This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2011, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
BYU rolled to a 56-3 win over Idaho State in front of 60,043 fans here at LaVell Edwards Stadium, which was pretty much what everyone expected. After the game, coach Bronco Mendenhall was asked if he learned anything about his team after it rolled up 572 yards and held the Bengals to 251. He said he learned more about the Cougars by the way they practiced this week for an FCS opponent. He said they practiced as hard as if they were preparing for TCU. That comes this week. The Frogs, having pummeled New Mexico to improve to 5-2, will meet the Cougars on Friday at Dallas Cowboys Stadium. As for today's game, Riley Nelson continued to impress. Sure, it was against a lower-division opponent, but Nelson was sharp with most of his throws and again did some damage with his legs. In playing 2 1/2 quarters, he was 11 of 17 for 215 yards and three touchdowns, and also ran for 62 yards — second to only Michael Alisa, who gained 66 yards on eight tries. Jake Heaps was just so-so in his first action since getting yanked against Utah State. Heaps was 8 of 10 for 67 yards, but also threw an interception and bungled at least one handoff. Certainly, Heaps didn't come close to being impressive enough to get his starting job back. There's absolutely no doubt that Nelson will start against TCU. By the way, I mentioned in an article Saturday that Idaho State was receiving close to $500,000 for playing at BYU. A source told me that the payday was more in the neighborhood of $400,000, but declined to specify the exact amount. Time to clear out of the pressbox here at LES. First, a couple comments from the coaches: BYU coach Bronco Mendenhall's opening statement: "Just some quick thoughts on the game. I believe we play consistently for four quarters. It was a great chance, especially in the third and a half to fourth quarter, a chance to give the younger players a chance to play. I think they handled their assignments pretty well. Certainly, the scoring potential wasn't the same as it was early on. There should be a little drop-off, when the younger players go in. But I think they executed at a pretty high level. I really believed our team prepared well this past week in practice, and it is a unique challenge, especially playing an FCS opponent, at this time of the year. But I think our team showed a lot of maturity and handled it well. And that was a real step forward in my opinion. Other than that, the outcome is what I would have hoped. We scored a lot of points on offense and didn't give up many on defense. I think we still gained momentum going into the last four weeks of the season, and a short week."Mendenhall on Jake Heaps' performance and chance to play: "I was just really glad that he had an opportunity, and we had an opportunity to give him some playing time. As always, he throws the ball very well, he's aggressive with the football, and he had a chance to lead our team. It was fun to see him smiling, and that's a good thing." Mendenhall on whether the defense was too conservative early in the game: "I don't remember as much, other than we played mostly base zone almost the entire game. Early on, I was trying to get a feel for, with the ball coming out so quickly, what would be the best approach. So I was trying to find my way a little bit as the play-caller. Our execution, we were a little bit too soft, especially on the underneath coverages. I believe there were a couple of offsides, or pass interference, and I believe that contributed. Once that drive was kinda under our belt, our players and myself as a play caller, I think I put them in better situations, so that was more a reflection of me, than them."Mendenhall on keeping the final score reasonable: "We were hopeful to get Jake a couple drives, a couple of scoring drives, and then make it very clear that all we were going to do was run the football. So it took a little longer to get the drives that we wanted. But our intent, and our communication between Brandon and myself, was run it, run it, run it, run it, and then when you need to, play-action. And then run it, run it, run it, and so I have been on the other side. And that's what our approach was. Going into about the six-minute mark, it was, 'there are to be no passes.' I don't remember when that was exactly. But that was our communication."Mendenhall on Riley Nelson's play and him growing into the role: "I think he played about how he has been playing the last couple of weeks. He throws the ball well. I guess I could say he throws the ball especially well, and on time, and those possession throws, he is exceptional at. Then, once you get him moving, then that seems to be when the bigger plays start to happen — once he is outside the pocket, or avoiding the rush. With that, it changes a defense's mindset, because you have one more player to defend, and when he then pulls it down to run it, you just don't have enough guys. And it is very frustrating for an opponent. He has the ability to create, and that is just inherent to who he is." Idaho State coach Mike Kramer opening statement: "Great demonstration by BYU where they are at in their program. They've grown a lot in the last three weeks. They started out of the gate and they didn't play as effective in their first five games. Now they are a much different and much improved team and they showed it today." Kramer on what his team accomplished: "It was 56-3, but there was a lot of growth. We lost our guys a bit in the second quarter, but we talked to our guys at halftime. I like what I saw in the second half. I'm proud of their effort. I liked how we continued to fight, especially in the second half. I challenged the kids at halftime and said we wanted to see better play in the second half."