BYU Football: How Will the Cougars Fare in Their First Season of Independence?

Before the start of the 2010 college football season, I can remember that there were a couple of specific freshmen players who I was really anxious to get a look at, but the one incoming recruit who topped the list and had me most intrigued was QB Jake Heaps.

Heaps, a 5-star recruit out of Washington’s Skyline High School, was one of the highest rated recruits to ever sign with BYU, picking the Cougars over the likes of Notre Dame, Tennessee and Oklahoma.  

After getting a few looks at Heaps’ high school highlights, he had me convinced that he was the type of player that could take Bronco Mendenhall’s program to the next level and help them break the elusive BCS barrier.

Before Heaps’ arrival, Mendenhall had done a stellar job, guiding BYU to four straight double-digit win campaigns, but all the team had to show for it in the end were a few ‘What Happens in Vegas, Stays in Vegas’ t-shirts after four straight appearances in the Las Vegas Bowl.

Going into the 2010 season, it appeared as if BYU had the pieces in place to once again compete with conference foes Utah and TCU for a Mountain West title. But then the announcement came that star RB Harvey Unga, the school’s all-time leading rusher, would not be returning for his final season after violating the school’s strict honor code.

It was a devastating blow for a team that was hoping to compete for one last conference crown before setting off for independence.

With Heaps at the helm, the season started off with a bang when BYU managed to take down the Jake Locker-led Washington Huskies in the season opener but the wheels quickly came unhinged as the Cougars fell in their next four contests, losing each game by double digits.

The young freshman quarterback certainly took his lumps early on, however, Heaps learned from his mistakes and helped lead the Cougars out of the hole they had dug for themselves, winning five out of the last seven games in order to become bowl eligible.

BYU was able to put a positive stamp on a mediocre 7-6 season with a dominant 52-24 victory over UTEP in the New Mexico Bowl.

In the bowl game, Heaps was finally able to deliver on his hype, throwing for 264 yards and four TDs and looking like the star signal-caller we had been promised.

Now, as BYU leaves the Mountain West and begins its journey of college football independence, it will be interesting to see which team shows up in 2011—the one we had grown accustomed to seeing roll over opponents with ease, or the one that struggled to find its stride last season.

The Cougars return nearly every key offensive player from last year's squad, including Heaps, leading rusher JJ Di Luigi, leading receiver Cody Hoffman and four offensive line starters, led by preseason All-American tackle Matt Reynolds.

The emphasis for the offense will be on finding the end zone more often after the Cougars failed to average at least 30 points per game for the first time since 2004. 

Heaps, now a sophomore, looks like he’s ready to elevate his game and take some major strides in the right direction, and all the experienced talent at the skill positions and along the offensive line should only serve to aid his development.

The defense returns 13 of the top 18 tacklers from a year ago but the losses in the secondary won’t be easy to overcome.

Defensive backs Andrew Rich, Brian Logan and Brandon Bradley, who combined for eight interceptions in 2010, are going to be difficult to replace, especially Rich, who was one of the unit’s most valued leaders.

The defense will depend on the play of the front seven, which will be anchored by linebackers Brandon Ogletree and Jordan Pendleton and DE Matt Putnam, to bail out an inexperienced secondary.

BYU better make sure its defense is up to snuff before September rolls around because the Cougars did themselves no favors with their early season scheduling.

The September slate is challenging, as the team starts off the season with back-to-back road games against BCS opponents Ole Miss and Texas before a matchup with old Mountain West rival Utah, who now resides in the Pac-12.

The schedule lightens up a bit after that, but the two October road games at Oregon State and at TCU will really reveal what this year’s team is made of.

The 2011 version of the Cougars will without a doubt be a fun team to follow, especially if Jake Heaps truly does make good on his original recruiting reputation. But with so many tough tests awaiting them, it’s hard to see a way for this team to once again reach the double-digit win plateau, like they did for four straight years before last season.

BYU may have hopes of becoming the next Notre Dame someday but the more reasonable expectation for this season would be somewhere in the ball park of a solid eight to nine win campaign.