Mendenhall loves his on-field 'General'

Forgive Bronco Mendenhall if he's smitten with The General.

It isn't in Mendenhall's nature to sprinkle praise so lavishly on one of his football players; he's usually conservative in dishing out accolades. But ask him about his defensive captain, senior middle linebacker Cameron Jensen, and he wastes little energy in setting the record straight.

"He may be the most enjoyable football player I've ever coached," Mendenhall said.

BYU's defense is coming off a terrible season this past year, embarrassed on national TV against Notre Dame when the Fighting Irish set all kinds of school records for passing touchdowns. A scary secondary, early injuries and breakdowns galore at critical times — like 20 seconds before halftime against Cal in the Las Vegas Bowl — were part of it.

Now, Jensen and his fellow linebackers are the building blocks of a new-look 3-4 front. The secondary will get a face-lift and insert some new players in the battle for playing time while the defensive line could see as many as two to four freshmen in the rotation after the Cougars lost five of the main six to graduation.

Jensen, you see, is as good a face as any in Mendenhall's defense to sprinkle some faith, hope and leadership on the way to get things back on track. A year ago, the Cougars ranked 91st in the NCAA in total defense, barely ahead of Air Force (98th) and Colorado State (99th) in the Mountain West Conference.

During the MWC football meetings in San Diego this week, Jensen said BYU's defense will be improved this coming season despite the youth and inexperience. He said the 3-4 front, which will rely heavily on the best athletes on that side of the ball — the linebackers — is the best use of personnel.

We shall see.

Jensen impressed Mendenhall early — like the first practice he had in a BYU uniform.

"We had a tough recruiting battle to get him here and in one of his first practices, he showed what he is made of," Mendenhall said.

After a practice, Mendenhall noticed Jensen hoisting some sandbags on his shoulders and darting around, making moves. "I don't even know where he got them. Maybe they came from the equipment shed or something."

But the image stuck with Mendenhall, the defensive coordinator for the Cougars at the time. "I thought, right then, there was something special about him.

"Cameron Jensen is one of best leaders I've been around."