Camp Cougar, Day 1


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10 months after suffering a season-ending ankle injury, BYU quarterback Taysom Hill was fully cleared and back on the field with his teammates as the Cougars opened training camp late Saturday afternoon in Provo.

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"It wasn't anything to write home about," said head coach Bronco Mendenhall of the team's day-one execution, "but it was killer to have Taysom back."

"I was just smiling the whole time (having Hill on the field), and that overrode any time I saw the ball on the ground. (It was) 'Hey, Taysom's out here.' A dropped pass...'hey, Taysom's out here.' Hard to even dwell on anything that wasn't exactly right, just because Taysom is our quarterback."

Pronouncing himself "a little rusty," Hill looked liked his old self on a broken-play scamper that gained 30 yards early in the two-hour, helmets-only practice session.

The practice ended with a touchdown pass of 50-plus yards from second-string quarterback Tanner Mangum to freshman Josh Weeks. Fellow freshman Moroni Laulu-Pututau also opened some eyes on opening day, as did junior Nick Kurtz, who stretched out to haul in an early aerial.

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Hill and Mendenhall applauded Laulu-Pututau for his performance; Mendenhall went on to credit offensive tackle Austin Hoyt, linebackers Harvey Langi, Fred Warner and Sione Taktaki, in addition to nose tackle Travis Tuiloma. Mendenhall said he was also pleased with BYU's opening-practice cornerback depth.

Notably, Hoyt started with the first string at right tackle, with sophomore Ului Lapuaho moving inside to right guard. On the left side, tackle Ryker Mathews played alongside guard Kyle Johnson, with sophomore center Tejan Koroma manning the middle.

Lapuaho and Johnson both took turns at tackle, with the guard spots then handled by Jaterrius Gulley (left) and Parker Dawe (right).

Langi (inside) and Warner (outside) were among the first-string linebackers on Saturday, with Austin Heder joining Langi on the interior, and Sae Tautu playing opposite Warner on the edge. Takitaki and Rhett Sandlin handled OLB responsibilities with the second team, while Jherremya Leuta-Douyere and Manoa Pikula played inside.

Tuiloma, Logan Taele and Bronson Kaufusi formed the first-string defensive front, with the top-tier secondary comprised of Michael Davis and Jordan Preator at corner, with Kai Nacua and Eric Takenaka at the safety spots.

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From a big-picture perspective, Mendenhall distilled his first-session takeaways into four areas: chemistry, culture, conditioning and depth.

"They like to play," said Mendenhall, "and they were excited to play. Physiologically, they looked fit. They handled practice really well. I was encouraged by those things."

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Mendenhall addressed running back Jamaal Williams' recent withdrawl from school, saying "the best option for all parties was for him to withdraw, and then we get him back (in 2016). It will work out just right."

"They handled it really well," Mendenhall said of the team's reaction to the departure. "The way that it was announced to the team wasn't ideal; it kind of came out before I had a chance to tell my team...but they and I love Jamaal. He will be back, and absolutely will make the best of this situation. They're all with him, as I am."

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Addressing candidates to help replace Williams, Mendenhall said "Algie Brown, I love. He's physical, he's tough, he's big...reminds me a little bit of Paul Lasike-slash-Harvey Unga, kind of in that mode. Adam Hine I like a lot--both of those players have experience. I also was impressed today with (freshman) Francis Bernard. And then, maybe the player that had the best summer...was Nate Carter."

"There are some options there...and Trey Dye can carry the ball, so who knows what happens there."

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Of the 105 players on the camp roster, 104 were present in uniform on day one; the only absentee was defensive lineman Adam Ingersoll.

Wide receiver Mitch Mathews and offensive lineman Tuni Kanuch were dressed but not practicing on Saturday; Mendenhall said both players have lingering, non-long-term injuries. Cornerback Micah Hannemann was also out on Saturday; the coach said a recent injury should keep Hannemann out only another day or two.

Linebacker Phillip Amone, quarterback McCoy Hill and kicker Corey Edwards will rejoin the program with the start of school in late August, and are not part of the 105-man camp roster.

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Some early special-teams notes include rugby star Jonny Linehan performing at punter, along with Rhett Almond. Both players are employing the roll-out style on their kicks.

Placekickers Trevor Samson are Austin Brasher are joined by deep snapper Matt Foley to round out the special-teams battery.

Saturday's punt-return candidates were Devon Blackmon, Mitchell Juergens and Trey Dye. Running back Squally Canada also tried his hand in the return mix, but will be sitting out this season after transferring from Washington State. Mendenhall singled out Canada for his work in the backfield on Saturday.

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The Cougars return to the practice field on Monday morning, for the first of four sessions that will be open to the public next week.

Monday's session opens to observation at 10:30 am on the SAB Practice Fields.

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You can hear the post-practice comments of Bronco Mendenhall in the "Cougar Cuts" section below.

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Greg Wrubell

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