When Gary Crowton resigned under pressure as BYU's football coach at a news conference on Dec. 1, 2004, Mendenhall stood by and cried.

Crowton had hired him two years earlier as BYU's defensive coordinator. For Mendenhall, it was the chance to return home, to Utah County, after years of moving around in the unstable world of coaching. He had left the same position with Mountain West Conference rival New Mexico because, in part, he wanted to be back close to his family. Crowton, the man who lured him to Provo, was a longtime friend, going back to the days when Mendenhall played at Snow College and Crowton was an assistant coach there.

And, of course, there was the goal of establishing a dominant defense at BYU. He and Crowton had coached together again at Louisiana Tech, with very good results.

It seemed like a perfect fit.

During his first two seasons as BYU's defensive coordinator, not only did the Cougar defense improve significantly, but Mendenhall also earned respect from media, players and fans alike with his straightforward, no-excuses approach.

Yet BYU stumbled to a third-straight losing campaign with a 52-21 season-ending loss at Utah last November. Afterwards, when asked about the future of the program, he adamantly defended his boss, explaining that Crowton was the right man to lead BYU football. A week-and-a-half later, Crowton stepped down. At the news conference, as Crowton spoke, tears streaked down Mendenhall's cheeks.

"I really thought he'd be given one more year," Mendenhall says. "I was saddened for the realization of this opportunity to have passed without him having accomplished what I knew he wanted to accomplish. I was also sad that I wasn't able to help anymore than I did in helping him achieve those goals. I was emotional from the standpoint that I was grateful for the opportunity I was given, I was regretful that the result wasn't what I knew coach wanted. There was a friend and a mentor and a confidant that would not be around in that capacity."

Almost immediately, BYU administrators asked Mendenhall to apply for the job, which he did, somewhat reluctantly at first. "It was very strange to me that I was being considered to replace him," Mendenhall says. "I didn't really know how to deal with that concept. When I came to BYU, it wasn't with the intention of being the head coach."

Still bothered by the administration's decision to let Crowton go, Mendenhall admits being "pretty abrasive" in the first round of interviews.