BYU football: Bronco epitomizes the true-blue Cougar

Bronco Mendenhall is an outsider. He didn't wear the colors. He never sweated on the field in pads, went through the battles or enjoyed the titles and the rankings. He never played on teams that killed UTEP or felt the agony of losing to UTEP. He is not a LaVell Edwards player.

Mendenhall, however, has been adopted by BYU — and the papers are notarized. Funny thing is, he's gone from illegal alien to citizen and now he's a judge. This Bronco guy is now the heart and soul of what it means to be a BYU football player. That strikes some as remarkable.

Mendenhall played at Snow College, then Oregon State after his career at American Fork High. He never followed his father Paul or his brother Mat to BYU. But now it's hard to visualize BYU football without him, say former players, who gathered this weekend as Mendenhall's guests for Alumni Day where he personally saluted, courted, shared his meetings, practices and barbecue with them.

"I can't believe he's not a BYU guy, that he didn't go to school here," said former NFL All Pro tight end Chad Lewis.

"How does he know the culture of this place and how has he reinvented it for so many fans around the world and other sports here? As a non-BYU guy, how can he be the flag bearer for this place? Well, he is. And it's incredible."

Lewis isn't talking about the 22-4 run with two MWC titles. He's talking about a feeling around the football program that Mendenhall has mined in a short time. It's tough to explain, but it's tangible and part of the reason why this annual alumni reunion of former football players on Friday has doubled, then tripled the past three years as former players have recruited their teammates to flock back to Provo and retell stories and introduce wives and kids to their former mates.

Held in conjunction with LDS general conference, it may have overtaken any high school reunion in the state, any missionary reunion going on. It is so big, when Mendenhall addresses the group, it's in the stadium.

None of this is lost on Lewis, a former walk-on at BYU out of Orem High.

Mendenhall may have come from the outside, but he's now in control of the round table.

"He does it because he cares about LaVell Edwards and the legacy he started.