BYU's Olsen says he is ready if needed

The Cougars will hold their final scrimmage of 2013 fall camp this morning at LaVell Edwards Stadium, but the event is not open to the public. Media members will be able to view the last half-hour of the proceedings, beginning at 11 a.m. By then quarterbacks Taysom Hill and Ammon Olsen will most likely be finished for the day. I wrote about the quarterbacks, especially Olsen, in this morning's newspaper. There's also a story in the paper and online about the BYU basketball team's 2013-14 schedule, which is now complete since the WCC released the league schedule on Tuesday. Sometimes a backup quarterback will complain about the number of reps he has received in spring or fall camp, saying he never really got a shot to show what he could do. That's not the case with Olsen. "I feel like I've had a lot of success this fall. Little by little, I am starting to show my true colors with the team, and the players. My timing is getting better with the receivers, and it is just all a matter of chemistry with everyone. I think we are moving along really well," he said. A few more comments from Olsen:On how he's played so well in camp:"It is just not getting down and playing my best and focusing on myself, focusing on everything I do day by day to make myself better. It is just looking at myself in the mirror and not at other people."On how close they are to being ready to play a game:"I think we are getting there. Today, even the scrimmage on Saturday was good. Our run game was getting better, and I think that's the main aspect. So I think we are getting better. In a week and a half, I think we will be able to pull it all together and look good for Virginia."On whether he finds himself thinking what it would be like to start:"I need to have that mindset, that we are one play away [from him playing] because if it is the middle of the game and I get called on, I have to be ready for the team. So that is my mentality, even in practice. I am just focusing on executing everything they ask me to do."——————————- As has been well-documented, junior field corner Jordan Johnson, a returning starter, tore an ACL on Aug. 12 while returning a kickoff. Johnson spoke publicly about the season-ending injury for the first time after Monday's practice. "It has been really tough. It is not something you ever plan for," he said. "It is tough to cope with. I wish it had never happened, but it did. It is life, you just have to move on." Johnson said not being able to get the year back because he redshirted not due to injury his first year in Provo has added salt to the wound. "It is a really unfortunate for me," he said. "I can't get this year back. I redshirted [in 2010] so I'm losing this year."