Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
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digging into my bag of news and notes...
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First up, tonight's "Bronco Mendenhall Show" will be live from Legends Grille on the BYU campus, at 7:00pm. The show will be sponsored by Ken Garff Ford in American Fork. The folks at Legends will provide free treats for all the Cougar fans on hand, and I hope to see a lot out of you there tonight. Again, Bronco joins Marc Lyons and me starting at 7.
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While many are downplaying BYU's opponent this week, keep in mind Eastern Washington is well-respected in the FCS world. The Eagles are ranked 22nd this week after a nice win over Montana State last week. QB Matt Nichols is 3rd in the FCS in total offense, and 11th nationally in pass efficiency. WR Aaron Boyce is 6th in receptions per game, and 4th in receiving yards per game. A weak rushing attack last season has improved this year, averaging almost 170 yards per game--Dale Morris and Alexis Alexander have combined for 9 rushing touchdowns (Morris' brother Maurice plays for the Seattle Seahawks).
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The Eagles run a multiple set offense, favoring single-back formations. On defense, EWU runs a 4-2-5, featuring a "Rover" playing the linebacker/safety hybrid. Eastern has the 12th best rush defense in the FCS, and the 20th best scoring defense.
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As BYU's running backs and tight ends carry more of the load for the Cougars, BYU's downfield game is taking a backseat. In the first 4 games, Max hall completed 18 passes of 20 yards or more. In the last two games, that number is down to 3.
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We may have seen history Saturday night in Las Vegas. BYU's 15 play, 8-minute 49-second touchdown drive at UNLV was BYU's most time-consuming drive since at least 1984--when my stats guru Ralph Sokolowsky began tracking that particular stat. BYU did have a 16 play, 8:45 drive against Utah in 1986. The NCAA record for longest drive in a game is 14:26 (26 plays) by Navy, in the 2004 Emerald Bowl, vs. New Mexico.
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Mitch Payne has made 4 straight field goals since missing his first attempt of the season (vs. Arizona). He has also made 15 consecutive PATs since missing in the same game.
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The 2007-08 BYU Basketball Schedule and Audio Archive pages are now up and running on the BYU Sports Menu page at ksl.com
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