The Beginning of BYU's venture into Independence

With it being the worst time of the year for sports, it's the perfect time to write about some college football. Especially with a lockout in the NBA and NFL. So happy Independence Day to all of the BYU fans out there. Independence definitely has its pros and cons. It will be really nice to have all 12 of BYU's football games on either ESPN or BYUTV. It will also be exciting to look at the schedule and not see many games that you can chalk up as wins on paper. However, this will also mean that a lot harder games will also be on the schedule. But, with the rising level of interest and higher caliber athletes being recruited, I think that the Cougars could be pretty competitive in a couple years. Heck the level of talent on BYU's football team right now is much better than say 2008. Now I am going to move to a breakdown of BYU's offense and defense. Here are highlights from the New Mexico Bowl from last year:


Offense: with all but 2 starters returning from last year's offense, things are looking very good. They ended the season very well. People might say "well look who they did it against" but Jake Heaps and Co. would not have done that in the beginning of the year. Just look at the Utah game. Heaps completed 60 percent of his passes for 228 yards and a touchdown. The offense collectively put up 300 yards on a solid Utah defense. That is improvement right there. Plus, most of these offensive players were Freshman and Sophmores last year. They will only get better. With the addition of Ross Apo and hopefully a couple breakout tight ends, this offense could be very fun to watch in 2011. Also, with all but one offensive lineman returning, plus All-American Matt Reynolds, this group could give Heaps plenty of time and open big gaping holes for Josh Quezada, JJ Diluigi, and Bryan Kariya.

BYU's defense going into 2011 has a few question marks, mostly in the secondary. The front seven will no question be stacked with a very strong core of linebackers, led by Uona Kaveinga. The defensive line will be good at stopping the run. The defensive tackle position has 4 capable players. They include Romney Fuga, Hebron Fangupo, Travis Tuiloma, and Jordan Richardson. The linebackers are deep, with Kaveinga, Jordan Pendleton, Kyle Van Noy, Zac Stout, and Brandon Ogletree. The question marks lie in the secondary, where no starters return from last year. However, I think the guys fighting for a starting position are more talented and faster than the defensive backs of the past. Watch out for Robbie Buckner and DeQuan Everett to stand out during fall camp, which is only about one month away!

Here are some 2010 college football highlights to get you excited about the season, which is only 2 months away!:

Here's to All of Jimmer's doubters

I have a read a lot of stuff about Jimmer Fredette's NBA future while he did his workouts with various NBA teams. All I hear is the so called experts say that all he can do is shoot and his game will not translate. However I have researched some stats of players who had the same things said about them. How does someone who consistently made 30 foot shots with double teams and hands in his face not carry that kind of shooting over to the NBA. He will get a ton of wide open shots in the NBA because teams can't afford to send double teams to him on a team that features Tyreke Evans, Demarcus Cousins, Marcus Thornton, and John Salmons.

Now for the comparisons. First is Gordon Hayward. He was drafted ninth in the 2010 NBA draft to the Utah Jazz, to the dismay of many Jazz attending the draft party at Energy Solutions Arena. The knock on him was he is a skinny white kid who isn't athletic enough to play in the NBA. Also, he shot just 29% from the 3 point line in college. Most people said that would not translate to the NBA. However, in his rookie season, he did better than anyone would have dreamed of. In the Jazz's season finale, he scored 34 points against the Denver Nuggets. I shouldn't give him too much credit, it is the Nuggets after all, but nonetheless still impressive. Also, days before against the Los Angeles Lakers in LA, he guarded Kobe Bryant and did a fantastic job guarding him. Oh, by the way he scored 20 points in a win. As for his 3 point field goal percentage? 47%. That is about an 18 percent increase from college.

Steph Curry drew many of the same criticism from doubters when he was about to be drafted. "He can only shoot," they said. He average 18 points per game both seasons and shot 48 percent from the field, and about 44 percent from the 3 point line. He maintained his shooting and was a scorer in both seasons. Also interesting to note is his 6 assists per game per season. So not only is he a proven scorer, but he can dish the ball out too. Another thing Fredette, Hayward, and Curry have in common is their heritage from relatively small schools.

So for anyone who says Jimmer can't be a player in the NBA, just look at Curry and Hayward and think again.