Speaker 1: It's time to celebrate the previous team sport known to me,
where modern day gladiators collide for all.
Speaker 2: The glory on the grid.
Speaker 3: I let's talk some.
Speaker 4: College football on Cougar Sports with Ben Credit.
Speaker 3: Welcome back your Sports. One three nine ninety eight point three.
Speaker 5: Is being the fantom apital broadcasting from our bandwil Studios
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Speaker 3: It's time to talk to college football, BYU Football and more.
Speaker 5: All the news and notes coming out of the BYU
football and college football ranks. It's going to be brought
to you by Utah Protective Films Utapprotective Films dot com.
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vehicle protected. Eight oh one, eight hundred nine seven sixty seven.
That's eight one, eight hundred nine seven sixty seven. That's
Utah Protector films dot Com. Let's welcome in the owner
operator of said institution, former BA wide receiver. We got
Jared Bledshoe on the line in studio. What's up, Jared?
How are you good?
Speaker 6: Ben?
Speaker 2: Thank you for having me.
Speaker 3: Great to have you. I'm just kind of I'm just
gonna adjust your mic there.
Speaker 2: Thank you.
Speaker 3: So let's start off with this real quick.
Speaker 5: We were discussing earlier in the show who the best
offense coordinator is in BYU football history. I've been putting
it out to like coaches, former coaches, former players, media members, uh,
individuals that are just huge BYU fans as well, try
to get and there hasn't been a general consensus yet.
I get a lot of people that say, like Doug Skolville,
Norm Chow, you know, those kind of are probably the
two lead dogs right now in the fight. But I
don't know if there's a general consensus.
Speaker 4: Yeah, I I we were kind of chatting a little
bit before. I think Norm Chow is who I look
at until I grew up with as well. I think
I think that a lot of us kind of are
are going to be a little more prone to to
who we grew up watching and and you know Kolani
and a Rod both played for Norm. You know, I
one of the things that I was mentioning that I
felt like that that Norm Chow brought to the table
that was really intriguing is that he was able to
build an offense based on personnel.
Speaker 2: And when I say that.
Speaker 4: I mean we you could have three five ft ten
and seventy five pound wide receivers that round the four six,
four seven forty but good routes, and he could build
an offense that could be successful around the strengths of
the guys that he had.
Speaker 2: And I saw him do it with Ronnie Jenkins.
Speaker 4: You know, he was able to use Ronnie and his
strengths where he may not have done that before. You know,
I don't think we ever had the best athletes. I
think we had really good coaching and I think that's
what Norm chowd did a really good job at and
in fact, talking more than RM chow went when after
he left BYU at deen See State and then to
USC so I had, you know, having played for coach
Chow and and uh in the summer was when I
was back in California, I would throw with Carson Palmer.
Speaker 2: So Carson was going to be a senior at Santa Margarita.
Speaker 4: High School, and uh so we'd get to go and
throw and and that dude was throwing fifty sixty yard
bombs on a line. And when I said that means
that means I had to jump, stretch my hands out
and pull the ball out of the air and pull
it down.
Speaker 2: I couldn't even believe it. Dude, I was. I would
go up to my coaches and said, how do I
play for this guy? You know? Yeah, I want to
catch his balls.
Speaker 4: So when he went, when Chow was heading to SC
and Carson Palmer was there and the whole group that
they had there, it was like I knew right away,
And in fact I was I remember telling people down
in Orange County, like Norm Chow is going to change
USC offense simply because they had. Now he's got the
athletes he never had at BYU. Now he's got the
four to three, four to two forty guys, the side
to side speed that is just unreal, and a quarterback
that has an arm unlike anything I'd ever thrown with.
I threw a Steve Young before, Carson Palmer had an
armed like so just knowing what child could bring the
table in the amount of athletic ability he now had
within his grasp.
Speaker 2: I knew they were going to be successful.
Speaker 5: He came in with Pete Carroll. So Pete Carroll's the
guy that hired him. The first season and O one,
they went six and six. The next year they went
eleven and two with a win in the Orange Bowl.
Then they went twelve and one with a Rose Bowl
win in two thousand and three, and they're listed is
you know national champions that that season? And then two
thousand and four thirteen and oh were they were thirteen
and oh that was the national championship season as well, so.
Speaker 4: You know another and then yeah, another interesting point about
coach Charlis is uh I didn't feel like when he
became a head coach. I thought that was a mistake.
I didn't feel like he he brought to the table,
at least for me. I mean, maybe Kevin Frederick or
a couple of the other guys that used to hang
out in coach Chile's office, Yeah, feel a little bit different,
but the majority of us didn't feel like. Well, I'll
speak for myself. I didn't feel like when he became
a head coach. That was going to be a good
role for him because being on the back end and
the coordinator side of it, he was not a label
Edwards or a Kolonie Sataki. He had a whole different
kind of vibe. So and personabout uh, I'll give it
to him. And I ran into a player at SC
when when he was there, and I was like, oh man,
how's coachwi? You know, I was real curious about how
he goes. Oh man, we hang out in his office
every day. It's like he's the best. I was like,
what the hell is this.
Speaker 2: You ask?
Speaker 4: I mean almost any player that well other than Ken
Frederick and Ronnie Jacobs babies. I love you guys, but man,
you didn't really want to go hang out in coach
Chow's office. You didn't want to get called in. You
didn't so to hear that the whole. So I think
as he he developed after BYU was a good.
Speaker 3: Change for him to you let your hair down on
two well.
Speaker 4: And so so for me to compare, like Aron, right,
if we're gonna continue in down that, I think they're
they're two of the best for different reasons. A Rod's
definitely had a more difficult schedule to face. Uh, he's
done some things that are incredible.
Speaker 2: As he's a quarterbacks coach too. Right, So Norm Chow
had Robbie Bosco.
Speaker 4: He was our quarterback coach when I was a b YU,
So more roles maybe for Aaron. I mean, coach Chaw
worked with us as receivers quite a bit more. But yeah,
a Rod's developing guys. So it would be interesting to
see what what if a Rod ever was to go
to another job and see if he elevates, you know,
because I felt like Coach Chow elevated each time he
moved up until he became a head coach, and then
it was maybe I should stay.
Speaker 5: You almost wonder you know what would have happened in
b YU football history had Norm become the head coach
of b YU in his play calling prime, right, like
if Lavelle, you know, if you would have said, hey,
you know what I mean, like, yeah, and you're going
to be a head coach.
Speaker 2: No, I.
Speaker 3: Know he was never gonna be, but like what would
it have been like? Yeah, what it would have been like?
Because he left? Right? He left because he wasn't going
to be the head coach.
Speaker 2: I don't know, I couldn't.
Speaker 4: I couldn't see him standing up in front of the
team and given us a heartfelt like congratulatory speech or
or or just ended up encouraging us from the bottom
of his heart. It's that's I just couldn't.
Speaker 3: It wasn't.
Speaker 2: No, no, it's different. Just that.
Speaker 4: That's why I didn't feel like he was going to
be a great head coach when he became that, you know,
and should have put a couchy bed on that one.
Speaker 2: But uh, it's hard to.
Speaker 1: Win it, sure, sure, sure, But in the end, I
felt like his skill as a coordinator was one hundred
percent on point and and that's why I would put
him as my at this point, all time greatest.
Speaker 4: With Aaron Roddick, I would put as a close second,
but still with more to prove.
Speaker 2: You know.
Speaker 5: Okay, let's transition biggest concern and what's your most optimistic
about heading out to Orlando to face the Georgia Tech
Yellow Jackets right now?
Speaker 2: So I've been watching some film Georgia Tech. That really good.
Speaker 3: It's really good.
Speaker 4: So you watch the highlights in some of the parts
of the game against Georgia right and what I like
to do is can get Georgia was fourth in the nation.
We played the fifth in the nation, Texas Tech team.
Who's more competitive? We weren't. Georgia Tech was definitely more competitive.
It came down to a helm Mary at the very
end of the game. They had opportunities to win that game.
We did not have opportunities to win it. Once we
got past that three minutes in the third quarter, it
was gone. So much more competitive game, and so it's
going to be a real test for our defense for
a coach, for Jay and for the defensive staff to
put together a game plan to stop these guys.
Speaker 2: They're very good. But then you go back and you
watch their game against Pitt.
Speaker 4: And you're like, who tail the two teams and two
games back to back, right? I mean they were down
twenty eight zero in the first half, you know. Now
they came back twenty twenty fourteen I believe at halftime
and ended up losing that game. But they did not
look so they played up to the hype for the
Georgia game. Now it was a granted we got a
rivalry game, you know, so I would expect the same
thing out of us if we were against Utah in
a similar circumstance.
Speaker 2: But you know, I think that they're very good, and.
Speaker 4: Their ranking is because of the end of the season,
not because of how they started. The only other comparable game,
right is Colorado, and both of us played them in
the very beginning of the yearn I think that it
was still a feeling out process for both teams to
get to know their uh what what their strengths.
Speaker 2: Were and whatnot.
Speaker 4: And and so they beat they beat Colorado by seven, right,
and uh but yeah, I think that we're both completely
different teams than when we both played Colorado.
Speaker 2: So it's gonna be a fun game, but it's it's
a statement game again. You know.
Speaker 4: Last year it was against Colorado, we had that same
feeling like we we need to come out and and
not just win, but really put these guys away. And
and they did that, and that that springboarded what I
feel like this the season. It started right after the
end of that game. And so my expectations we do
the same thing and.
Speaker 2: And maybe we pull in that linebacker out of Texas jumping.
Speaker 4: Jack Kelly's spot. Yeah, I mean, there's so there's a
lot a lot of opportunity and and but let's let's
see what we can do, and we we got to
play hard and and it's not going to be it's.
Speaker 2: It's not gonna be an easy game by any means.
Speaker 4: It sounds like Georgia Tech is all in and everybody's
playing and so far we as far as I've heard
by us as well, this.
Speaker 3: Is a good Georgia Tech team, Like there's no doubt
about it.
Speaker 5: And so last it's it's akin to what you experienced
last year in the alim with with Colorado and getting
a win versus a top twenty five team.
Speaker 3: And maybe it's a little bit even last year. Maybe
is a little bit more.
Speaker 5: Powerful because of Shador and Travis and yeah, yeah, but
but it's still a quick I think there's some equivalent
set there.
Speaker 3: So how does that play?
Speaker 5: I think that win, I think that win really mattered
to Cougarnation because, b what, you had lost two games
at the end of the season, and so if you
lost to call out on the Alimble Bowl, then that
b way you fans would have been a little bit disheartened,
disillusion with the season even though you won. Even though
you won games have a quadrupling of people calling yea, yeah, yeah,
I mean the whole no doubt.
Speaker 2: Yeah, But but I think that we're in a great spot.
Speaker 5: With how how impactful is that then at the end
of how for all these Bowl games right too, like
the fan donor well being of the future, right like
going into the offseason, even that even the team as
a whole, their well being, their mindset, you know, their motivation.
Speaker 4: I think the top twenty five Bowl games mean something.
I think that the fan bases see it as a
big game and opportunity. Ye watch the Boise State Okay,
what were they like eight thousand fans there?
Speaker 2: I mean it was almost embarrassed.
Speaker 4: I felt bad for the players that they're put in
that situation, the big, beautiful stadium and no fans, you know.
Speaker 2: So I guess that's the end of that Bowl anyways
this year.
Speaker 4: But uh, I think for the teams that are the
top twenty five games, they're competitive games. You have two
teams that feel like they probably should have had a
better year, even though they both had really good seasons.
They feel like they should have, you know, surpassed one
more step and and so I think it'll be fun.
Speaker 2: It'll be a good game for BYU to to come out.
Speaker 4: And and show, hey, we can still dominate, and I
expect him to go out and dominate. This needs to
be another statement going into the off season where these
these guys can come out and work hard, uh and
get ready for next year. But I think it's gonna
be a great showcase for the seniors and I'm as
happy they all get an opportunity to play one more game.
Speaker 3: Opt outs? Do you think there's gonna be opt outs?
Speaker 5: Where do you think? Where do you you predict opt outs?
L J was a little bit coy with us. Wasn't
over to the declarative about playing in the game.
Speaker 4: Well, you know, if you're not declaring for the draft,
it's a mistake not to play, in my opinion, right
if you're declaring for the draft, and you know that
now without without putting everything out there, I don't think
decisions are made right now. I think they typically are
made in January and going into February, and you go
into your your pro days and you really see.
Speaker 2: How you show out and and see.
Speaker 4: Who's had interest to you, where you think you might
go in the mock draft, and and so sitting out
right now doesn't feel right to me. For players that
are juniors that are questionable and guess what, what better
opportunity if you are going to go out.
Speaker 2: To go have a statement game right now?
Speaker 4: Because because if you're a junior, you're not playing the
Senior Bowl and you're not playing in any of.
Speaker 2: Those extracurricular deals. So this is it.
Speaker 4: You know, you have an opportunity to go in and
put a statement on a good team, go rush for
one hundred and forty yards, you know, really really put
your stock up in the NFL.
Speaker 2: That's you're planning. But if you're planning on coming back,
you should be playing on hundred percent.
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Speaker 4: This was just you know, when you said that, I
was thinking music and I was starting to rack my
favorite vehicle.
Speaker 2: Yeah, you know it's crazy.
Speaker 4: Is I'm not really a car guy, you just you know,
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Speaker 5: Man Jared Bledsoe, former b AU wide receiver, talking ball
with us today here on your Utah ESPN Radio.
Speaker 3: Never one last thing for it to let you go.
Speaker 5: Caleb Etn just uh signed with the Minnesota Vikings. Vikings
have signed tackle kayleb et In to the practice squad.
Shout out to Cale. I think they wanted to get
Caleb back this season, right. I think with that Juco
deal there's last Obviously Hinkley was a part of that.
I mean, how much better is b YU with Darius
with Caleb.
Speaker 2: But pretty with Nkley. It's a whole team. It's a
whole other thing. We're in the playoffs, right, We're in
the playoffs. In the playoffs.
Speaker 4: Yeah, you know, but but yeah, real quick, I shout out.
I know that Coachill says, what's gone They're gone back. Hey,
Kailan Marion, I hope he has a blast out game
this weekend.
Speaker 2: I love Kielan.
Speaker 4: I think he's he's really trying hard to really just
be the be a good man and work really hard.
Speaker 2: And Jake retts Off, I'm super excited.
Speaker 3: For what he's doing PROD.
Speaker 4: Yeah, what a difficult situation to get put in and
and then essentially have to be forced to have to
make a change, you know, And and happy for him.
Not happy that they're in and we're not, but uh that's.
Speaker 2: The way it's drawn up. And so they get that shot.
Speaker 4: And I hope they have a competitive football game this weekend,
and I hope they both win.
Speaker 3: Yeah, I do too.
Speaker 5: Shout out to Kaelin Mary playing for Miami as well
as Jake Redsloff playing for Tulane. Hopefully that they can continue,
they can survive in advance in this college football playoff.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I'm excited to watch.
Speaker 4: I'm excited for the weekend and and look forward to
to the next week's game.
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Let's take a brief time out, We'll be back. Don't
go anywhere I want to get to. This is Cougar
Sports on one of three nine ninety eight point three
e SPN.
Speaker 3: The fis is Cougar Sports with Ben kretel At.
Speaker 1: It's time for the Cougar Beat getting the dish from
the local reporters that cover Cougar athletics.
Speaker 5: Welcome back Cougar Sports one of three nine not euve
point three ESBN the fan. I'm big crital broadcasting from
our banter Roll Studios, betaworld dot com. Get on that
free Q and A no obligation to invest Q and
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Nobody does it better than band or wealth. At is
time for a little Cougar beat. Love talking with the
insiders covering these teams.
Speaker 3: On the daily, on the weekly, all day, every day.
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That's ATA one three five five fifty five fifty. All right,
let's get out to the hot line. Welcome in, Cougar
sports insider, legendary beat rider and reporter. Let's welcome in
Dick Harmon at the Desert News. Dick, how are you living, buddy?
Speaker 6: I'm doing good. How you doing, Ben?
Speaker 5: I'm doing great, man. Great to hear from you, Great
to chat with you. Number one, Give us updates. How's
everything going. What have you been writing? About on the
Deseret News website.
Speaker 6: Do good. Today's my birthday, So I slipped you in
here Ben, right. You know I been going like.
Speaker 3: Happy day, so you're here. I love it.
Speaker 2: Man.
Speaker 3: What are you gonna do for your birthday?
Speaker 2: Tonight?
Speaker 6: Watch the basketball game? My wise got to release society presidents.
I mean, so I am watching the game.
Speaker 3: Well you get the happy birthday to Dick Harmon. You're
you're fifty nine years old.
Speaker 6: Congratulations twenty twenty eight. Thank you. Yeah, I'm twenty twenty eight.
Speaker 3: Congratulations.
Speaker 2: Man.
Speaker 5: You look you don't look a day older than twenty five.
I tell you all the time, like I feel like.
I mean, mentally i'm twenty five. My body is now
forty three, but mentally I'm still twenty five year old Ben,
still as immature as ever.
Speaker 6: Yeah, it's a good time. I mean, being alive is good,
Being upright is good.
Speaker 3: Right, Yep, no doubt about it, one hundred percent.
Speaker 2: Man.
Speaker 5: Well, hopefully you get to do something fun maybe on
the weekend.
Speaker 3: What's your favorite place to eat? Do you have a
favorite like restaurant or thing?
Speaker 5: Yeah, I know, you'll have the golf, Like all you
want to do is golf all day?
Speaker 3: And it's not.
Speaker 5: I guess is it still warming up the golf right now?
How many courses are open right now in Utah County?
Speaker 6: Yeah, I think there are several that are open. I
think Kemp and August is open. I think Sleepy Ridge
is open. It's going to be rainy the rest of
the week. But the boy, we've had great weather before this.
It's been a good December. It's one of the warmest
I can remember. But you know, it's you know, the
birthday stuff is a week long stuff in our family,
so we we don't the day is the day, but everything,
you know, because of schedules, we just we just celebrate
a week. So it'll be fun.
Speaker 5: Love it, Dickvard, Ladies and gentlemen, Well, you're gonna be
watching this BYU Pacific game. Name a time in which
football and basketball were better than they are this day
and age. We're back to the glory days of when
you've probably started covering the Coons back in the eighties.
Speaker 6: Yeah, I think probably the era of the Danny Ainge
era in football. They were winning conference championships in the
WHAC back then and going to bowl games and winning
and you know, it's probably comparable with that, but those
teams were not both ranked in the top ten, which
happened this season. So no, this is a unique time
in BYU sports history where you can shift from being
at number eleven, a number ten, a number twelve, as
high as number seven ranked football team, and then just
jump right into a basketball season where you're considered going
to the top ten teams in the country, maybe maybe
probably one of the top seven. When things all gets
ironed out and you look at the comparative things, but
the net ranking and the other thing. So yeah, there's
there's no I can't remember a time like this.
Speaker 5: Crazy times. You got to you gotta savor these moments.
And uh BYU is preparing for a Pop Tarts Bowl,
going to be taking on the number twenty two team
in the country. Georgia Tech got another opportunity to win
a bowl game.
Speaker 3: You mentioned it winning bowl games.
Speaker 5: For BA fans, I think it matters, matters more than
some people think. Look, Notre Dame doesn't care about bowl games,
not unless it's a college football playoff.
Speaker 3: They'll quit.
Speaker 5: But for BA fans, bowl games matter. Why use that
The way that BA finishes matters. I think when the
dust settles on this season.
Speaker 6: I think you're right, and I think what's in messing
about this season is BA you did make it at
the conference championship game and a lot of people laid
down the coin and they went to that that game
and they spent the you know, thousands of dollars, and
it's going to be really interesting to see how some
of those same fans, if not others, you know, do
the same investment and go out to Orlando and support
this football team. What we is that this generally happens
with Boe fans. They do travel well. The people in
the local areas that b Oe planes, they come out
from multi state areas and they show up and there'll
be interesting to see how may tickets for bo yourself
for this game.
Speaker 5: Yeah, I think it'll be a good showing from Kugarnation
out there in Orlando.
Speaker 3: Are you heading out to the game. You're gonna be flying.
Speaker 5: Out and taking part in the Disney, the Mouse and
the Universal Studios, et cetera.
Speaker 6: No, J Drew is gonna go cover that for us.
He's gonna leave a little bit later than normal to
cover that. But Bowl trips have always been a part
of what I've done over my career, and I've taken
my family with me and usually gone a couple of
days early and spent that. But no, I've got a
daughter coming in from Houston. She just underwent surgery and
she's coming in on Saturday, and so we planned a
big Christmas thing and I can do my thing remotely.
Ever since COVID, it's been an option. So I'll do that.
Speaker 5: So, b Yu, I believe is below five hundre all
time in Bowl games.
Speaker 3: What do you make of that? Why is it that? BYU?
Speaker 5: I mean, look, they win eight games of seasons since
nineteen seventy two. They're well above the five hundred bar
collectively between Lavelle and Gary Croton, Bronco Kilane. Why is
it that we're sitting below five hundred in these Bowl games?
Speaker 6: I think it's two things. Back in the old days,
when boy played in Bowl games, Lavelle had a philosophy.
He looked at it like it was a reward for
the team and not necessarily something that they had to do.
There was an emphasis on winning, but you know, it
wasn't the same thing that I think you see Kline
doing right now with his staff. That's one thing. The
other thing is I'll take you back to nineteen ninety
nineteen eighty nine. I remember Ty Depmer throwing passes to
his receivers in the Smithfield House on the gym floor
in sneakers, and that's how they prepared for a bowl.
They didn't have any endoor practice facility. They either went
outside where they had to get the plows and they
get the grass free where they could do that, or
they went inside the smithfield House in that one annex
area and practice or else. It was one of the
dumbest things I've ever seen for a major college football
program to be able to watch this team in a
very limited area, try to run plays and prepare. That's
how they prepared for bowl games back in the yearly
seventies or late seventies, nine, eighties and nineties. It was
ridiculous that a practice facility I think was made in
the early two thousands. I think Gary Crouton was the
first to enjoy that. But yeah, I mean it was
a whole new era back there. Prepared for a bowl
game and most of your preparation had to take place
in the three or four days, you know, on site
in San Diego for the Holiday Bowl, where you actually
had warm weather, so that I think that had a
hard to do with it.
Speaker 2: Ben, Yeah, I.
Speaker 5: Think they see your perspective on this is critical, right
because there's a lot to take in as it relates
to the bowl record. Eighteen twenty two and one, I
believe is the official record, so just below five hundred,
and I believe this may be the I want to say,
this is the third time BYU has gone to Orlando
in their bowl game history. They went out to Orlando,
Florida for the Tangerine Bowl in nineteen seventy six. I
don't remember that game, but they played I think they
played Oklahoma.
Speaker 3: It was an Oklahoma State in the Tangerine Bowl.
Speaker 2: It was yes, yep.
Speaker 5: And then they played in Orlando and the Sisters Bowl Ohio.
Speaker 6: State, Ohio State, Ohio State.
Speaker 2: Yeah, yep.
Speaker 5: So this was their third time heading out to Orlando.
For you get a top twenty five fo this is good.
This is kind of a can you mentioned a few
things there about why by US bowlow five hundred? You
typically were going to get some really really good football
teams in these bowl games.
Speaker 6: Oh, don't know that about it. And you know you
play Ohio State in the bowl game that's you know,
I think I think it was Robbie Bosco that played
in that game. They had somebody I'm trying to remember
who it was who had a pennacidies. I think it
may have been Roger Gurley on the running back or somebody.
But they had a couple of things that were really
weird that happened, and you know, be always very competitive
in that game. But going to Orlando was a big deal.
I mean, that is a great city. It's a great
area to go and play football at the practice and
for fans to go. And I mean we're talking about
Disney World, We're talking about Tiger Woods golf course that
he has down there, and Laura is always good. It's
a great venue.
Speaker 3: Love that.
Speaker 5: So what what do you make of this BYU football
team this year?
Speaker 3: Uh, they're not elite, but they're a great team.
Speaker 5: Where do you think this team is going to rank
amongst the best teams in BYU football history?
Speaker 6: Well, I think because of the schedule. I mean, look
at the teams that they played as a power for
the conference team and East team, Carolina was a very
good team. They had a very difficult schedule. They had
to think the thirtieth ranked to straight the schedule in
the country, and it was a hard I don't think
any of the best teams that b why you played
had to schedule this difficult that was ranked so high.
To go back to ninety six, that team with Chad
Lewis and the Tulami and Steve Sarkisian, they went on
the road to Washington and lost that game early in
the season. Then they never lost again. So that's probably
one of the better teams that you could say you
could hang your hand on. But this team had eleven
wins with the schedule that they had, I think it
has to go down as one of the best teams
in history. And it wasn't a flashy team. It was
a hard hat, lunch pail, take it to the game,
work it out, grind it out. Good offensive line, a
decent defensive front, seven, great linebackers, some of the best
the corners that Boa has ever had. I think. As
far as man coverage, no think I think this team
had it all. When you have the leading rusher in
the Big twelve, the number six rusher in the country
on your team and you're able to get him the
ball and get him in positions where he's able to
just grind out things and wear people down. It's been
a different kind of a BYU team from the ones
that we remember when they were throwing the ball forty
forty five times. But because of Bear Bachmeyer and his development,
I think it's been handled brilliantly by the coaching staff
and Aaron Roderick and the things that they've been able
to do. It's been remarkable because you know, back in
June when all the stuff went down with Rattle, if
you're thinking, okay, kind of thought this team would be
back to winning ten or eleven games, but no way now.
But then they did it, and I think that's remarkable.
Speaker 5: Dick Harmon, legendary b Rider and BYU reporter here on
your Utah ESPN radio net work and just talking some
Cougar football here with him. A couple of things I
want to get into as well with you, Dick, is
is as we look at you mentioned a couple of
things that we've discussed today that reminded me of a
discussion that we had earlier in the show. The offense
with the true freshman quarterback was tremendous. You got to
give a lot of credit to Barry, You got to
give a lot of credit to Aaron Roders. I don't
think many fans give it. I think they're coming around.
I think they're beginning to prospect a Ron as a
play caller. They look at him coming in in twenty
eighteen as the passing game coordinator, taking over some I mean,
I've been told that, and I don't know if you've
been told this as well, but I was told that
he took over primary play calling duties in twenty nineteen
versus Boise State. I don't know if you can confirm
or deny that. If you've heard the same, similar and
essentially right, that's true, right, yes, yeah, okay, so that's true.
Twenty twenty then was his season as the primary play
car That was a great offensive season. Twenty twenty one
was a great offensive season, twenty twenty two a little
bit of a dip there, and then in two thousand
twenty three not a good showing, right, but the final
two games were good. Obviously, the last two seasons were
fantastic offensively, in my opinion, really good. And so we
were discussing who the best offensive coordinators are in BYU football,
His you'or the best offensive coordinator in BAU football history
is where.
Speaker 3: Would you lean?
Speaker 5: Are you the Doug Scolville guy, the one that laid
the architecture down for everybody else to follow.
Speaker 3: Are you a Norm Chow guy.
Speaker 5: Are you a Gary Croton guy and he's a good
play card.
Speaker 3: Are you a Robert and I guy? Are you a
an Aaron Rodgers guy?
Speaker 5: Where do you think if we pulled the fans collectively,
what type of of poll would we see at the
end of it?
Speaker 3: Who would win?
Speaker 6: That's a good question. I mean a lot of people
were not around when Doug Sculville and they don't understand
what he did and transforming at the passing game at
y U and back then you didn't have the influence
of NFL defensive coordinators in the game. And he completely
excuse me, he completely took the college scene by storm
and vid the way that he would run his offense
and lager the receivings and the targets, and college football
was not ready for that. And so you got to
give him credit for bringing that in and the way
that he developed quarterbacks back in the day. And you
just named the ones that went down the line with
Giffer Nielsen then Jim McMahon and Mark Wilson. I mean,
this was the heyday of VAU quarterbacks been. I remember
I remember back in the day when when Mark Wilson
played at San Diego, and I think in four or
five first passes he threw three touchdown passes and Rupa
Singa Parsia, the former Notary Gate game coach, was on
the call and he was in I never seen anything
like this. So that's the day back and there. And
then you had Norm Chow, who was an akolade it is.
I think Norm Chow is a very underappreciated coach for
the things that he did and developing receivers. He started
as a receiver coach a by U and uh and
then he was the offensive coordinator. But no, he was
brilliant in the way that he could do things. And
I think you got to credit the Lance Reynolds for
coming along and helping him in a lot of ways
behind the scenes. But no, Norm Chow should be right
up there with Scoville. I think Scoville's won norm Chow's two.
I would put the running back acumen that Robert and
I have brought in. He had a couple of the
leading rushers and by U history because of the design
that he had and the attitude that he had. But
right now, in this era of independence and and and
uh and uh and the power of Power four and
the Big twelve, you got to give Aaron Rodericks some credit.
This season has been remarkable what he's been able to do.
You look back at every game they started slow, so
times offensively, but he's found a way to grind, grind
it out. And this team has been remarkable in the
way it's been able to focus on the task at hand,
trust one another, and believe in themselves to come back
from fourteen points down. I think it's three times this
year that they did that early in games. And it's
just been one of the better seasons I've seen. And
I think Aaron Roddick deserves all the credit in the world.
Speaker 5: Love that breakdown, Dick harmon, Ladies and gentlemen. A couple
last things before we let you go. You're gonna be
watching the BYU men's basketball game tonight, And obviously this
team is amazing, monumental. You know we're gonna get aj
for one season, though, right are we ever going to
have Danny Ainge A Jimmer for debt type player come
through a Kresmirchosich that goes for you know, three four
years and then leaves after becoming a legend. Are we
going to have any of those anymore? Do you think
Richie Saunders? Maybe maybe it's the Richie rich She's a
legend and he's going to become a legend. Are we
going to continue to have that in this new era?
Speaker 6: I don't think so. I think because of the way.
I mean, if you're going to get a top twenty
five player and he's going to be that good, he's
won and done, you might get a second year out
of him, but you know, depending on where he's projected
in the draft, because it might be more financially well
off to come back for a second year with nil
and to take advantage of that rather than to be
a free agent or not be drafted. So that could
happen with a player. But I think the key to
that story is that Bo He's going to be in
the game with some top notch players AJ paving the way.
Now you get a guy like Rob Right. I mean,
these two guys with Richie, you're probably the best trio
that I've ever seen, and I've been covering BAU basketball first,
well just washing it back in the mid sixties, so
professionally since seventy eight that I've never seen a trio
like this. The closest you could get was probably Danny
Ainge and Fred Roberts and Steve Trumbull and and Greg Kite.
That group the guys that played in the NBA. That
that was a good team of talent. But this is
a remarkable talent in a lot of ways that boy's
never had. Have you Can you ever imagine a guard
like Robert Wright doing what he's doing. The defenses you
can't guard him. Now, he's taken some shots, he forces
some stuff, he gets down there and gets caught. You've
never seen a dribbler that can do what he did
on the BAU uniform.
Speaker 5: Yeah, that's a great question. Who's the I need you
to write this article. Who's the best big three in
b y U basketball history?
Speaker 6: Yeah, that's that's that's a very good question. And then
you might have to go back to Jimmer Fordett, Jimmer
Furdett and Emery and let's see the fascinda that got suspended.
What's his name, Brandon Davies. And then you had a
team there that probably was one of the best chemistry
teams that bo He's ever had. I mean the way
those pieces fit, the role plane that was done, the
unselfishness of those players to act with you. That to
one of the greatest shooters that ever put on a
bo uniform. That was That was the lead.
Speaker 3: I lose you there, Dick. You're still there?
Speaker 5: No, No, okay, sorry, I thought sorry, I thought I
lost you there for a second.
Speaker 3: Yeah.
Speaker 5: The big three obviously Rob right the third and of Richie,
Saunders and AJ It'll be intriguing to see how they
how they continue to win their way through their schedule. Well,
Dick can join the game to night. Happy birthday. We
love and appreciate you as always. Appreciate talking some ball
with you, talking sports, talking Cougar sports. Nobody does it
better than you, Dick, your legend. Appreciate you joining us today.
Speaker 6: Hey, thanks Ben, you guys do a great job. Keep
up the good work and hope to see you around.
I'll see you down at bull practice probably, thank you.
Speaker 3: Yeah, yeah, we'll see you down there. Appreciate you, Dick.
Speaker 5: Harmon, Ladies and gentlemen, That segment uh brought to you
by the road Home guys, the road home dot Org, ESPN,
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We'll call that a show. Shout out to everyone that
joined us. Dick Harmon, Jared Bledshoe, Jonathan Tabinari, Jeff Fuller.
We had some great sound bites of Jake Redslow and
many other shouts of bread always bringing the hammer, Ronald
the three Man Weaver and Brandon C.
Speaker 3: Gurney.
Speaker 5: We had a star study cast, no if sands or
butts about it, and we appreciate you guys. Tune in
and chiming in wherever you guys have been tuning in
and chiming in from.
Speaker 3: As a reminder, download the podcast if you missed any
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to earn your business. Coming up next, we'll hand the
mic over to Ronald the three Man Weaver to get
your prep. Get you ready for this BAU men's basketball again,
giving you all the insight, all the knowledge, all getting
into all the nooks and grannies about this BAU basketball
team and the matchup versus Pacific. From all of us
here at ESPN the Family, we wish you a very
good night, have a safe night.
Speaker 3: You've been listening to Cougar's