2010 BYU Preview: Running Backs

Harvey Unga has taken his trade to the NFL and the Cougars are left to pick up the pieces in the backfield.

Cougar head coach Bronco Mendenhall admitted this week that BYU will operate with a running back by committee approach this season.

Entering fall camp, it appears that Bryan Kariya, JJ Di Luigi, Joshua Quezada, and Mike Hague will be the backs called upon to try and lessen the pain of the Unga loss.

On Tuesday, the Cougars released a depth chart as they prepare to head into fall camp on August 7th.

Here’s a look at the committee members in the backfield and how they may figure into the BYU offense this season.

Bronco Mendenhall describes Bryan Kariya (6-0, 214 Jr) as “trustworthy,” which is about the highest compliment that a BYU player can receive from Bronco. Kariya understands the offense and is rock solid in his assignments.

As I have mentioned before, expect to see a lot of Kariya in the backfield, especially in the early season. The coaches know that they can count on Kariya in pass protection and that is huge, considering the Cougars will be starting a new quarterback.

Kariya isn’t flashy and he isn’t Unga by any stretch of the imagination, but he is a Mendenhall disciple and can be counted on to overachieve this year.

Kariya can run the ball well enough and has shown an ability to pick up the tough yards. He’s a very good receiver out of the backfield and he will be money in pass protection.

These are all reasons as to why he will be the primary back in single-back sets as the Cougars begin 2010. Kariya also has the ability to play some fullback in Robert Anae’s offense.

JJ Di Luigi (5-9, 198 Jr) should be a good yin to Kariya’s yang.

Di Luigi began to hit his stride some last year and many in the program expect him to have a breakout season this year.

The junior from Canyon Country, California brings the ability to make defenders miss. Di Luigi isn’t the fastest guy on the squad, but he is very shifty and can frustrate would-be tacklers in open space.

He’s also shown to be effective between the tackles as a surprisingly powerful inside runner.

JJ averaged a team-leading 5.5 yards per carry in 2009, besting even Unga. And although he may not draw many pass blocking assignments, he will be dangerous in the passing game as a receiver out of the backfield.

If true freshman Joshua Quezada (5-11, 210 Fr) had a few games under his belt, he would likely be filling Unga’s shoes in the backfield to start the season. He may be the heir apparent to Unga in the future, but entering the spring, he is listed behind Di Luigi on the depth chart.

As a freshman, Quezada will need to earn the trust of the Cougar coaches before he sees significant playing time. He will need to show that he can be counted on to fulfill the assignments necessary to be a BYU running back. One of those assignments includes pass protection.

As a runner and a receiver, he could easily be the committee chair in the Cougar backfield. He impressed during the spring and appeared to be the real deal. As he learns some of the nuances of playing running back and improves his pass blocking, “Juice” will see more time on the field this year. That will be a very good thing for the BYU offense.

Former Utah 5-A Player of the Year Mike Hague (5-10, 223 Jr) is listed on the depth chart behind Kariya. Hague missed most of last season due to injury.

Cougar fans may remember his 87 yard burst against UNLV for a touchdown as a freshman in 2006. That run helped boost Hague’s career yards per carry number to a 7.2 average on 25 carries.  As an athlete in high school and in limited action at BYU, Hague has shown a penchant for busting the big play.

Other potential contributors in the backfield include Zed Mendenhall (6-0, 245 So) and David Foote (5-11, 212 So) .

Incoming high school talent includes Algernon Brown from Skyline High and the speedy Drew Phillips from Boaz, Alabama.