Estimated read time: 5-6 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
PROVO — In one of the more physical fall camps that Aaron Roderick has led while coaching his alma mater, BYU offensive coordinator is constantly knocking on wood.
Preparing for live football games requires a physical approach, but too much can lead to injuries and damages. So getting to the first game as healthy as possible is also a part of each coaching staff's countermeasures.
On that end, BYU has been fairly lucky as the Cougars wrapped up their second week of training camp Tuesday.
"We've only had one on the whole team, and it wasn't an offensive player," Roderick told reporters after practice. "I'll let (head coach Kalani Sitake) handle that. But it's been only one the whole time, so — knock on wood — our team is pretty healthy right now."
Roderick declined to address any further reports of injuries, simply sticking to the line that the only significant injury suffered in camp wasn't an offensive player.
Sitake was not available to the media Tuesday.
Wide receiver Keanu Hill didn't dress for Tuesday's practice, but he was on-hand and at one point ran onto the field waving a towel over his head to celebrate one of his teammates' big plays. BYU safety Micah Harper was also a notable name who did not practice, and tight end/fullback/H-back Masen Wake recently retired from football following a number of injuries and ailments.
But as far as the offense goes, BYU has upgraded well through the offseason, Roderick said. The group has improved at every position in some form, except maybe quarterback, where the Cougars are replacing Minnesota Vikings rookie Jaren Hall.
Of course, that's not a knock on starter Kedon Slovis, his offensive coordinator was quick to say.
"We're not game-ready yet, but we're a good team," Roderick said, essentially affirming the praise defensive coordinator Jay Hill heaped on the offense after Saturday's scrimmage. "We upgraded at every position, except maybe quarterback, but we started in a very good position last year."
The Cougars have also been particularly more physical through the first 14 days of camp, a noticeable change from Tyler Batty's first three seasons.
"Tackling players to the ground, hitting more in pads once the team had acclimated from helmets and shells, that kind of thing," the 6-foot-5, 270-pound defensive end from Payson said.
The increased physical play also followed a number of additions on the support staff, particularly strength coaches Coleby Clawson, Skyler Mayne, Kalani Simeona, Dalton Eliott and Spencer Reid, and nutrition specialist Dan Wilcox.
"We've hit a lot more. That's really what it's come down to," Batty said. "We spent more time in full pads and in live team reps. Overall, I would say we've definitely done a lot more physical contact than in the past."
Even some of the newcomers have noticed. While transfer running back Aidan Robbins hasn't been through camp at BYU yet, he's noticed the increased physicality of practices at his latest stop, he said.
"That's football. That's what we do; it's the sport we signed up to play," said Robbins, the 6-foot-3, 240-pound tailback who ran for 1,011 yards and nine touchdowns a year ago at UNLV. "You can't complain when somebody tells you to play football. It's what we do for a living. … In my eyes, it doesn't matter; you've got to put the ball out and play. Whoever is going to play us is going to know that we're prepared physically and mentally to play."
Fewer injury reports also means the coaches can quickly assemble their depth chart before the Sept. 2 home opener against Sam Houston State.
Roderick said the "biggest question of camp" is closer to being decided on the offensive line, though the five spots rotated frequently both during Saturday's scrimmage and in Tuesday's media-viewing portion of practice.
Both Connor Pay and Utah transfer Paul Maile took snaps at center, in particular.
"Those two guys are both such good players and so veteran that we don't even notice when they flip-flop," Roderick said. "It's a non-factor for us. That's the least of our worries right now, which one of the two is playing center and which one is playing guard. They're both very professional about it. I really appreciate those guys and their attitude, the way they work together."
At quarterback, Slovis cemented himself as the starter well before the end of spring camp. But the race for his backup continues, with Roderick saying Cade Fennegan, Nick Billoups and top junior college transfer Jake Retzlaff all taking shares of the second-team reps most recently.
Freshman Ryder Burton has been seen making plays in camp, as well, but apparently during third-string and depth-related exercises.
"It's starting to take shape, but I'm not ready to name (the backup) just yet," Roderick said. "Cade's been a little bit banged up this week; nothing major, but just a little something. Nothing serious. But it's limited him a tiny bit this week."
Former quarterback Sol-Jay Maiava-Peters, the offensive MVP of the New Mexico Bowl who moved to running back during the spring, recently posted on Instagram that his most recent GPA and test scores made him eligible to play. But when asked if Maiava-Peters could rejoin the team once school starts, Roderick responded in the negative and declined to comment further.
That room has been stocked well, with the addition of Robbins to go along with returning backs Hinckley Ropati and Miles Davis, as well as the emergence of freshman tailback LJ Martin.
"LJ's good. He has tremendous upside," Robbins said. "He came in, studied, learned well and took after us. He's very attentive to detail and has a very bright future ahead of him.
"He's a freshman, but he doesn't play like a freshman," he added of the El Paso, Texas native. "He has tremendous upside."
