PROVO — Since being hired as the head honcho in Provo, BYU football coach Bronco Mendenhall has been pretty candid about his expectations for the BYU football team.

In 2008, Mendenhall had a squad that he was so convinced could run the table, he came up with the ill-advised slogan of “The Quest for Perfection.” The team started out hot but stumbled against TCU and ended up losing three games.

Since that time, Mendenhall has bluntly set the standard for what is a successful season — at least 10 wins and a Top 25 ranking. He has even openly mused about what it would take for the Cougars to win a national championship, saying it would probably take two consecutive undefeated seasons to bring home the trophy.

It is said that recruiting is the lifeblood of any program, so it begs the question: Has BYU recruited well enough to reach Mendenhall’s stated goals? The answer to that question, I believe, is yes and no.

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Mendenhall reaches out to BYU football alumni

Diverting briefly from the stated purpose of the gathering, Bronco Mendenhall tackled the swirling hot topic of having poor relations with former BYU football players and reaffirmed a commitment to take time out of his busy life to improve his connection with alumni.

This year’s recruiting class was ranked the 50th-best class by ESPN.com. In simpler terms, BYU’s haul this year was average. With Mendenhall’s and offensive coordinator Robert Anae’s proven track record of getting the most out of players, it seems very likely that the players in this recruiting class will play better than they were rated coming out of high school. I believe Mendenhall can get this class to a few top 25 finishes.

But, do I believe he can win a national championship or even go undefeated with these recruits? No.

With coaches like Ohio State's Urban Meyer and Alabama's Nick Saban getting every ounce of potential out of their five-star recruits, it seems foolish to believe that Mendenhall can beat those major players with his two- and three-star recruits. That’s not a knock on Mendenhall; that’s just a reality.

For the Cougars to compete for an undefeated season, they will need to have higher-rated recruits. This is problematic for Mendenhall because he seems to prefer working with under-the-radar players and has struggled to get the most out of his most prolific recruits (see Ross Apo and Jake Heaps).

If I am wrong, and Mendenhall does win with lower-rated recruits, there will be nobody happier than me to eat my words. Until then, he may want to cease any talks about the Cougars winning a national championship.

Dylan Cannon is a regular KSL.com contributor and can be reached at DylanCannon86@gmail.com or via twitter @DylanCannon11. Listen to his weekly podcast, "Cougar Talk," on iTunes.

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