I was the first player in several years to get their scholarship back after a mission from what I understand. Lance Reynolds left six months after me and was the second to get his back. After that, it became the standard practice to let return missionaries return to the team. – Former BYU quarterback Terry McEwen

They come from as far away as England, Brazil and the Phillipines but how soon will they be ready?

BYU football coach Bronco Mendenhall has about two weeks left to finish recruiting before national letter of intent signing day.

Thing is, 2015 will be an assimilation year. At least 16 players who are returning from missions for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are set to join or rejoin his program.

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Some are in school now, while others return as late as July. Other prospects — who haven't yet been designated as scholarship players or walk-ons — will return from their missions and try to become part of the team.

With roster players serving missions at a rate of more than 70 percent, it marks the highest saturation of this kind of transformational player ever at BYU.

It wasn’t always this way. Back in the '60s and early '70s, BYU's coaches didn’t know how to deal with athletes who left two years for missions. During the Tommy Hudspeth era, players were discouraged from serving missions until they’d finished their college careers.

Two such players were quarterback Terry McEwen and lineman Lance Reynolds, who went against the grain and served missions in the '70s. If McEwen, who left after a shoulder injury his freshman year, had stayed and excelled, BYU would not have gone to Diablo Valley College in California and signed Gary Sheide. Gifford Nielsen may have stayed on BYU’s basketball team.

McEwen decided to serve his church and he went from projected starter to a career backup at BYU upon his return in the early '70s.

“During the Hudspeth era, it was believed that returned missionaries would not make good football players due to the two-year layoff and the loss of desire to have the attitude needed to be successful in football,” said McEwen. “It was the practice that if you left for a mission, you lost your scholarship and opportunity to continue playing after the mission,” according to McEwen, reviewing his case in an exchange of emails with me.

In LaVell Edwards’ first year as head coach he still carried that philosophy, said McEwen.

“In my meeting with him, he wanted to make sure I wasn't going to go on a mission. He told me that if I left, I would lose my scholarship and not have a place when I returned. He suggested that my mission would be to help make BYU a national profile team and if I still wanted to serve a mission, I could when my eligibility ran out.

"I spent the summer in Portland, Oregon, where I was from. LaVell called me every week to make sure I was coming back. I decided to come back and during fall camp was the projected starter. In a scrimmage a week before the first game, I injured my throwing shoulder and missed the first three games.

“In my first practice back, I re-injured it and missed the remainder of the season. I decided to go on a mission when the season ended. LaVell told me that I had no guarantees and he would make a decision when I got back if I could rejoin the team. No promises. That left him without a projected starting QB for the next season so he went to the junior college ranks and got Sheide to come in while I was gone. He also recruited Giff Nielsen while I was gone.

"When I returned he had changed his philosophy and gave me my scholarship back. I was the first player in several years to get their scholarship back after a mission from what I understand. Lance Reynolds left six months after me and was the second to get his back. After that, it became the standard practice to let return missionaries return to the team. It took me a year after I got back to get my game back. In my junior year, I was the backup to Giff.

“We had a very good team and I played most fourth quarters.”

Athletes who serve missions do sacrifice much when they leave for missionary service. Chuck Cutler, a receiver for Ty Detmer, battled intestinal parasites that made weight gain difficult upon his return. All-MWC track athlete Amy Curtis developed issues with her feet on a mission to South America, returned early and never competed again. Others have lost interest in competing and subsequently quit. Still others like John Beck, Dennis Pitta and Taysom Hill have excelled. Brandon Doman was the first quarterback who served a mission to lead a BYU football team to a conference championship in 2001.

No school in the NCAA is doing what BYU is managing with missionaries and the transition. Utah State and Utah are close, but not with the numbers. When Edwards changed his philosophy, he has often told reporters his staff tried to turn missionary comings and goings into a strength, particularly with offensive linemen like Robert Anae, Trevor Matich and Craig Garrick. The move helped lead BYU to a remarkable string of multiple WAC championships.

Here’s a rundown of specific missionaries slated to be on BYU's football team in 2015 who have been given status before fall practice begins:

RB Nathan DeBeikes, England Birmingham Mission, returns in July: DeBeikes is 6-2, 200 pounds and gained nearly 1,000 yards at Thousand Oaks High in Southern California. He also had 101 tackles as a strong-side linebacker.

RB Brayden El-Bakri, Uruguay West Mission, returns in March. El-Barkri is 6-0, 215 pounds and competed at Brighton High in Salt Lake City before redshirting and playing on the scout team in 2012. He averaged 5.25 yards per carry at Brighton on 153 carries for 804 yards and seven touchdowns.

DB Matt Hadley, Salvador Brazil Mission, returns in February. Hadley is 6-0, 191 pounds and will be a sophomore this fall. He played played at Connell High School in Washington and is a younger brother of former BYU linebacker Spencer Hadley, who went on to play for the Oakland Raiders. Matt played in seven games his freshman year at BYU in 2012 and had four tackles against Hawaii. He set a Washington prep record with 124 career touchdowns as a running back and gained 6,881 yards in the state’s small-school division.

DB Micah Hannemann, Carlsbad California Mission, is back and enrolled. At 6-1, 185 pounds, Hannemann played at Lone Peak High in Alpine and helped his team to a state title in 2011. He was first-team all-state and also lettered in baseball and track. His brother Jacob played football and baseball for BYU before turning professional in baseball. He was on BYU’s roster in 2012 and will be a sophomore.

OL Austin Hoyt, Colorado Denver North Mission, returns in February: At 6-7, 278 pounds, Hoyt played at Argonaut High in Ione, California, and will be a redshirt freshman. He was ranked as the No. 12 defensive end in the West and 78th overall player in California. MVP of the Mother Lode League, Hoyt caught 10 passes for 325 yards and four touchdowns. He had 70 tackles and two sacks and a fumble recovery for a touchdown as a senior.

DL Moses Kaumatule, California Oakland/San Francisco Mission, is already back: At 6-1, 254 pounds, Kaumatule played defensive end at Bingham High in South Jordan. He was a three-star recruit by Scout.com and rated the No. 6 recruit in Utah and 33rd defensive end by Rivals.com. He was all-state in 2010 and part of state championships in 2009 and 2010. He played on BYU’s scout team in 2011 but will be a Cougar freshman.

TE Moroni Laulu-Pututau, Chile Antofagasta Mission, returns in March: Laulu-Pututau is 6-4, 190 pounds and played at Mountain Crest High, where he was a defensive back and receiver. He earned all-state honors as a receiver and had eight interceptions as a safety. He has been timed at 4.55 in the 40-yard dash.

LB Lene Lesatele, Philippines Naga Mission, returns in April: Lesatele, 6-1, 238 pounds, played his high school ball at Gahr High in Artesia, California, and will be a sophomore this fall after playing in three games as a freshman in 2012. He was the No. 100 Far West prospect by SuperPrep Magazine and three-time all-league.

QB Tanner Mangum, Chile Antofagasta Mission, returns in June: Magnum, 6-3, 193 pounds, was included in the prestigious Elite Eleven Camp, where he earned MVP honors. He attended BYU his freshman year but did not play. A four-star recruit, Magnum was ranked the No. 15 quarterback in high school by Scout.com and No. 3 by Rivals.com. He completed a school-record 268 of 393 passes for 3,885 yards and 35 touchdowns.

LB Butch Pauu, Honduras Tegucigalpa Mission, returns in March. A 6-0, 220-pound linebacker, Pauu was offered by several Pac-12 schools, including USC, out of Servite High in Anaheim, California. He was team captain and defensive MVP and first-team all-state.

DB Sawyer Powell, Uruguay Montevideo Mission, is already back and enrolled: At 6-1, 205 pounds, Powell played at Richland High in West Richland, Washington. He was an all-conference linebacker and received the distinction as the No. 1 Sparq-rated linebacker in the country and No. 7-rated overall prospect.

LB Rhett Sandlin, Tennessee Nashville Mission, is back and enrolled. Sandlin, 6-2, 220 pounds, was a three-year starter and defensive MVP at Alta High in Sandy. He earned all-state honorable mention honors twice and was recruited by Stanford, Oregon State, Washington, Utah and Wyoming.

WR Talon Shumway, Texas McAllen Mission, returns in May: At 6-3, 200 pounds, Shumway was a star receiver and basketball player at Lone Peak High in Alpine. Known for his athleticism and leaping ability, Shumway could have played major college basketball, a sport some believe might be his best. Shumway graduated from high school in 2013, part of Lone Peak’s nationally ranked hoops team.

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DL Taumata Tofi, Philippines Manila Mission, returns in April: At 6-3, 270, Tofi earned first-team all-league honors at Perris High in California. He also played varsity volleyball and was recruited by Washington, Arizona, Fresno State, Utah State and Utah. His older brothers played at UNLV and USC.

DB Morgan Unga, Virginia Richmond Mission, is already back. A 6-4, 182-pound freshman from Bonneville High in Ogden, Unga is a first cousin of BYU’s all-time rushing leader Harvey Unga. Playing QB in high school he completed 73 of 196 passes for 1,201 yards and six TDs in 31 games. He was on BYU's scout team in 2012.

WR Josh Weeks, Washington Kennewick Mission, returns in February. From Show Low High in Arizona, Weeks, 6-4, 200 pounds, will be an incoming freshman. He was one of five national winners as a scholar-athlete by the National Football Foundation. He caught a career 187 passes for 3,851 yards and 46 touchdowns while setting numerous prep marks in Arizona.

Dick Harmon, Deseret News sports columnist, can be found on Twitter as Harmonwrites and can be contacted at dharmon@desnews.com.

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