PROVO — When it comes time for the BYU Cougars to tack on an extra point, or whenever the offense stalls and it's time to go for three, Mitch Payne knows he's the one who is going to get the call.
That wasn't necessarily the case last season at this point in camp. With the arrival of freshman kicker Riley Stephenson, a star from Pine View High in St. George, Payne found himself in a tough battle for the starting placekicker job.
But after earning the job late in camp, and then after having a strong campaign last season, Payne is entering his senior season with the assurance that he's the main guy on field goals and extra points.
The security seems to have helped his confidence. The struggles he exhibited early in camp last season are gone. In this camp, he's been one of BYU's steadiest performers so far.
"I know I'm going to have a good season, and I'm really excited about how well I've been kicking," Payne said. "Having that extra year of experience under my belt is really going to make a big difference in my confidence. I'm very confident right now. I'm hitting the ball really well right now, and I'm as motivated and as focused as I can be."
He put that confidence on display Thursday when he connected on field goals of 49 and 50 yards in the team's 11-on-11 scrimmages. He's missed only two attempts so far this camp.
"My leg pop is really good, and my leg speed is really good. You put those two things together, and you're going to get some pretty good results," he said. Payne says he's added a little leg strength this season, and hopes he's called on more to kick from longer distances. If he is, and can convert like he has in camp, it adds a few more possessions each game in which the Cougars can score.
"Just being able to do that in camp and show the coaches that I can do that is going to give them more confidence to let me try a few more longer kicks in games," he said
Meanwhile, Stephenson has firmed up his role as the Cougars' punter. He showed last season, with many booming punts and several that pinned opponents inside their 10-yard-line — especially in the Oklahoma, TCU and Vegas Bowl games — how valuable he can be to BYU's success.
"I've worked hard on all three aspects of kicking and feel like I can do a pretty good job at any of them, but right now I really do feel like I'm strongest at punting the ball," Stephenson said.
However, Stephenson recognizes that he has to be ready to fill in at the other two should something happen to Payne. He got a taste of that in Thursday's practice when Payne went down with a sprained right ankle after being hit by diving freshman defensive back Jordan Johnson on his 50-yard make.
"For a minute there I saw my senior season flash right before my eyes. But I think I'm going to be all right. It's already feeling better," Payne said mid-afternoon Tuesday before heading off for a reassuring MRI.
Mendenhall wasn't too happy with Johnson's exuberance, or lack of good judgment, in diving at his own kicker's legs in going for the block.
"We didn't get him educated well enough prior to the scrimmage," Mendenhall said.
Even though Stephenson missed a 43-yard attempt wide right Thursday after taking Payne's spot, the coaches are still confident that Stephenson will be more than adequate at placekicker should he have to step in.
"That's really what he was known for in high school was his kicking and his field goals, so I know he can do it," Tidwell said.
First day in full pads: As is often the case, the number of injuries went up a little Thursday when the Cougars donned full pads for the first time. Besides the ankle injury to Payne, freshman linebacker Tom Steele also went down with an injured right ankle. Linebacker Mike Santos suffered a little "bell ringer" in a collision with running back Mike Hague. Linebacker Jordan Atkinson sat out Thursday's practice with a sore shoulder, as did linebacker Jordan Pendleton with blisters. Lineman Matt Putnam was back at practice, but not in pads, and freshman running back Drew Phillips participated in drills for the first time
SCRIMMAGE NUMBERS: In the two team scrimmages, freshman QB Jake Heaps was 2-of-7 for 53 yards and one interception (Robbie Buckner at the goal line) and junior Riley Nelson was 2-of-6 for 19 yards, one TD (7 yards to tight end Richard Wilson) and had six rushes for 27 yards. Bryan Kariya had two carries for 21 yards, JJ Di Luigi five carries for 13 yards, Mike Hague four carries for 24 yards, and Joshua Quezada had a 2-yard TD run. The longest play from scrimmage was a 44-yard completion from Heaps to tight end Devin Mahina.
THURSDAY'S HERO: The Cougars had their first "Thursday's Hero" day with the players honoring American Fork resident Steve Russon and his family after practice. Russon is suffering from Lou Gehrig's disease.
FUN FOR THE FANS: Both practices today, at 10 a.m. and 5 p.m., are open to the public. Saturday's scrimmage, at 10 a.m. at LaVell Edwards Stadium, is also open to the public.
e-mail: jimr@desnews.com