BYU offense shines in practice, ready for spring scrimmage


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PROVO — BYU took to the practice field one last time on Wednesday before Friday's spring scrimmage at LaVell Edwards Stadium. When practice was over, the consensus was that the offense won the day.

“Offense had a really good day today, especially throwing and catching the ball,” said head coach Bronco Mendenhall. “We have a lot of weapons through the air right now and we are protecting really well.”

Backup quarterback Christian Stewart took the helm as starter last season when Taysom Hill went down with an injury. Stewart is currently practicing with the team, allowing for Hill to properly recover and take it slow. But what Stewart has managed to do for the players around him during practices is giving BYU’s offense a chance to prepare for those long balls through the air.

“I am really excited about what I saw offensively today, especially throwing the ball and going down field; and really, Stew is allowing us to do that,” said Mendenhall. “And then Taysom picks up settings where he can, so I think we are progressing nicely that way.”

The defensive side struggled to keep up with the offense during practice, but kept pushing hard thanks to Mendenhall and the entire coaching staff pushing their guys as hard as they can.

“It has been a challenge. It had kind of been grinding with coach Mendenhall back, and there is a big focus on discipline, like at the beginning of spring...I know guys are tired, guys are being worked hard and we are just trying to push through it and persevere,” said defensive lineman Remington Peck. “It’s been good, though. I think we’ve made improvements, and it’s getting better.”

There is no doubt the offense is ready to go on Friday, but the scrimmage is not necessarily a representation of what it will be like on the field this fall.

“Spring is always a tricky thing if you look at matchups, so more experience at receiver than the secondary right now, and more experience at quarterback with Stew and the receivers,” said Mendenhall. “ I think right now if you had to say spring, which won’t ever mean a thing, I would say yes, the offense is ahead.”

The season is still months away, but the Cougars are ready to get a shot of adrenaline by playing in front of Cougar fans at LaVell Edwards Stadium on Friday night.

“I am really excited to get out there and throw it around and make plays,” said wide receiver Terenn Houk. “I feel really pumped, I am very excited.”

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Katie Nielson

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