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BYU football: Another missionary switches to play for Y.
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I can understand, however, why a Utah fan would want to lay a guilt trip on the Y and get them to self-impose another disadvantage that no other school is bound to.
There is NOTHING WRONG with BYU responding to a missionary's inquiry as long as it is done with care and doesn't distract the missionary from his missionary work.
Almost ALL missionaries make plans for their future while they're still serving.
We've had four children graduate from BYU. All four served missions and all four filled out applications and even scheduled classes for the upcoming school year, all while they were still serving in the mission field. None of them were athletes.
Missionaries are very capable of being fully committed to their missionary service and still find time to make plans for after their missions.
Why should athletes be held to a different standard?
What Ute and Aggie fans are questioning is the ethics of BYU coaches and these kids' families for that matter. I understand missionaries should have realistic goals set for when they return, but is it really necessary to have college plans set in stone while you still have a year left on the mission?
The uproar of all of this is mainly due to the fact that BYU has a winning program that these young men want to play for...not to mention a great school.
Bronco Mendenhall is a coach that any parent should be proud to have their son play for!!
Milosi played at American Fork until he could see that the coaches didn't have a full appreciation for his talents so he went to Kahuku.
The coaching staff at American Fork has the mentality of sharing the load for running the ball even though one may be clearly better and should get most of the carries. I know because my son was a player there and he knows Milosi. Because Milosi didn't get the carries and the attention from Universities he should have @ AF-he went to Kahuku.
Kahuku didn't necessarily receive Milosi with open arms and they made him play behind someone else since that player had been there. But with his talent he finally got noticed later in the season there and he got the playing time he deserved.
BYU didn't give him the time of day until his parents came knocking! He's definitely worth the scholarship but under the circumstances didn't get noticed until his family made the contact. He's coming to the school he always wanted to play for!!
The big deal, of course, is that some people, check that, many people, expect something just a little better from a Universtiy who has as its Board of Trustees the Quorum of the Twelve.
Truth is, and nothing could demonstrate it much better than the string of comments above, BYU fans are just like other fans -- their fanatics. They care more about their perception of what it means to have a "great" football program than they do about having, for example, a broken heart and contrite spirit.
That's OK -- except for when they pretend it isn't so. Then, it's their behavior, much more than anything done by their coach or players, that really makes them what they are.
Regarding the ethics, what is wrong with a recruitable kid or their family contacting a school to find out if they can play for that school? What is wrong with a coach (keeping NCAA rules)responding to such a kid, even if they are on a mission? If it is wrong, why does every other school do this, and most schools even cross that line and initiate contact with kids to recruit them to their program? BYU has been very careful not to cross that line. Other schools have no problem initiating contact. So, why are Utes and the BYU haters making such a bid deal? The only think I can come up with is their hatred for BYU and the fact that they can't stand that BYU is good and getting better.
Objective fan??? Hardly.
That's one of the tough parts of college sports. When a team starts doing well, people that play at slumping schools jump ship and join the successful team (for a chance at a little more publicity and professional prospect). The good get better while the not so good try to find a way to cope. This was BYUs situation just four short years ago (w/Ben Olson)
Maybe players shouldn't be allowed to switch schools once they've made a decision to sign with one team. Does that idea work better for everyone out there complaining about these recent moves? No, wait...I've got an even better idea. For every time a player decides to transfer to another school, the NCAA should remove one of their fingers. That would make some players think twice about changing their loyalties.
Plus, these players weren't really recruited by BYU
According to Riley Nelson's dad BYU contacted Riley's parents through his high school coach.
Accroding to Te'os dad the parents contacted BYU.
Conclusion- Jensen was recruited, Te'o was not. Bronco went against his policy with Jensen, with the policy with Te'o.
The End
YES< YES< and YES,
it is REALLY NECESSARY
...if you want to play for a major college football program.
For most athletes, there is only a very small window of opportunity. If you wait too long, that window of opportunity may be closed.
EVERY school has a limited number of scholarships and has to divy them up to cover ALL positions and ALL years.
If an athlete, who isn't already on the list of scholarship players, intends to play for a certain school, he needs to get his name on the list as soon as possible so that the school can make plans to include him, otherwise, there may not be an available scholarship or open position for him to fill.
There is that brilliant group who says "only the last two years matter and we Cougars know how we've dominated those games -- so get a life (Collie and Harline . . .)".
Then, there is the "'history' matters -- but only if we define it the way I want it defined and that's the LaVell era" group.
Then, there is the "we won a National Championship and you didn't -- so, neenerneenerneener" bunch.
Oh, and don't forget the "we won all those conference championships" group.
Pretend the all-time record in the rivalry isn't BYU-30 wins Utah-49 wins.
Pretend the record over the last 10 or 20 years isn't just about even.
Pretend that the bowl game record of all those conference champions isn't embarrassing.
Pretend that going undefeated in 1984 is way better than going undefeated in 2005 since no other team went undefeated in 1984.
Pretend that Ty Detmer is a much better player than Alex Smith (I'd put Steve Young's name in here if I were you, oh -- but wait he didn't win a Heisman either).
Pretend, pretend, pretend.
Best sign yet that BYU football is healthy>
LALAL HEY HEY WHO CARES!!
Who is this guy freakin LT or Reggie Bush? Just like Nelson is a 5'10 Tim Tebow or something? Guys who cares, these aren't big time players or recruits. Let them go play at BYU or whatever. Guys are making such a big deal about kids you don't even know. My proof there are 4 pages of ridicoulis comments.
hasnt the wac champ played in the bcs bowls the last couple yrs.
imagine if byu was in a bcs bowl - lol
I guess they did win a national title in 1984. And they totally deserved it, not many teams could barely beat a 6-6 Michigan that finished 5 place in the big ten.
I still dont understand why barry switzer of Oklahoma was mad byu was the national champion football team?
how did u stand living in provo for the 2 yrs it took to get the degree that alone impresses me.
When Gifford Nielson broke his leg in the 1970"s against Oregon I was so upset I didn't go to church the next day. (God had abandoned us)
I used to think a BYU win was a win for the church.
When a student at BYU, I wouldn't confess red was my favorite color.
One of my BYU football roommates drank beer. I refused to turn him in for honor code violations. Karma came back to bite me. One evening my date asked if she could see where I lived. When we entered my apartment it was empty, but 10 empty beer bottles had been left surrounding the kitchen table. It was my first and last date with her.
Please show me one piece of evidence that Bronco recruited these two young men?
Please tell me:
Did Bronco send them a letter (before the family contacted him)?
Did he send out his Assitant coaches to the families to persuade them to have the kid change his mind?
Did he offer a scholorship to these young men BEFORE they contacted him?
Nelson - Higgens was talking to the Logan Coach in a causul conversation and mentioned that BYU was interested. It was the Logan coach that did the recruiting
Recruiting? Borderline, not recruiting in the general sense of the word
Teo - This is all the family and young man decision.
They contacted Bronco, WHO WAITED UNTIL THE LEGAL TIME TO MAKE CONTACT to email the PARENTS (still no contact with player). This wait was something like a year, the kid must have been wondering why the whole time.
Recruiting - NO! no way, no sense , no how
Listen, I never said its wrong to seek out educational/athletic opportunities while on the mission, I just asked if it's necessary with a year left when most missionaries are just barely getting comfortable with their new surroundings. I agree with the assertion that many college athletes on a mission have a small window of opportunity to receive a scholarship to a school of their choice. But I also agree that it could have a negative impact on the focus of some of these missionaries.
For any of us to pretend, though, that we know how these recruiting efforts (on both sides) impact these kids on their missions is ludicrous. It may be trivial to a kid's focus, but it could also be detrimental. The latter is why I tend to question the ethics.
But since the formation of the WAC in 1964:
Overall
BYU 348-168-3 (67%)
Utah 264-233-3 (53%)
head-to-head (BYU 28, Utah 16)
WAC
BYU 279-127-3 (68%) 19 WAC; 1 National championship
Utah 192-197-3 (49%) 2 WAC championships
head-to-head (BYU 24, Utah 11)
MWC
BYU 69-41 (63%) 4 MWC championships
Utah 72-36 (67%) 3 MWC championships
head-to-head (BYU 4, Utah 5)
Bottom line, Utah has become more competitive and, thanks to Urban Meyer's 2 great season, and Gary Crowtons 3 terrible seasons, Utah has a slightly better record, but fewer conference championships than BYU since the formation of MWC.
Even so, Utah's much improved record (67%) over the last 9 years is the same as BYU's record (67%) for the past 45 years.
The trend, however, starting with Mendenhall and Whittingham, is going in BYU's favor. If Utah doesn't want to fall back into the shadow again, they're going to have to pick up the pace.
Why can't Y fans admit Bronconi is like everyone else when it comes to recruiting. He uses his advantage and playing the religion card in his advantage. His "higher standards" are just for the consumption of those he is recruiting, but not for his staff.
I'm going to laugh when Manti goes to USC and you are stuck with his lesser cousins and your plan to land the big fish.
When was the last time Utah won a national championship?....Oh, right NEVER!
When was the last time a Ute player won the Heisman?
NEVER!
Seems Utah is still in the Y's shadow.
signed
BYU Mens Volleyball
"The LDS institution of BYU says one thing, and does another. Obviously, all BYU and the LDS church care about is winning. Pitiful. So much for your higher standards and being different. "
Of course we are about winning. Aren't you? Look, I wouldn't give a fig for someone who doesn't play sports and life to win. Where is the high standard in aiming lower? How different is it to be as mediocre as possible? Everyone should aim to be the best they can be, and not be ashamed if they are blessed with success.
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Look at what Bronco has done to BYU football, the character of these young men, to the community, and to the MWC. He has brought respect and honor to all of the above. He honored his own recruiting policy, which is at a higher standard than any other coach. I guarantee you that most other coaches have absolutely no problem contacting and recruiting players on missions. It happens all of the time to BYU players, whether they choose to go or not.
BYU haters, where is your class??????????? Where??