BYU football: Cougars' kicking competition is close
Provo • The 10,000 or so fans who attended BYU's open practice Saturday didn't get to see as much scrimmaging as most of them would have liked, but they did get to see the football go through the uprights quite a bit.
And that made coach Bronco Mendenhall happy.
If anyone was doubting that the Cougars are spending an inordinate amount of time trying to find a reliable kicker for the 2013 season, those doubts were erased at LaVell Edwards Stadium, as senior incumbent Justin Sorensen (5-for-6) and one-time University of Utah recruit Vance "Moose" Bingham (4-for-6) attempted six field goals apiece and juco transfer Trevor Samson (2-for-3) got three tries. Samson was a perfect 5-for-5 on PAT attempts and Bingham 2-for-2, while Sorensen wasn't called on to try an extra point.
"It was fun to get a few extra kicks in a live situation," Mendenhall said. "We are trying to evaluate our kickers. We have three in the competition, and it has been really close."
Mendenhall said all three have made a high percentage of their kicks through the first week of camp, and that this coming week will be crucial for all three competitors.
Redshirt junior Scott Arellano will handle the punting chores and the holding chores.
Sorensen said earlier in the week that he is finally healthy after dealing with a bad back last season. He is confident that he will win the competition.
"It was a hard year, it really was," he said. "To not play with a ton of confidence, and to not play healthy at all, was hard. ... I don't think about it anymore. If anything, it is motivation to really have a good senior year."
Coug commitments
BYU received a commitment Sunday from Nick Kurtz, a sophomore receiver at Grossmont Community College in California. Kurtz caught 49 passes for 697 yards and 10 touchdowns last season and chose BYU over offers from Texas Tech, Oregon and others.
Texas prep running back and defensive back Cedric Dale spent most of last week in Provo visiting the BYU campus and attending Saturday's open practice and scrimmage. Before he left, the 5-foot-8, 170-pound speedster from Hebron High in Lewisville, Texas committed to play for BYU.
Dale will sign in February 2014. He also had offers from North Texas, Texas Tech, Nevada and Colorado State.
BYU now has 14 commitments for the class of 2014.
Briefly
Mendenhall said after Saturday's practice that of the seven or so newcomers to the offensive line, true freshman Brayden Kearsley of Aloha, Ore., and junior college transfer De'Ondre Wesley of Pleasant Hill, Calif. (Diablo Valley CC) have "shown the most through fall camp ... and played the best." ... J.D. Falslev is going to be BYU's primary kick and punt returner, but Mendenhall said on Saturday that Eric Thornton and Skyler Ridley are in the mix to also return punts and Cody Hoffman, Adam Hine and Jordan Johnson are being looked at to return kickoffs.
drew@sltrib.comTwitter: @drewjay —
Just kicking it
Saturday's BYU kicking performances
Kicker Yardage of Field Goals Made Yardage of Field Goals Missed
Justin Sorensen 52, 38, 27, 27, 27 38
Trevor Samson 52, 20 38
Moose Bingham 38, 20, 20, 20 52, 33
Note: Samson was 5-for-5 on PATs and Bingham was 2-for-2