Speaker 1: Ben Kretel, and it's time for the Cougar Beat getting
the dish from the local reporters that cover Cougar athletics.
Speaker 2: Welcome back Ruger Sports one of three nine ninety eight
point three ESPN the fan. I've been titter broadcasting from
our Vanderwelth Studios Vanderwealth dot com. Get on a free
q and a no obligation to invest q anda where
their tax more wealth advisors certify financial planners.
Speaker 1: It is time for little Cougar.
Speaker 2: Beat going to get into the minds the Here from
the voicers that have been covering the BYU Cougar football team,
basketball teams and doing profiles on them. It's going to
be brought to you by Dental Pros of Utah Dentalprosofutah
dot com. If you've been told you need a filling
a cround a root canal, all I'm asking you to
do is get a second opinion at Dental Pros of Utah.
They utilize bioble metic techniques. These are minimally invasive techniques
to rebuild your teeth layer by layers you don't have
to settle for fake teeth later on in life.
Speaker 1: Choose dental pros. Check out the Google reviews.
Speaker 2: You won't be disappointed in their products or their services.
All right, let's get out to the hotline. Welcome in
tad walch of the Desrat News Tat, How the heck
are you?
Speaker 1: Thanks for joining us.
Speaker 3: I'm doing great, Ben, How are you doing great?
Speaker 1: Man?
Speaker 2: All is well in Cougar Country for me. Man, it's
a great football season. It's becoming a great basketball season.
It's the holiday season. I got an attitude of gratitude,
feeling blessed today.
Speaker 1: Man, How that are you? How's the fan?
Speaker 3: That's awesome. It's great where our sons live in Colorado
and we're going out there for Christmas next week. So
things are well.
Speaker 2: Boom shaka laka. I'm glad all is well in your world.
Well you've been you know, Dad, you cover a number
of things. You covered news and for the Church of
Jesus Christ, Lattery Saints. I think you've filed many news
stories over the years for the on the Olympics, NBA Finals,
the Vatican. And you also cover a number of stores
coming out of BYU as it relates to athletics and sports.
And look I caught up with you at the Kilani
Stake press conference, and I thought the article you wrote
was tremendous.
Speaker 1: Mission over Money.
Speaker 2: It's entitled the inside story of Why Klonie Satake chose
b Why you over penn State. What was your thesis
here and what did you delve into in this particular
piece hat.
Speaker 3: Oh great, great, Yeah, that was a really great opportunity
to talk to Kilani, and uh, the idea was just
to show uh that while Kilani wanted was looking for
you know, uh, some some increase in pay, the real
the real thing he was that he is motivated by
his boy's mission. And so the story talks about, uh,
the importance of the school's mission and religious mission to
him and why he wanted to stay. And my favorite
quote in the whole story was when he said football's
cool when the gospel's in it.
Speaker 1: Love that. Yeah, it's uh.
Speaker 2: I feel like Shane Rees's comments, you know, via Keith Vokey,
the VP of Advancement, were quite telling. And I've talked
about this a lot. I used to call Lavelle Edwards
the thirteenth Apostle. You know, he spoke at the devotional
spoke at general conference. He's kind of this extension of
the church. He's the ambassador of b YU and Klane
in many ways. Is that too, Shane Reese, I think
stated that in many ways Colone is the face of BYU,
and that's an academic institution, a spiritual, moral, ethical institution,
as well as an athletic institution. And I thought that
was interesting.
Speaker 3: Yeah, that was I thought that was an extremely telling
set of comments from the president. You know, when he
calls Klannie someone who you couldn't ask for a better
exemplar of the christ centered values for which BAU stands,
that is that is really how church leaders see him,
how university administrators see him, and I think it's how
people see him also in the football world. You know,
he's this great ambassador who can be out. You know
that ESPN loves to show dancing in the end zone
before games for the fans, and who coaches regularly say
after games on broadcasts and in press conferences, in radio appearances,
in media availabilities leading up to games that he's someone
who's genuine and that they have deep respect for. And
I think that kind of ambassadorship is is pretty invaluable
for both the church and the university.
Speaker 1: Yeah, what what is it that you wonder.
Speaker 2: I think we've talked about this before, like you know,
the mission of the church, the mission of bu Yu,
and the mission of BYU athletics and how they all
interweave in ALIGNE give me your your your perspective on
that and what role maybe Killani's playing in those missions
to create alignment between the university and the church.
Speaker 3: Yeah, great question we have. I remember we've talked about that.
We talked about sports being the front porch of a university,
and in this case, Uh, that leads to a window
also to the church. So the church clearly wants people
to understand what its beliefs are, that it stands for
believing in Jesus Christ, believing in kindness, in peacemaking, cooperation,
and Kilane embodies all of those those values and characteristics
and they and you know by U's mission is to
mix faith and reason in every thing that is studied.
As Brigham Young he told UH Carl Carl G. Maser
when he asked him to start the school, you shouldn't
study anything without faith in it. And so to mix
those missions in the classroom would require an athletic program
that mixes those missions on the field and on the court,
and you know BYU now is known for that. I
think especially in the last few years where you had
Jake Retzlaf, a Jewish quarterback and now Bart Bachmeyer a
Catholic quarterback, and the and they say that their faith
has been enhanced while they've been able to attend classes
and play for the Cougars. And that's what Kilani says
is he wants to bring people here who have faith
and help them build on that faith even more while
they're here, whatever that faith may be.
Speaker 2: Tad Waltz des red News here on ESPN the Fan.
I remember Bronco tried to do something similar, but I
don't think he got as much much traction, you know,
and I wonder what changed. I don't know if you
ever covered Bronco men at all, but he called the
student athletes the flag bearers of the university, right, they
were the ones going out and really flag bearing, you know,
the university and has an extensor to that, maybe the
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter day Saints. He started
firesides where it was centered on discipleship.
Speaker 1: I spoke at many of them. We're sang armies of Heliman.
Speaker 2: He got a lot of criticism for from maybe the
more secular side of the media, and I don't know
how much traction really got with the board of trustees.
What do you think has changed over the years in
that regard.
Speaker 3: You know, that's such an interesting question because I kind
of raised that with Kilani a little bit and he
pushed back on me because he feels like Lavelle instigated
instituted this really faith based culture in the BA football program,
and Kilani believes it's been unabated since then. Now, Yeah,
I think the Bronco thing is very interesting. I have
interviewed him a few times, covered him a little bit,
and I find him to be a fascinating character and
I you know, I've read his book and I think
he's genuine. But there was something about some members of
the media here in Provo, and I think nationally who
who struggled with the way that he presented the messages.
I think others were fine with it. I think players
from some a lot of players embraced it. I think
a lot of UH fans did uh.
Speaker 1: You know.
Speaker 3: The firesides were incredibly well attended and UH powerful. So
it was just an interesting character study almost in the
way that he related to the media and and they
to him, and that created some of these these interesting narratives.
Some of the ways that he just praised things, I
think for some people were struggle uh uh. I don't
know that I can nail down exactly why. But with
Kilane there's something about his uh humility, the way he
presents himself. I think that seems to make people feel
at ease. Now, he can be a tough guy, but
when when needed, as could level, but he he does
have just this humility and and to have someone like
Deon Sanders talked about him as as genuine and a
close friend, to have you know, the similar feelings from
the Texas Tech coach and and others Joey McGuire and
post game, Yeah, it's really fascinating because he has that
same kind of level of respect across the coaching community
that Lavell had, uh, you know, from from fairly early
in his career, at least by the time the National
Championship had happened, and then thereafter he was in big
positions in the Coaches Association and just well loved. And
I think Kilani's clearly in that same space today.
Speaker 1: Yeah, I would totally agree with him.
Speaker 2: I think, you know, it's something that I've talked about
on the show before, and I don't know if we've
ever discussed it, but I think one thing that Lavelle
changed within the program that had temporal and spiritual benefits
nineteen seventy.
Speaker 1: Two when he took over.
Speaker 2: Up to that point, most of the coaches advised the
student athletes to not go on missions and to just
play sport. Lavelle actively forcefully encouraged go serve a mission
and look look at the temporal and spiritual blessings that
came forth from it.
Speaker 1: All I'm saying is it came to.
Speaker 2: Pass, baby, and it came to pass just a lot
of greatness. And I don't know the Gary croten era
all that well, right, I know some of the things
that occurred, some greatness and some some some down down years.
But I do think, uh, you know, Bronco did a
great job. And I do, to your point, believe that
Kilate as he just articulates the message of discipleships, he
does it in such a way that it connects with
us emotionally, mentally, spiritually in a different way than others
have tried to do it. When he talks discipleship and
in in a way and talks about the Church's Christ,
the Lattery Saints, and he bears testimony of the impact
of athletics uh on, Like you know, the university and
the surrounding people that come in contact with it. There's
so many positive fruits that come from and he just
he does a really really, really effective job of of
rallying people around that messaging.
Speaker 1: He's just unique in that way.
Speaker 3: He really is. He just has this incredible personality that
is so genuine about family. You know, when he has
his dad there with him on the sideline at all times.
I mean, you just can't get away from how important
family is to him. Talks about his wife regularly, his kids.
He's family oriented. When he talks about his assistant coaches
and the things that they have, their time commitments and
things like that. He's so so real about his faith.
I mean, his devotional that he gave at BYU in
the spring was a remarkable moment. And through this process
of whether he would stay or go, you know, having
covered that devotional and written about it, I thought I
thought he would stay because the message, the messages that
he has shared with me since I first met him
when he was a freshman in nineteen ninety three through
to that devotional now and beyond his love for this
university and that combination of faith in football here in
Probo is something that you know, it's just in his blood.
And if BYU could make it what he needed it
to be in terms of feeling uh loved and appreciated
and appropriately paid, not at the top of the scale,
but but where it's a good, reasonable place, then then
this is where he's gonna be. He just you know,
I love I love when he talks about the story
about how his dad would drive them up to the
stadium when he was a little boy and they didn't
have money even to get tickets then when they were
much cheaper, and they would sit outside the stadium and
listen to the radio and listen to the roar of
the crowd to know what was happening. And he's that
kind of a b YU fan. So it's pretty remarkable.
Speaker 1: He no, he is, He's very remarkable.
Speaker 2: Tad Walsh uh des Red News here on ESPN The Fan.
You've also recently dropped an article that that focused on LJ.
Speaker 1: Martin, Right, LJ.
Speaker 2: Martin blasting his way towards the top of the list
of BYU workhorse legends. Were you able to sit down
with LJ. What makes him so unique and singular on
and off the football field?
Speaker 3: Would you say, Okay, so this is a great Yeah,
this is a great little story. So I was set
up to talk to LJ the night of the announcement
that Klannie was staying, and the media availability was canceled
that night because of the press conference for Kilanie, and
you know, they had Chase Roberts speak at that and
Tanner Wall. But I didn't get to talk to LJ
for that story. But in that so I asked, you
want to know, I asked for some help to find
a former running back, and Curtis Brown was willing to
talk to me about what it's like to be a
running back at this level. And it was really interesting
to me because he brought this perspective that the Big
twelve is a much more bruising experience than the Mountain
West Conference was for him as a running back. And
Curtis was one of the workhorses back in the day
when he was playing, and he says he talked about
getting beat up, but he said, I'm just amazed by
what Lj's doing because he says, first of all, LJ
is much bigger and stronger and you know, a higher
level recruit and better athlete than I was. But he
but he's also taking a bigger beating because of the
level of competition be what he plays now week in
and week out. And that was really interesting to listen to.
The thing that I wanted to talk to LJ about
was what it's like to get pushed around in those
piles because again, those big bodies, that wasn't a thing
that was done as much when Curtis Brown was playing, right,
and now to have you know, nine hundred twelve hundred
and fifteen hundred pound of the people pushing you and
falling on top of you at the end of plays,
that's got to take take a toll as well.
Speaker 1: Yeah, no doubt about. LJ is a unique player, man.
Speaker 2: He's a big, big, extremely like just fleet of foot
and just great body control, running back, runs behind his
pads and has great vision and he's a great he's
a great human off the field too, like we caught
up with him yesterday on our show and just a
great human, just raised well and his story to BYU
was very unique. So Tad what else you got cooking
for us at the Desertight News. What are you going
to be working on? What are you going to be
publishing here shortly in the days to come. I know
you're going to be taking some vak, which is well deserved.
Speaker 3: Yeah, great question. So I have also done a little
bit of basketball. I wrote a big profile of AJ
debantsa a couple of weeks ago, went out and covered
the game in Boston and went back to the the academy,
the school that he went to kind of junior high
early high school year, and that really helped me tell
a story that's kind of focused through his parents a
little bit, Ace and Chelsea. So that's something that I
hope people will still want to go back and read.
And in the coming days, I've got a story coming
about what I'm going to call the AJ Effect, and
that is how how immediately after he committed to BYU,
Chris Burgess and you know the rest of the staff
there in the basketball program in the athletic department started
talking with ESPN and others about the schedule that they
would play this year and how you know, AJ affected
that schedule and allowed So you know, to me, there's
two two premises.
Speaker 1: One is.
Speaker 3: AJ allowed b Yu to schedule bigger competition, better competition,
and two, b Yu had an obligation to AJ to
do that when he decided to come here. And so
those are the things I'm going to explore.
Speaker 1: And that's love that.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I appreciate these profiles. And look, I have debates
sometimes with individuals about whether or not byo Athletics is
an ambassadorial tool for good to introduce people to the
fruits of the faith.
Speaker 1: What would you be your conclusion on that?
Speaker 2: Right when you're interacting with these not LDS players, but
then also as they go out and represent and bring
them you on university, what would you be your conclusion
or conversation about that.
Speaker 3: Yeah, that's an interesting question. So yeah, I did recently
publish a story too about BYU's ice cream diplomacy where
they hand out the ice creams to the opposing fans
at the end of the first quarter of football games,
and how that is literally one in the same program
as the food drive tailgate parties that they do at
away games and the way they try and tie into
some of the good that's being done in those areas.
And to me, that's a way that helps create an
even more clear message about what it is that that
BA football players are supposed to represent and to become
while they're at school and playing for the university, but
also then in the community in the future. And that
was one reason why it was fun to talk to
Curtis Brown, because here's a guy who's living in Fresno,
California and coaching sixth grade kids in football and working
in the pharmaceutical sales industry and is a good representative
of the things that BYU values and wants to feed
the world with. And so I think all of those
things do combine to help provide ways for the church
to show what its mission is, display it in real
lives and in real impacts, and I think it I
think people are seeing that, especially as Boy's profile is
raised in the Big twelve and in these big seasons,
that football and basketball are.
Speaker 2: Having tad best way to support you What you do,
how you do it?
Speaker 3: For all of our listeners, Yeah, come to desert at
dot com, download the app, sign up for my weekly
newsletter about called Church Beat, about the Church of Jesus
Christ and the Latter day Saints and what's happened that week.
I always have an interesting, hopefully take on something that's
been going on in the news around the church. And
I would love to see you in all those avenues.
Speaker 1: Love it, Tad. We appreciate you.
Speaker 2: Love talking with you about these topics, from sports to
spirituality and the mission of the church. I love that
I can chat with you about this not all I
like to discuss those things with me.
Speaker 1: I appreciate that you do.
Speaker 3: Hey, I sure do.
Speaker 2: Ben.
Speaker 3: I look forward to seeing you again and talking with
you again.
Speaker 1: Thanks.
Speaker 2: You have happy holidays, Mary Christ missus Joytim with your
family out there in Colorado. We'll chat with you against soon.
That's Tad Elch ladies and gentlemen. That cougar beet was
brought to you by Dental prosif Utah Dentalprosifviutah dot com.
Speaker 1: If you've been.
Speaker 2: Told you need a filling, a ground, a root canal,
all I'm asking you to do is get a second opinion.
At Dental Pros they utilize the best biometic techniques. These
areminally invasive techniques to rebuild your teeth layer by layer. See,
you don't have to settle for fake teeth later on
in life. Choose dental pros Dentalprosifutah dot Com.
Speaker 1: Today, Let's go to break, Don't go one to wear
another
Speaker 2: Faux segment coming up next, Josh for long KSL dot
Com Utah B writer, I want to discuss the new
private equity deal executed by the University of Utah it's
athletic department and the key players, the key components of
this deal that we need to know that up next,
this is Cougar Sports on one O three nine ninety
eight point three ESP