This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2011, and information in the article may be outdated.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.
As I reported here, the football-playing BYU Cougars won't practice this week, due to finals. A BYU football spokesperson says the first practice in preparation for the Armed Forces Bowl will be on Dec. 19 (next Monday). That means the Cougars will practice only eight or nine times before facing Tulsa in Dallas on Dec. 30. There is some BYU football news today, however. Quarterback Riley Nelson is the FBS Independent Player of the Week, along with Navy kicker Jon Teague and Navy linebacker Matt Warrick. Since BYU and Notre Dame played last week and Army and Navy played each other last Saturday, the weeks are combined for this week's honors. It is the fourth weekly award for Nelson, who completed 25 of 37 passes for 363 yards and three touchdowns again Hawaii.Remember Manti Te'o? He's the Hawaii product who was heavily recruited by BYU a few years ago, but chose Notre Dame in a somewhat surprising decision. Te'o announced over the weekend that he will return to Notre Dame for his senior season next year. Many NFL draft analysts say Te'o would have gone in the first round if he came out early. ESPN draft analyst Mel Kiper Jr. listed Te'o as his No. 13 overall draft prospect. Finally, check out this video for one of the finest catches you will ever see on the football field. Simply incredible.—————————— BYU's basketball team will also take a good chunk of the week off without practicing to take final exams. The Cougars' next game is Saturday at home against Baylor. The Bears play host to Bethune-Cookman on Wednesday night in Waco.
Tribune TV critic Scott Pierce wrote about the BYU-Utah television broadcast here.