Expectations met: Mendenhall, Beck, 4 Y. players earn top honors in MWC voting

PROVO — BYU senior quarterback John Beck entered the 2006 campaign with several tasks on his to-do list — a winning season, a Mountain West Conference championship, a victory over arch-rival Utah, a bowl berth and a bowl win.

With the exception of a bowl win (the Cougars face Oregon in the Las Vegas Bowl on Dec. 21), Beck has accomplished everything on that list. He met the expectations heaped upon him, as well as the expectations he had for himself.

So it came as no surprise when, on Tuesday, he was the unanimous choice for Mountain West Conference offensive player of the year.

BYU coach Bronco Mendenhall earned conference coach of the year honors and the Cougars placed five players on the All-MWC first team — Beck, running back Curtis Brown, tight end Jonny Harline, offensive lineman Jake Kuresa and linebacker Cameron Jensen.

Beck and Jensen were unanimous first-team selections and they, along with Brown and Harline, received first-team recognition for the second straight season.

Last August, after he was named the preseason offensive player of the year, Beck was confident in himself and his team.

"After going through the refiner's fire, I feel like we're primed to have a great season," he said. "I feel very comfortable. I'm in my fourth year in the program. I feel we're going to get the job done. There's nothing new. We've gone through a season under coach Mendenhall and (offensive coordinator) Robert Anae. We know what we can do."

What he and the Cougars did was post a 10-2 record overall and go 8-0 in the MWC. Beck, a three-year starter, says he hasn't worried about his legacy, but he knows all about BYU's impressive quarterback tradition.

Like many of the great BYU QBs of the past, Beck made big plays in crucial moments, racked up glossy stats (he eclipsed Jim McMahon to secure the No. 2 spot all-time in passing in school history, only behind Ty Detmer, with more than 10,000 yards), won key games (such as knocking off nationally ranked TCU on the road in late September) and lead his team to a conference championship (the first for the program since 2001). He is only the second LDS returned-missionary quarterback to guide the Cougars to a league title.

Beck capped an outstanding regular-season with a last-minute, game-winning 75-yard drive against Utah. With no time remaining on the clock, he completed an 11-yard touchdown pass to Harline, rallying the Cougars to a dramatic 33-31 triumph.