probably not but we'll have to regroup in support of a guy who can't play this week."
Q: Will Jake Kuresa be the center this week?
BM: "Yes he will be the center for this week. It looks like David Oswald will be the right tackle this week. Ray Feinga and Travis Bright being the guards and Dallas Reynolds being the left tackle."
Q: Fui had a penalty on a procedure, how is his progress been in trying to get a balanced running attack?
BM: "I think it is balancing out and if you look at the Tulsa game that was a good gauge for it and how that is coming along. I don't know right off hand how many touches there were between Curtis and Fui in the Boston College game but I see it moving closer to equity since the opener with Arizona. The one miscue he had last week in the backfield I think is the only one we've had all year so it hasn't been a concern that I feel like I need to address. Fui's blocking is becoming more sound and his contribution on special teams has been big and that is something that you can always be pleased about."
Q: Can you talk about the rivalry this weekend and what it means to the state?
BM: "I can't expound much on the rivalry because I haven't been apart of it yet. When you have a state with three different Division IA programs in all different geographical regions it creates a nice spotlight for each area because they are competing area against area. There is a natural interest in the state. For the high school players in the state, it is a good comparison for the programs and where they are. In terms of speaking to the rivalry more specifically, I will be able to do that once I have experienced it."
Q: Talk about the development of Kelly Poppinga since his transfer from Utah State?
BM: "I am more than satisfied. Last year, he came here as a walk-on and I asked him to lead our scout team on defense. He was in charge of leading them and getting them lined up and I saw how good of a natural leader he is. He is also the captain for the kickoff team this year and was elected to that by his peers before he even played a game for us. His play and enthusiasm on the scout team earned him that spot. He's played each week at a higher level than the week before. I believe he is having a fantastic experience in a spiritual aspect here at BYU and I believe that is one reason why he made the transfer here to BYU so he could have that aspect stronger in his life."
Q: What problems did you see at Boston College on special teams and what can you do to avoid those problems in the future?
BM: "Overall, I thought we outplayed them on special teams. I think our only glaring weakness was our inability to put a ball down and kick it through the uprights on the repeated attempts we had. Boston College did have a long kickoff return, which I was a little frustrated with. Overall, I was happy with our kickoff coverage especially seeing what they did to Clemson a week earlier. I thought our special teams played collectively better than Boston College. The problem was not being able to convert the field goals at the end in pressure situations to win. We can't duplicate that type of pressure in practice. We can just spend more time working on it in practice while trying to maintain the confidence of the kicker, snapper and holder. That trio will be responsible for winning or losing games in the future so I like to build confidence for the future."
Q: Your defense has produced six turnovers in the three games and scored 10 points. What are your expectations about scoring when you get those takeaways?
BM: "The biggest frustration I had in the Boston College game were opportunities that we didn't capitalize on. More than anything else, our inability to capitalize on short fields is what determined the outcome of that game. Our expectation is to score at least a field goal on a short field. Our offensive staff and players know these expectations and I think will do a better job of that in the future. I was encouraged by the takeaways but there were a few other instances that we could of got more. I was encouraged by the number of opportunities we had overall. Our main focus this week has been on capitalizing on those chances."
Q: Talk about some of the changes on the offensive line and how they will need to work as a unit together.
BM: "When I showed up at work on Monday a little after 5, coach Grimes--our offensive line coach--was already here. That reflects the urgency we feel. When you move from guard to center or tackle to guard, it is an issue that needs to be addressed. We have some real work to do to get the unit together as whole."
Q: Are there new standards in place this week due to the amount of penalties?
BM: "I turned to each position coach. I had a decision to make about whether I should make an overall program policy with a universal punishment based on committing a penalty or I can hold the coaches more accountable. I have chosen to do the latter. Each position coach is responsible for their unit to play at the highest level. Each coach is responsible to answer to me."