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Houston • Kyle Van Noy craned his neck toward the NFL Network platform above him, conversing with analyst Kurt Warner, a finalist for the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Saturday's annual voting.
"Long way from the grocery store," Van Noy said, referencing Warner's famous journey from stocking shelves in Iowa to playing in three Super Bowls as a quarterback.
Van Noy then told Warner a short version of his own route to Sunday's Super Bowl LI at NRG Stadium. He's come a long way from Reno, Nev.
That's where DUI charges in high school deferred Van Noy's enrollment at BYU and could have kept him from his coming to Provo at all. Yet he became one of the most productive defensive players in school history, as a star of the 2012 defense that also featured current NFL players Ziggy Ansah and Daniel Sorensen and might be the best group the Cougars have ever fielded.
New England's acquiring him via trade in October (risking only a swap of late-round picks) was necessary, though, for Van Noy to meet the NFL's expectations that accompanied him as a second-round choice of Detroit in 2014. He even wondered about himself.
"There was a lot of doubt, anger, all those emotions, just because things weren't going the way I wanted," Van Noy said.
When he suddenly was traded, Van Noy had this rush of reactions: "Oh, man. What happened? And then grateful to be put in the awesome place that I am."
He's playing a consistent role for a Super Bowl contestant, having been on the field for 61 percent of the Patriots' defensive plays in the AFC championship game vs. Pittsburgh. He made four solo tackles and forced a fumble after a pass completion, with teammate Rob Ninkovich making the recovery. Like former Utah defensive back Eric Rowe, who arrived from Philadelphia in September, Van Noy is becoming another example of how the Patriots keep finding players and maximizing them.
"He's worked to make it as smooth as it could be possibly be," linebackers coach Brian Flores said of Van Noy's transition. "He did a really good job just learning our system and finding a niche on our team."
Van Noy recalls waking at 5 a.m. and staying at the team facility until 10 p.m. for a couple of weeks, responding to Flores' promise that as soon as he learned the defensive system, he would play. It helped that the Patriots traded veteran linebacker Jamie Collins five days later, and Van Noy worked his way onto the field. He's listed as the backup to middle linebacker Dont'a Hightower, but New England moves its linebackers all over the field, as his BYU role dictated.
"That scheme fits him perfectly," said former BYU linebackers coach Kelly Poppinga, now at Virginia.
The Cavaliers' staff visited New England's training camp last summer, when a Patriots scout lamented not being able to draft Van Noy in 2014. A few months later, the Patriots acquired him and created a role that suited him, unlike the case in Detroit.
"It's refreshing," Van Noy said. The Patriots "allow you to play to your strengths and enjoy football."
That happened in Provo, where Van Noy thrived after having to be reined in somewhat. As a junior in 2012, he recorded 13 sacks and 22 tackles for loss. He finished that season with an epic fourth quarter against San Diego State in the Poinsettia Bowl, making a strip-sack and recovering the ball in the end zone and then returning an interception 17 yards for another score.
From his vantage point on offense, former BYU quarterback Riley Nelson initially wondered how Van Noy would fit into coach Bronco Mendenhall's defense, with strict assignments. "He had a very good knack for knowing when was the exact time to operate outside of those rules and fundamentals," Nelson said. "More often than not, it worked out."
Even so, Poppinga benched him early in Van Noy's sophomore season of 2011 because he was straying too much from his assignments. "I took a lot of heat for that, not playing our best player, but he learned a valuable lesson," Poppinga said.
BYU's 2012 defense held Boise State's offense scoreless (the Broncos scored a defensive touchdown in a 7-6 win) and limited Georgia Tech's option scheme to 117 rushing yards and three offensive points. Without Ansah's preoccupying opponents and the Cougars facing a tougher schedule, Van Noy was less disruptive as a senior with four sacks. The BYU staff had to get even more creative, because opponents were game-planning for him, Poppinga said. Van Noy still posted a career-high 67 tackles, including 17 for losses.
"You always kind of a feeling that he had very closely held personal goals that he was very serious about, more so than your average college player," Nelson said. And when former Cougars with NFL ties were on campus, "That's when you saw Kyle's eyes light up."
The glimmer is back, now that Van Noy is in the Super Bowl. He's still processing the trade and hoping for a long stay in New England with his wife, Marissa — the 2013 Miss Utah, who's pursuing a modeling and acting career.
"She's the champ," Van Noy said, crediting Marissa for handling everything else and allowing him to focus on football upon their arrival in Foxboro, Mass.
On Sunday, Van Noy hopes to earn that title himself.
Twitter: @tribkurt —
Super Bowl
Patriots vs. Falcons
At Houston
Sunday, 4:30 p.m.
TV • Ch. 13
—
BYU in the Super Bowl
The history of former BYU players on game-day active rosters for the Super Bowl:
Bowl Player Pos. Team Result
IX Gordon Gravelle OL Pittsburgh Pittsburgh 16, Minnesota 6
X Gordon Gravelle OL Pittsburgh Pittsburgh 21, Dallas 17
XII Paul Howard OL Denver Dallas 27, Denver 10
XIV Gordon Gravelle OL L.A. Rams Pittsburgh 31, L.A. Rams 19
XV Todd Christensen TE Oakland Oakland 27, Philadelphia 10
XV Marc Wilson QB Oakland Oakland 27, Philadelphia 10
XVI Bill Ring RB San Francisco San Francisco 26, Cincinnati 21
XVII Mat Mendenhall DL Washington Washington 27, Miami 17
XVIII Todd Christensen TE L.A. Raiders L.A. Raiders 30, Washington 9
XVIII Marc Wilson QB L.A. Raiders L.A. Raiders 30, Washington 9
XIX Tom Holmoe DB San Francisco San Francisco 38, Miami 16
XIX Bill Ring RB San Francisco San Francisco 38, Miami 16
XIX Todd Shell LB San Francisco San Francisco 38, Miami 16
XX Jim McMahon QB Chicago Chicago 46, New England 10
XXI Bart Oates OL N.Y. Giants N.Y. Giants 39, Denver 20
XXII Kurt Gouveia LB Washington Washington 42, Denver 10
XXIII Jason Buck DL Cincinnati San Francisco 20, Cincinnati 16
XXIII Lee Johnson P Cincinnati San Francisco 20, Cincinnati 16
XXIII Leon White LB Cincinnati San Francisco 20, Cincinnati 16
XXIII Tom Holmoe DB San Francisco San Francisco 20, Cincinnati 16
XXIII Steve Young QB San Francisco San Francisco 20, Cincinnati 16
XXIV Steve Young QB San Francisco San Francisco 55, Denver 10
XXV Bart Oates OL N.Y. Giants N.Y. Giants 20, Buffalo 19
XXVI Kurt Gouveia LB Washington Washington 37, Buffalo 24
XXVI Jason Buck DL Washington Washington 37, Buffalo 24
XXIX Bart Oates OL San Francisco San Francisco 49, San Diego 26
XXIX Steve Young QB San Francisco San Francisco 49, San Diego 26
XXXI Jim McMahon QB Green Bay Green Bay 35, New England 21
XXXIII Travis Hall DL Atlanta Denver 34, Atlanta 19
XXXVI Doug Jolley TE Oakland Tampa Bay 48, Oakland 21
XXXIX Reno Mahe RB Philadelphia New England 24, Philadelphia 21
XL Chris Hoke DL Pittsburgh Pittsburgh 21, Seattle 10
XL Brett Keisel DL Pittsburgh Pittsburgh 21, Seattle 10
XLI Rob Morris LB Indianapolis Indianapolis 29, Chicago 17
XLI Gabe Reid TE Chicago Indianapolis 29, Chicago 17
XLI John Tait OL Chicago Indianapolis 29, Chicago 17
XLIII Aaron Francisco DB Arizona Pittsburgh 27, Arizona 23
XLIII Chris Hoke DL Pittsburgh Pittsburgh 27, Arizona 23
XLIII Brett Keisel DL Pittsburgh Pittsburgh 27, Arizona 23
XLIV Austin Collie WR Indianapolis New Orleans 31, Indianapolis 17
XLIV Aaron Francisco DB Indianapolis New Orleans 31, Indianapolis 17
XLV Brett Keisel DL Pittsburgh Green Bay 31, Pittsburgh 25
XLV Chris Hoke DL Pittsburgh Green Bay 31, Pittsburgh 25
XLVII Dennis Pitta TE Baltimore Baltimore 34, San Francisco 31