PROVO — PROVO — Back in early October, when BYU was off to a disappointing 1-3 start, a couple of Cougar seniors organized an emergency meeting.
The point of the meeting? To save the season.
Following all of the high expectations and talk of a new beginning at BYU during fall camp, the Cougars seemed to be headed for another disastrous campaign. They had just lost badly at San Diego State, just one week after a heartbreaking 51-50 loss at home to TCU.
Safety Spencer White and linebacker Justin Luettgerodt decided something had to be done.
"We said to each other, 'We've got to get these seniors on the defense together and air some things out because we're not going to let the same old stuff happen again," Luettgerodt said.
By "same old stuff," they were referring, of course, to the three consecutive losing seasons.
So, the senior defensive players met together in a room to discuss what looked like a dire situation. To secure a winning season, the Cougars needed to win five of their final seven games.
"We aired everything out really quick," Luettgerodt recalled. "There was no beating around the bush. It was very, very blunt and to the point. We found out which direction we wanted to go."
During the meeting, White, who joined the program as a freshman in 2002 — the year the losing seasons started — expressed his concerns. He said he didn't want people to remember him for playing for a program that suffered through four consecutive losing seasons. He wanted to be remembered for helping turn the program around.
Well, as it turned out, the latter happened, as BYU has posted a 5-1 record since that meeting. Because of that success, Luettgerodt said, he and the rest of the seniors will have their place in Cougar history. For the first time since 2001, BYU is assured of a winning record and there's a bowl game looming on the horizon.
"That's something we seniors want to be remembered for," Luettgerodt said. "Coach Mendenhall has addressed that during meetings (this week). It was pretty special for the seniors to hear that we got this thing rolling because it's officially a winning season. That's the stuff you remember the rest of your life."
On Saturday, Luettgerodt and White are among a group of seniors who will play their final game at LaVell Edwards Stadium against Utah.
Mendenhall is proud of what the seniors have accomplished. "They are the ones that have broken the cycle," he said. "After three years of losing seasons, this class of seniors has redefined what our program's about and returning it to the direction we're moving towards."
Other players have noticed the contributions of the seniors.
"They were the guys who turned this around. We had three losing seasons and now we're going to have a winning season," said junior linebacker Cameron Jensen. "The seniors were the ones that did it. Their leadership and the way they wanted to turn this program around, it was all on their shoulders. They did a great job. Going out with this game against Utah, we want to win as much for them as for us. It's a great desire for us."
Of course, the departing seniors will be difficult to replace, particularly the starters — Luettgerodt and White; wide receiver Todd Watkins; offensive linemen Lance Reynolds Jr. (though he might be granted another year of eligibility) and Brian "Lunchroom" Sanders; running back Fahu Tahi; defensive linemen Justin Maddux, Manaia Brown and Vince Feula; and linebacker Paul Walkenhorst.
"They've done a great job," said quarterback John Beck. "We have a lot of guys who have paid their dues and helped set a tempo and set a standard. Coach Mendenhall came in and asked the team to achieve a certain standard. Those seniors met it and they kept everybody in line with it. One person that sticks out for me is (Tahi). That guy's worked his tail off the whole time he's been here. He's had such a high standard for himself this year. He can barely practice, he's so beat up. But on game day, he steps up and makes plays. He's the epitome of how coach wants us to play. He wants us to give everything. Fahu's body is about ready to fall apart but that's not stopping him."
Beck said he admires this group of seniors.
"They've been in the program and had to fight through these three hard years," he said. "It just shows that these guys never gave up and they never lost sight of what they wanted to accomplish of their dreams here at BYU."
BYU'S 2005 SENIOR CLASS
Player Position
Ryan Beck DB
Matt Berry QB
Jackson Brown QB
Manaia Brown DL
Vince Feula DL
Chris Hale DB
Nate Hall OL
O'Neil Howell DB
Breyon Jones KR
Justin Luettgerodt LB
Daniel Marquardt DL
Justin Maddux DL
*Lance Reynolds OL
Brian Sanders OL
Sosiua Sekona LB
T.J. Sitake DL
Nate Soelberg DB
Fahu Tahi RB
Scott Tidwell OL
Paul Walkenhorst LB
Todd Watkins WR
Riley Weber WR
Spencer White DB
*NCAA could grant another year of eligibility
E-mail: jeffc@desnews.com