PROVO — BYU coach Bronco Mendenhall has always been an advocate of putting his best 11 defensive players on the field.
That's one of the major reasons why during the offseason, he and his defensive coaching staff decided to switch from a 3-3-5 scheme to a 3-4 alignment, which features four linebackers. Given that the Cougars have depth and talent aplenty at the linebacker position, the move makes sense.
"The linebackers we felt before spring were talented enough and had enough leadership and experience to make sure we had enough of them on the field," explained Mendenhall, who also serves as defensive coordinator. "It's a significant change in terms of the number of 'backers out there, not a significant change in terms of scheme. But who they are has warranted us making some adjustments to make sure we get our best players out there. There's tremendous competition, depth and talent at that position. That's why we're featuring those players in our defense this year."
Mendenhall stressed that the defensive philosophy has not been altered much.
"We will continue to emphasize pursuit and gang tackling," he said. "The coverage principles of our secondary will be different. Basically, we're putting an extra linebacker on the field instead of an extra safety."
Anchoring the linebackers is team captain Cameron Jensen, who was a second-team All-Mountain West Conference performer and led the Cougars in tackles with 84. He's surrounded by a number of players who Mendenhall is counting on to make an impact in 2006.
Among those who have stood out during spring drills, according to Mendenhall, are junior Bryan Kehl; sophomore David Nixon, who made two starts as a true freshman in 2003 before departing on a mission; junior Markell Staffieri; and redshirt freshman Chris Bolden.
Others in the mix include junior Dustin Gabriel, who played safety last season, and seniors Dan Bates and Gary Lovely.
Junior Kelly Poppinga, a transfer from Utah State, has missed most of spring drills with an injury, but he is expected to contribute in the fall. "Kelly's a proven player at the Division I level," Mendenhall said. His leadership and work ethic has been very positive. We feel optimistic about what he'll do for our program."
Poppinga is the younger brother of former BYU star Brady Poppinga, who was a Green Bay Packers rookie in 2005.
Then there's Aaron Wagner, who was enjoying a fine season before sustaining a knee injury against Colorado State, forcing him to miss the rest of the year. Wagner has not participated in contract drills in the spring, but he should be ready to go in the fall.
WHAT A DIFFERENCE A YEAR MAKES: With a year of experience under his belt, Mendenhall is feeling much more comfortable, and confident, about his role as head coach.
"I'm much more secure in the points of reference. There aren't as many firsts as there were last year," he said. "Our players know what to expect in terms of the daily work habits in practice and our coaches know the routine. There are situations that have come up that I've already dealt with one time and have a point of reference as that head coach that I can deal with more effectively the second time. I don't find myself searching as much in terms of what my role is during the day or any component of my job."
Quarterback John Beck, now entering his second season under offensive coordinator Robert Anae, also feels more comfortable and confident.
"Last year, we had a new offense and we were putting in new plays," he said. "Last spring (tight end) Jonny Harline's big spring, when he came out of nowhere. Coach came in and said, 'OK, nobody has a job. Whatever you had, it's done with. We're going to open it up again.' You're so focused on that and learning the plays. Now I know the plays pretty well and now I can execute because I've been in situations like that in games. This whole team is a lot further ahead than we were a year ago."
SPRING GAME SATURDAY: BYU's annual Blue-White scrimmage will take place Saturday at 1 p.m. at LaVell Edwards Stadium. Prior to the game, the Cougars will conduct a free kids clinic at 11:30 a.m. At 12:30, there will be the Legends Game, featuring several former BYU stars.
E-mail: jeffc@desnews.com