BYU football: Linebacker Jordan Pendleton aching to play after gutting it out

PROVO — During BYU's memorable upset of Oklahoma in last year's season-opener, outside linebacker Jordan Pendleton suffered an agonizing shoulder injury.

But that didn't keep him out of the lineup. Pendleton played the rest of the 2009 campaign in pain.

"It was a grind. It was a long season," the 6-foot-2, 239-pound junior said. "But I made it though. I'm happy I did."

Not only did Pendleton play, he played extremely well.

The Bingham High product recorded 52 tackles (30 solo), six tackles-for-loss for minus-36 yards, three sacks, three pass breakups, five quarterback hurries, an interception, and he returned a fumble for a touchdown.

But he was far from satisfied.

"I wasn't able to be as physical as I wanted to be, obviously. That was one of the most frustrating things," he said. "There were some plays I had to compromise because of my shoulder. But really, it was about putting the shoulder aside. Once the adrenaline gets going, you kick into a different gear. I didn't want to sit. I had to play through the pain."

Not long after the Cougars defeated Oregon State in the Las Vegas Bowl at the end of the season, Pendleton underwent surgery on his shoulder. During fall camp, he has seen very little "live" action as a precautionary measure.

But Pendleton said he will be ready to play once the season opens on Sept. 4 against Washington.

"I should be full-go by the first game. I feel pretty good. Pretty sore, but I'll be all right," he said. "It shouldn't be too difficult to get used to hitting. When we start preparing for Washington this week, I'll start to practice more, and I'll be ready to play. I'll have a week-and-a-half to get into that mode before the game."

Outside linebackers coach Nick Howell was impressed with Pendleton's performance last season.

"Jordan Pendleton's tough," he said. "He played the whole season injured. He's one of our best-conditioned athletes. He's a leader in the weight room. He's doing everything possible to be as strong as he possibly can. He's about there. He's on his way. He's tough-minded and he wants to win. He wants to help the team win as much as he can."

Pendleton spent his first couple of years at BYU as a safety. But once he was moved to outside linebacker during the spring of 2009, Pendleton looked, and felt, right at home.