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PROVO -- At one of the coldest spring games in a while, over 5,500 BYU fans braved snowy weather to catch a peak of Jake Heaps and company.
What they saw was a defensive battle for most of the game. Both Blue and White offenses struggled at times to show consistency, but the coaches were pleased with the team as a whole.
"We have good talent on both sides of the ball, and great depth on both sides of the ball," offensive coordinator Brandon Doman said. "It's as strong as we've been in six years. We haven't been able to play a (spring) game because we haven't had enough depth."
Related:
BYU defense lives up to new 'standards'
The BYU defense lives up to the new expectations set by head coach Bronco Mendenall in the Cougars' spring Blue and White Game, which ended in an 18-17 overtime thriller.As the quarterback for the Blue team, Jake Heaps went 16-21 for 126 yards. It looked as though he might have a few opportunities for some long touchdowns, but the defensive backs were draped over the receivers for most of the afternoon. Three times junior defensive back Robbie Buckner was called for pass interference, and at least two were done while covering redshirt freshman receiver Ross Apo.
"You'd love to get some shots down the field and get some long touchdowns and juice up the crowd a little bit, but defense wasn't going to give that up," the sophomore Heaps said. "Ross did a great job getting downfield and the DBs were threatened by that for sure."
Riley Nelson was the quarterback for the White team and was able to come away with the 18-17 win after some late game heroics. Nelson ended the game 8-11 for 149 yards. Nelson struggled for a bit in the beginning, but looked strong towards the end of the game.
"We're in good hands if I get injured and Riley is out there," Heaps said. "We just push each other every day. It's fun to go out there and battle with Riley; it's a blast."
Although Nelson had success against the Blue team, he put the win in perspective.
Cougar Tracks:
White-Out
Snow fell before game, and late in the game, but 5,500 BYU Football fans were treated to an enjoyable 2011 Blue/White spring game."As much fun as I had, it's still practice and it didn't mean anything other than it was the culmination of a lot of effort and hard work put together collectively as a team," Nelson said.
New offensive coordinator Brandon Doman had the chance to show his play calling ability and did not disappoint. It was Doman who called the game winning play.
"Today was similar to what he's done the entire spring," coach head coach Bronco Mendenhall said of Doman. "Our offensive players really enjoy him; our offensive staff is inspired by him. He's doing really well. I'm fortunate that he's in the role that he is and to have him kind of as a partner on this team at this time for our program."
Per NCAA rules, the coaches cannot hold any more practices until fall practices start. Mendenhall has decided to institute team captains earlier than he ever has, and will announce those on Monday.
Email: mhopkins@ksl.com
