ALBUQUERQUE -- Brian Urlacher is a throwback to the days of iron-man football.
The New Mexico senior, who led the nation with 178 tackles last season, sees action at safety, wide receiver and on special teams. Entering Saturday's game with 20th-ranked BYU (6:05 p.m., KSL-TV, Ch. 5), Urlacher has four touchdown receptions, a 17-yard punt return, three fumble recoveries (including one for a touchdown) and a team-high 53 tackles to his credit.BYU coach LaVell Edwards isn't surprised. He considers Urlacher one of the premier players in the country. And he isn't alone in thinking so.
After leading the Lobos to a 24-21 upset at San Diego State last week, Urlacher was named the Bronko Nagurski National Defensive Player of the Week. The accolade came after Urlacher equaled his career-high with 20 tackles. He also burned the Aztecs with two fumble recoveries and a pair of pass deflections. One of the fumbles he scooped up was taken back 71 yards for what proved to be the game-winning touchdown late in the fourth quarter.
"There is a reason good players make plays. They don't take plays off. They want to be involved," said New Mexico coach Rocky Long. "Urlacher wants to be in on every tackle."
And at 6-foot-4 and 240-pounds, the New Mexico native has the physical tools to do so. As such, Urlacher has caught the attention of the Thorpe and Nagurski award committees for defensive excellence. He's been nominated for both annual honors.
"Brian has a unique combination of talent and skill. He possesses the size and aggressiveness of a linebacker and the athleticism of a defensive back," said Edwards. "But, I think it is his natural instincts for the game that have really made him one of the best defensive players in the league."
Urlacher headlines a New Mexico defense that has made great strides. Through five games, the Lobos (2-3) have forced 11 turnovers (nine fumbles and two interceptions) and are allowing just 20.6 points per game.
A year ago at this time, New Mexico had forced just three turnovers and were giving up 33.2 ppg.
The Lobos, who've lost to UTEP, New Mexico State and Boise State but defeated Northern Arizona and San Diego State this season, are coming off their finest defensive effort in Long's two-year tenure as head coach.
"(The SDSU game) was the first time since I have been here that we have had a lot of players making a lot of good plays. Our cover guys made some real nice plays on deep balls and broke up a few passes," said Long. "At times, we had real good pressure on the quarterback so he was under duress or he was getting hit as he threw. And other than a couple of times where they dominated us on the line of scrimmage, we played real good run defense, too."
The combination concerns Edwards. He's expecting New Mexico to mix it's unorthodox coverage -- loading the line at times, sitting back on others.
"Their defense is unlike anything we've seen this season," said Edwards.
The same can be said of Urlacher.
EXTRA POINTS: Long, who quarterbacked the Lobos past BYU in 1970 and 1971, was born in Provo. His father, Rod Long, played for BYU from 1948-50 . . . Defensive coordinator Bronco Mendenhall is from Alpine. His father, Paul, and brother, Mat, played for the Cougars . . . New Mexico quarterback Sean Stein was the backup to BYU's Kevin Feterik at Los Alamitos High School in California. In junior college at Long Beach, Stein and Cougar receiver Jonathan Pittman were teammates . . . The Lobos are expecting a sellout crowd of 31,218 at University Stadium .