He lived up to his reputation as the top high school defensive tackle and played 12 of 13 games as a freshman. He tore his left ACL his sophomore season and returned as a third-year sophomore in 2004. One of college football's most dominating D-linemen, he became Oregon's first consensus all-American in 43 years in 2005. Baltimore made him the 12th pick in the first round of the 2006 NFL draft. In nine games, he has yet to make a sack.

Kuresa was a top-five prep defensive line prospect nationally, the 13th-ranked player in the Midland region by SuperPrep Magazine. He led Mountain Crest to a state championship as a senior.

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Cougars on the air

New Mexico (5-5, 3-3) at BYU (8-2, 6-0)

Saturday, 2 p.m.

LaVell Edwards Stadium

TV: The mtn.

Radio: 1160AM, 102.7FM

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Then and now ...

High-profile players recruited by BYU in 2001 and how their careers have progressed:

                                                                                                                                                                        Name          School    Update
                                                                                                                                                                        Ryan Carter   Florida   Left Gators due to back injury
                                                                                                                                                                        Jake Kuresa   BYU       Four-year starter on Cougar offensive line
                                                                                                                                                                        J.T. Mapu     Tennessee Regular on Vols' D-line since returning from mission
                                                                                                                                                                        Haloti Ngata  Oregon    First-round NFL draft pick after stellar college career
                                                                                    
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                                                                                                                                                Ben Olson     BYU/UCLA  Starting for Bruins after transfer from BYU following mission

                                                                                                                    

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E-mail: dharmon@desnews.com