As BYU's defensive coordinator, Mendenhall was already a celebrity in Utah County and among Cougar fans. But now, as the head coach, his celebrity has jumped to a whole new stratosphere. Strangers have shown up at his home, just to talk to him and offer advice. "This isn't a job where, when you go home, you're not in that role any longer," he says. "This is much like that of a bishop or stake president, where even though I'm not called in terms of my identity and responsibilities being tied to a particular position, it's an all-the-time, all-encompassing responsibility."

He's noticed a difference in the way he's treated by his staff and the secretaries in the football office. Even on campus, he's approached differently. As the defensive coordinator, people called him Bronco. Overnight, after he became the head coach, they started calling him Coach.

"It's difficult for anyone to grasp the enormity of being BYU's football coach until you sit in the chair," Busby says. "Not to mention it being his first head coaching job, then add all of the uniqueness of BYU. It's a great challenge, a great opportunity."

Mendenhall simply goes about his business the only way he knows how. The blond-haired man wakes up every morning at 5:45 and leaves for campus by 6:15. He knows that rebuilding a program requires rolling up the sleeves and going to work. He applies the same work ethic that he learned in his youth, spent in a barn, with his dad and the horses.

Just don't get in his way. "He can be crabby in the morning," Holly says. "He's not a morning person."

Bronco doesn't think of himself as too young or too inexperienced to accomplish the task at hand. It helps that he has a bevy of experienced players returning this fall, a staff around him that he calls one of the best in the nation, and a more favorable schedule than the program has had in a few years.

Those who know him best have no doubts that he will enjoy long-term success at BYU. Mendenhall is more than willing to live up to those expectations.

"I simply go one day at a time, one task at a time, one project at a time in an attempt to build this program to the greatness that it once knew," he says. "I have a very clear idea of what the expectation is. I have a very clear idea of what the demand is and what BYU football is supposed to be. With every ounce of energy that I have and every bit of ability I've been blessed with, I'm driven to return it to that place."

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E-mail: jeffc@desnews.com