BYU Cougars Football: 5 Players Who Are Key to 2011 Season

Head coach Bronco Mendenhall has 15 starters returning this season and will be looking for some key players to step up and perform in order to improve on their 7-6 record from last season.

They are off to a good start after a 14-13 victory over the Ole Miss Rebels in their season opener. 

BYU had a disappointing 2010 after four straight double-digit win seasons leading up to it.

Now they look to return to their winning ways and will count on a good core group of players.

Here are five of those players who are key to this season's success.

1. QB Jake Heaps

BYU finished 5-1 in their final six games last season, and QB Jake Heaps was one of the reasons for it.

Before the run, Heaps had just one TD and six picks. He threw for 14 TD and just three picks during the run.

To be fair, he was not handed the keys to the BYU offense until after QB Riley Nelson got injured.

Before then head coach Bronco Mendenhall split the QB duties between the two players.

After that, it was Heaps' show.

Now Heaps has the full season ahead of him and he will have some help returning around him too.

BYU returns Heaps' two top receiving targets in Cody Hoffman and McKay Jacobson.

Heaps was a highly touted prospect coming out of Washington state. The BYU Cougars won the recruiting battle and now we have a chance to see what the kid can do.

2. The Offensive Line

Yes, an offensive line is comprised of five players, but an offensive line operates as one unit. If one player fails, the whole unit fails so I feel comfortable giving the line their own spot on this list.

Just like with the rest of the team, this offensive line saw excellent play last year down the stretch, allowing just four sacks over the final six games for BYU. 

They return four starters, losing RG Jason Speredon, and offensive line coach Mark Weber says this is the best offensive line he has had to coach since he has been at BYU.

LT Matt Reynolds turned down the NFL draft to return to BYU for his senior season and he is a preseason All-American. C Terrence Brown is on the watch list for Rimington Trophy, which is given to the nation's top center.

RT Braden Brown and LG Braden Hansen are both second team All-MWC from last year and look to add to the depth of this offensive line.

Overall this offensive line returns over 100 starts of experience and looks to be very dominant in keeping QB Jake Heaps off his back and give the BYU RB some big holes to run through.

3. RB JJ Di Luigi

JJ Di Luigi is a very dangerous offensive weapon for BYU.

He not only runs the ball very well, leading the Cougars in rushing yards last season with 917, good for 5.2 yards per carry, he also is a top receiver option, with 443 yards receiving last year, good for second on the team.

This type of versatility gives opposing defenses some new things to have to game plan for and adds an additional element to the Cougar offense.

In the win against Ole Miss, he led his team in receptions (5) and rushing yards (56).

He is poised to have a very promising 2011 season and should be able to produce at high levels for the BYU Cougars.

4. LB Kyle Van Noy

The secondary for BYU will be its biggest weakness, so getting after the QB is going to be a huge part of how this BYU defense will be competitive. 

The secondary is losing its three top starters.

Sophomore LB Kyle Van Noy will be thrown into a big situation to shine, and in the season opener against Ole Miss, he did.

Van Noy got the game winning TD after recovering the fumble he caused off of Ole Miss QB Zack Stoudt.

Van Noy recorded 35 tackles last year, including 7.5 tackles for a loss.

So he has shown what he can do. He can penetrate the line and cause problems for the defense in the backfield.

If he is able to get after the QB, it will give the inexperienced secondary some help by at least forcing the opposing QB to rush some bad throws.

5. LB Brandon Ogletree

Brandon Ogletree will be joining LB Kyle Van Noy in getting after the QB.

He is a senior and is a returning starter. This team lost its top three tacklers and Ogletree was number four (49). 

He also had two picks and 7.5 tackles for a loss. He needs to fill rushing lanes and play smart against the pass.

He will also be looked to be a leader on defense and will need to really show up and make some plays.

He is going take the pressure off of Van Noy and USC Trojan transfer LB Uona Kaveinga and really open up spaces for those two talented LB to really cause trouble.