BYU football: Aztecs hope for better defense

SAN DIEGO — In the last eight games between BYU and San Diego State, the Cougars have scored at least 41 points six times.

Meanwhile, when Rocky Long was coaching at New Mexico, his defenses gave up more than 41 points to BYU only once and surrendered fewer than 30 points in six of the last eight meetings dating back to 2001. Last season in Provo, for instance, the Long-led Lobo defense limited a potent Cougar offense to just 21 points.

Long is now the defensive coordinator at San Diego State under first-year head coach Brady Hoke, having installed a 3-3-5 scheme — and a tougher mentality — in the Aztecs' defense. That's why BYU is expecting a stiffer defensive challenge from SDSU when the two teams square off today (4 p.m., The mtn.) at Qualcomm Stadium.

"It's basically like playing New Mexico this week with Rocky Long over there and that style of defense — the 3-3-5," said BYU quarterback Max Hall. "San Diego State's defense is the strong part of their team. I think they play well on defense. They've struggled offensively in other aspects of the game. But I think their defense is solid and coach Long has done a good job preparing those guys."

BYU coach Bronco Mendenhall said Long has made an immediate impact since putting in place a new defensive look and mindset at San Diego State.

"I see players running as fast as they can to the ball, jumping over piles to get there, gang-tackling, interceptions, forced turnovers, and chaos in general," Mendenhall said. "They're tough and they play hard. That's who Rocky is. The biggest difference is, they've changed their mindset. They're playing really hard and aggressive. He's already put his stamp on it. It's noticeable when you watch film."

The Cougars' offense, on the other hand, is coming off its best performance of the season in a 59-21 triumph at UNLV. BYU did not turn the ball over and it rushed for 291 yards while passing for 320 more. This week, the Cougars will try to build on that momentum — which is especially important since they host nationally ranked TCU next Saturday.

"Now it's just, let's see how consistent can we be. Let's have a game like that every week," Hall said. "If we can keep rushing the ball well and blocking well and being physical, it will keep opening stuff up in the pass game. And if I can keep taking what they give us, then every once in a while take a shot, like you saw in that (UNLV) game, that's what it's all about. That's when it's fun. That's when we win games."