BYU football: Stephenson's hoop dreams move to gridiron

PROVO — When Riley Stephenson was a freshman in high school, he figured basketball was his sport. Much to his disappointment, however, he was cut from the hoops team.

Then one day Stephenson and his father, Curtis, were kicking the football around. And it soon dawned on both of them that Riley should pursue a new passion and focus on a different kind of hang time.

"We noticed that, dang, I can kick the ball," Stephenson recalled.

Yes, he can.

Stephenson became one of the top kickers in Utah prep history at Pine View High in St. George, where he starred as a punter and a placekicker.

"It eventually got me a scholarship (to BYU)," said Stephenson. "I guess it's just finding what you're good at and just perfecting that and doing your best at it."

The Cougar freshman is making the most of his playing time this season. Stephenson is the punter and he also handles kickoff duties. In BYU's 38-7 loss to TCU last weekend, his performance was one of the few highlights for the Cougars.

Concerned about the Horned Frogs' star kick returner, Jeremy Kerley, Cougar coaches gave Stephenson very specific instructions.

"That week in practice, I was told strictly not to kick it down the middle," Stephenson said. "We focused on kicking toward the sideline, and we left (Kerley) with (few) yards. I think we got the job done pretty well."

Stephenson punted six times against TCU, averaging 47 yards per kick, including a 57-yarder. He placed two punts inside the 20-yard line and had one touchback. Kerley did not return a single punt.

"He was exceptional. He punted the ball really well and directionally," BYU coach Bronco Mendenhall said. "He has a great leg on him, but what we were concerned about most was being able to put it where we needed to put it to limit Kerley's ability to return. The kickoffs — there weren't many, but they were exactly where they needed to be."

At Pine View, Stephenson set the state record for most point-after touchdowns (193). He is second in state history for PATs in a season (75) and is tied for second with career field goals (19). He also holds state records for longest field goal (54 yards), and total career points (250).

Before enrolling at BYU, the 6-foot, 183-pound Stephenson served an LDS Church mission to New Zealand, where he gained 40 pounds. He said that additional weight gives him more power in his punts.

"I feel like I'm a lot better now than I was in high school," he said. "That extra 40 pounds has really helped."