The Reader Q&A with Matt Bauman

This afternoon I was able to spend some time with Matt Bauman, Senior LB and go over 30 of the reader submitted questions. I have written his responses verbatim, so indulge yourself in this 30 question interview…

DSOB: Is the “missionary advantage” real or perceived? Being older and more mature could help in a lot of ways, are you better physically or worse off?
MB: 100% perceived it takes a full year for most guys to get back to full speed and most guys pull a hamstring or something in their first year when they get back. There are also guys younger than me who are stronger than me so I don’t buy that.

DSOB: Who is the most underrated player on the team?
MB: Andrew Rich. He only played a couple games last year. I think people caught a glimpse but he will turn a lot of heads this year.

DSOB: Who is the most underrated coach?
MB: Coach Doman. He does a great job with the QBs brings a great competitive spirit and has good ideas for the offense.

DSOB: For Any Defensive Player: What can we expect from the defense this season? Any changes/wrinkles, being integrated into the overall scheme?
MB: So far the scheme is pretty similar. There’s always some new wrinkles but we have a lot of guys coming back with a lot of experience under their belt. There are some JC guys at corner that we are excited to see. There is a lot of potential for the D this year.

DSOB: I’ve heard some reports and rumors say that team didn’t spend enough time on film study last year. Would the current players agree or do they attribute the shortcomings to other areas?
MB: Part of it last year was just attitude. The guys on the team had just won two conference championships but with most the work done by the older guys. They were riding on the coat tails of the older guys and expected a championship to come to them without working as hard because the prior two years it was the older guys putting in the work.

DSOB: Many people saw the defensive secondary as one of the weak spots that caused us to have difficulty in stopping some teams from scoring. Will we see an improvement or shift in strategy this year? How has the defensive secondary been prepared to deal with very athletic teams this year like Oklahoma, Florida State, and TCU?
MB: We moved some guys around to different positions. Our safeties are very good physically even better mentally. Our corners.. we got a couple athletic guys coming in. So we are hoping for a very solid secondary.

DSOB: My biggest concern is with the Defense and the linebackers, what are the linebackers doing to improve their pass coverage, especially against the spread offense?
MB: We’re spending more time with the secondary going over the scheme as a whole and understanding the responsibilities of everyone out there and how it fits into the scheme, not just our own.

DSOB: What is the defense, as a whole, doing to address some of the weaknesses we saw against spread offenses, with the new head coaches hired in the MWC, BYU is only going to see more of it.
MB: We’ve been working on speed, with a speed coach to make it a lot less hard-nosed football and more finesse. Everyone is getting faster.

DSOB: Who got the worst rap from the fans last year undeservedly?
MB: I would have to say Max Hall. Interceptions are bad but a lot of people could not see anything else he did besides those.

DSOB: Quinn Gooch is a great blogger for the team. Which current player could be the next great blogger in a few years?
MB: Jeff Bell

DSOB: Personal opinions… Should the Mountain West add Boise State?
MB: Yeah that would be great. Create more competition and increase the credibility of our conference.

DSOB: Would you be excited to play the Broncos for a conference football championship each year?
MB: Yeah, if I am playing for a conference championship I don’t really care who it’s against.

DSOB: BYU fans are a diverse group, and so are the players. What school do you follow/root for, outside of the Y?
MB: Nobody really. Penn State a little because of where I served my mission.

DSOB: Besides Utah, who do you consider BYU’s biggest rival to be?
MB: TCU right now

DSOB: What team do you WISH was on this year’s schedule that isn’t?
MB: Boise State

DSOB: Are there any players who WOULDN’T want a college football playoff, or is it universally wanted by everyone who plays the game full-time?
MB: Everyone I know would like it.

DSOB: “Speed” has been the buzz-word all off-season. What has the team been doing to increase their focus on this aspect of the game?
MB: Working with a speed coach and doing more plyometric stuff.

DSOB: Which current player will make the best future coach (or, Who will become the next Coach Doman)?
MB: I don’t know, I would say Jeff Bell again.

DSOB: Game film - Do you watch more as a team, or individually?
MB: I watch more individually but we also watch it a lot as a team.

DSOB: Who is the most hardcore in using their own personal free time to prepare for that week’s game every week?
MB: This season it is going to be myself, Scotty J, Andrew Rich

DSOB: Do you yourself do the Haka before the game? Why or why not?
MB: I do, because it honor s BYU’s Polynesian heritage even though I am not Polynesian. It also gets me mentally fired up.

DSOB: The Honor Code helps make BYU the place it is. But is there any small part that you would change about it (maybe even add)?
MB: Lower the facial hair standards. Not a big lumber jack beard, but a little scruff should not prevent you from taking a final.

DSOB: When the team runs stairs in the Spring/Summer is it awkward when students walk by?
MB: No it is not awkward because you cannot think about anything else really. You are just breathing so hard and it is so difficult it is all you are thinking about.

DSOB: What is your pregame ritual? Do you have any rituals/superstitious acts that must be done in a certain way before playing? i.e. putting pads on in certain order? Lucky Socks? Etc
MB: I do have them, but part of being superstitious is not letting people know your superstitions.

DSOB: What did you do over the summer that helped to build team unity?
MB: We had BBQs just casual things. Just hung out a lot together. It feels a little more like high school football. Everyone just playing ball with their friends.

DSOB: What is your least favorite conditioning drill?
MB: The stairs and hill combo when you have to do them both.

DSOB: I heard something happened right before the TCU game, that deflated the team, any info ?
MB: No, I don’t know anything that happened.

DSOB: Were you always a BYU fan? If so, who was your favorite BYU player growing up? If not, Who did you like growing up?
MB: I grew up a Ute actually fan in salt lake when I was younger, but I have repented.

DSOB: What did the players think about the hoopla around Heaps/Stout/Apo’s press conference??? Are they already targeting those recruits for some “extra” freshman duties???
MB: Yeah that conference was funny. We all though t it was funny but we are excited to have them on the team and watch them contribute, but that conference was unexpected I guess you could say.

DSOB: Do players read the newspaper or chat rooms or blogs?
MB: I am sure some of them do. I don’t but it’s basically as if I do because family friends and ward member always tell you what it says.