PROVO — There has been plenty of cross-training and establishing a pecking order for the BYU offensive linemen during fall camp as the season-opener against Nebraska sits less than two weeks away now.
While both head coach Bronco Mendenhall and offensive coordinator Robert Anae have expressed their desire to develop greater depth along the offensive line, the coaches have also said in fall camp there is a seven-man group they are confident rotating with the first-team offense in 2015.
That would expand to eight if another player, Tuni Kanuch, can stay healthy.
In that potential eight-man rotation, five players started multiple games last year.
Combine that experience with several other playmakers returning on offense, and there is plenty of optimism that the Cougar offense can improve on its 37.1 points per game average from last season. In a lot of ways, that improvement starts up front.
"As a group, those guys play well together," BYU quarterback Taysom Hill said of his offensive line.
Returning experience
BYU has only one senior offensive lineman this year, Ryker Mathews (6-6, 320). He’s started 22 games in his career, including five last season, though injuries have cost him time the past two seasons.
Three sophomores earned extensive experience last year as first-year Cougars, led by center Tejan Koroma (6-0, 280), the lynchpin on the BYU offensive line who started 13 games in 2014. Fellow sophomores Ului Lapuaho (6-7, 333) and Tuni Kanuch (6-3, 325), who's been limited in fall camp with lingering injuries, also are back.
"They know what the speed of the game is as sophomores, which is huge," Mathews said of Koroma, Lapuaho and Kanuch. "They have a lot to learn — everyone always has a lot to learn — but it's going to have a huge impact this coming year."
Among the juniors on the line, Kyle Johnson (6-4, 303) returns after starting every game at left guard last season. Brad Wilcox (6-7, 305), Parker Dawe (6-3, 285) and Manu Mulitalo (6-2, 373) are also expected to contribute this season.
Key additions
Austin Hoyt (6-8, 263), a redshirt freshman who returned from his mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints this offseason, has been running with the first string a lot during fall camp at right tackle.
Freshmen Jaterrius Gulley (6-3, 346) isn't completely new to the program — he redshirted last year — but he's earning plenty of reps during fall camp. Among the Cougars' 2015 recruiting class signees, freshman Jacob Jimenez (6-5, 286) has stood out.
Dark horse candidates
In addition to the strides Hoyt is taking, Dawe and Mulitalo have been with the Cougar program for several years now and are earning valuable reps in fall camp. With the amount of cross-training that has been going on, and with players like Johnson and Kanuch missing scrimmage time recently, they've had opportunities to make their case for more playing time.
Lapuaho said he also likes freshman J.J. Nwigwe (6-4, 260), another member of the 2015 Cougar recruiting class, calling him someone who's "really good to watch as a vet." Nwigwe has taken some second-string snaps during fall camp.
General outlook
Of those seven currently expected to be in the Cougars' main rotation of players, Mathews has taken the bulk of the first-team snaps at left tackle in fall camp, Johnson at left guard, Koroma at center, Lapuaho at right guard and Hoyt and Wilcox at right tackle. Dawe has also earned his share of snaps.
One area of major concern is the backup center position. In the team's two fall scrimmages, Johnson, Dawe and Jimenez have all had chances to play center, and one thing is clear: the shotgun snaps from Koroma's potential backups are in need of improvement. This helps emphasize just how important Koroma is to the offensive line.
Overall, though, the expectation for the offensive line is to see improvement over last season, as another year of experience in the system should help the line's top contributors in 2015.
“The guys who have been here since last year, we're gelling really good,” Lapuaho said. "We know each other, we're experienced and we just need to add depth to who we are. We're so tight together as a first group."
Email: bjudd@deseretdigital.com; Twitter: @brandonljudd