BYU may have lost starting noseguard

When Max Hall wasn't firing darts, running backs Harvey Unga and Manase Tonga bulldozed their way through defenders Saturday during BYU's first scrimmage of fall practice at LaVell Edwards Stadium.

Advantage to the offense after Week 1.

"It wasn't just a matter of getting pushed around. We got punched in the face," said senior linebacker Bryan Kehl. "You need focus, intensity and execution, and we didn't have it out there today defensively."

Also, BYU may have lost its second defensive starter in three days.

Noseguard Russell Tialavea, the Cougars' only experienced player at that position, went down in the second series with what head coach Bronco Mendenhall said appeared to be a serious knee injury, possibly a torn ACL. He will undergo an MRI on Monday to determine the extent of his injury.

"Yeah, it affected us, " said Kehl of Tialavea's injury. "It might have taken something out of us because we were thinking about him, but the offense took it right down the field on us on the first drive before he went out."

Unga, who some call "BYU's secret weapon" for 2007, ripped off a 28-yard run on the first offensive series against the first-team defense to set up a 3-yard touchdown run by Joe Semanoff, who ran in standing up. Overshadowed by 240-pound Fui Vakapuna and 235-pound Manase Tonga, Unga has long had a reputation in camp as a punishing runner who delivers sore shoulders to tacklers.

In BYU's offensive sets, it was evident the Cougars will use the line and the running backs to secure the launch of Hall's career at quarterback.

"Our run game was impressive, which we hoped it would be, and that is encouraging," Mendenhall said. "Our defense wasn't as physical as I'd hoped they would be."

Unga has also been impressive in camp, said the coach.

"What he proved today is he can catch the ball out of the backfield and break tackles, and that part, the power component, is really impressive," Mendenhall said.

Unga, a 220-pound freshman three years removed from his key role on Timpview's 2004 state championship team, took a 12-yard pass from Hall on the third series, turned upfield and used a block by tight end Vic So'oto to race down the sideline for a 63-yard touchdown.

"I just tried to do my part, come out ready to play and win, no matter who we're playing against," Unga said.