Without turnovers and fatigue on the defense in the fourth quarter, the game would have ended in a 17-16 BYU victory. You don't need a PhD in football to know that turnovers costs games, and can turn a close game into a blowout.
Jake Heaps had his first 300 yard passing game as a Cougar, but the turnovers made this a wasted effort. That being said, it is becoming obvious that if Jake Heaps is the quarterback of the future in Provo, it is a very anemic future indeed. BYU has a long list of great quarterbacks, but can anyone name a highly coveted High School quarterback that made it at BYU? Neither can I. Let me list what has happened to a few of them.
Eric Kryzmarzyk...I am not certain I got the name spelled right. He was recruited to replace Jim McMahon. Ended up following Doug Scovill to San Diego State. Not much happened after that. Some guy name Steve Young ended up taking over for McMahon instead. He only became an All American, finished up as the Heisman Trophy runner up to some guy named Bo Jackson. And then went on to the NFL Hall of Fame.
Drew Miller...could not wait his turn in Provo. Did a nice job at Montana and let the Grizzlies to the I-AA final game, where they lost. Didn't make the NFL, however. I think some guy name Doman took over in his place and did a very nice job as a Senior.
Ben Olsen...came home from a mission and transferred to UCLA where injuries derailed his career. BYU ended up with Max Hall instead.
And now we get Heaps, who plays like he is still in high school. I know that sounds mean, but look at what he has done this year so far. He has thrown 4 interceptions and 3 touchdown passes. His 3 touchdowns have gone to the same receiver. But not all of BYUs problems can be blamed on the quarterback. BYU is near the bottom in the NCAA in nearly every offensive category. Futility they have not seen since, oh, 2004. Perhaps even since the Tommy Hudspeth era. For BYU fans, that is unacceptable.
I find it surprising to find that Bronco Mendenhall has broken the formula for quarterbacks at the Y. He does not appear to be the guy who will give into entitlement. Of any coach in the country, Bronco Mendenhall is the guy who would be more likely to say, "sit on the bench and earn you way to the starting lineup." Heaps has tons of potential, and does well in practice, but in the game, is his head screwed on right? Maybe the answer is to bench Heaps and make him earn his way back to the starting lineup. Make him the example for the rest of the team. It will be interesting to see if what happens this week.
No comments:
Post a Comment