-- Van Noy. Jamaal. Harvey. DiLuigi. One of these things is not like the other.
For an explanation of what this is, click here
For an explanation of what this is, click here
2.1 Jamaal Williams (drafted by Magathisll)
Magathisll wastes no time in scooping up the player who has fallen deepest in the draft so far. I’m not going to devote a lot of words11. This is a lie. to Jamaal or Harvey because I’ve been stewing over the “who is BYU’s best RB?” question for the last couple years and have pages in the bank I’m preparing to release once I know the answer. What I will steal from that future post is this small tidbit: among all his other skills, I think Jamaal had the best stiff-arm in BYU history.
2.2 Harvey Unga (drafted by Devon “Lasersheep” Smith)
I confess I didn’t want Harvey to become BYU’s new RB coach. I wanted that position to go to an AJ Seward clone, a non-member and non-BYU graduate who could speak to what life in Provo is like for the uninitiated. But that’s beside the point.
Here’s a bit of an unpopular opinion: whenever I lean into the “Who is BYU’s best RB of all-time?” discussion, I almost always come back to Harvey. I have not completed my research – so, no this is not my final answer Jimmy -- but the combination of his durability, consistency, pass-catching savvy, and tendency to manhandle the University of Utah was so spectacular I almost have to say he’s the best. His ’07 season flies under the radar as the 2nd best rushing/receiving season ever at BYU – trailing only Staley in ’01 – and his 17 TDs that season are also second all-time. Ok, I have to stop. Let’s save the Harvey vs Jamaal vs Luke battle for the future.
2.3 Cody Hoffman (drafted by Andrew Metcalf)
What an interesting player Cody was. He brought down some amazing catches. He broke our kickoff return for a TD drought. He was a processing plant of consistency. He also looked slow and lanky at times and a bit Mitch Mathewsy during his career. I’m always going to wonder what type of numbers he could’ve put up if he had better quarterbacks or better offensive coordinators during his time at BYU.
Sidenote: I once met Cody Hoffman at a Valley Fair Mall autograph event. I got starstruck by Cody’s celebrity, put my foot in my mouth, and mumbled out the words, “You’re the greatest receiver in BYU history.” I’d like to officially apologize to Austin Collie for that mistake. I don’t know what happened but it won’t happen again.
2.4 Robbie Bosco (Drafted by Brian Henderson, he who once helped me get a ticket to the 59-0 UCLA game)
Brian Henderson is single-handedly restoring credibility to this draft by realizing that yes, in fact, it is OK to draft someone who played prior to 2009. What would it be like to have to follow in the footsteps of Jim McMahon and Steve Young? What would it be like to cement a National Championship by hobbling around making plays that will never be forgotten? Bosco is an all-time stud and a great pick at pick 14, one of the 5 BYU QBs who live in the penthouse of the Cougar Hall of Fame (McMahon, the record-setter; Young, the NFL MVP; Bosco, the National Champion; Detmer, the Heisman; Hall, the 32-game winner22. For reference, in the last 5 seasons we’ve won 36 games total.).
2.5 Kyle Van Noy (drafted by Odyseuss)
I never thought Kyle would last this long. While Odyseuss was on the clock, I allowed myself to dream for a moment. Would it happen? Could Kyle drop into my lap? No. Of course not. Kyle Van Noy is my vote for greatest Cougar defender in history. He single-handedly beat Ole Miss in ’11, SDSU in ’12, and USU in ’13. As a linebacker.
2.6 Jonny Harline (drafted by me)
I did not know what to do with this pick. I thought about QBs (Beck, Sarkisian), RBs (Willis, Brown), WRs (Mahe, Hooks, Kozlowski, Drage), and even a couple of LBs (Leon White, Cam Jenson, Rob Morris). Here’s the weird thing. I never watched Jonny Harline play live. Ever. I was on my mission for ’05 and ’06. And as far as tight ends go, this is probably as deep a position as any. I was present for Daniel Coats first game and fell in love. I signed Doug Jolley in all of my Madden teams. Dennis Pitta was Dennis Pitta. Gordon Hudson was a two-time All-American! Chad Lewis was the hurdler!
So why Jonny over all those dudes? Maybe I’m a sucker for people who abuse the Utes. Maybe I’ve been swayed by his collection of amazing one-handed grabs. Look, I didn’t watch him live but I’ve since watched almost every game of the ’05 and ’06 seasons, and the guy seemed like he could get open at will and catch every single thing that came his way.
You know the play, the one where he would drift to the sideline, putting himself between the boundary and the defender, and Beck would lob it up where Harline could only grab it with one hand? You know, like this one, this one, or this one? Was this one of the most unstoppable plays in BYU history?
Trivia question: In the last 25 years, how many guys have posted a season with at least 900 yards receiving and 12 TDs? Two. Austin Collie in ’08 and Jonny Harline in ’06.
2.7 Ronney Jenkins (drafted by Tax Commissioner Danny)
Ronney Jenkins racked up a massive 1,656 running and receiving yards in 1998, good for the 4th highest yardage output ever by a BYU RB. The dude was electric. Funny story with Ronney. My brother once made a poster of Ronney Jenkins and forged his signature to make it look authentic. The only problem was in the source picture Ronney was covering the number 1 on his jersey with the ball, so my brother mistakenly signed it as #6 instead of #16. Needless to say this poster didn’t gain much traction on eBay.
2.8 Dennis Pitta (drafted by Cousin Newt)
In the NCAA record books, in the entire history of college football, who stands at the top of the list for receiving yards by a tight end in a career? Dennis is that man. Cousin Newt’s first two picks combine the most voluminous passer (Detmer) and receiving tight end (Pitta) in BYU history. That’s quite a start to the draft.
2.9 JJ DiLuigi (drafted by BRoyalBlueCoug)
Trivia question: In the last 25 years, how many guys have posted a season with at least 900 yards receiving and 12 TDs? Two. Austin Collie in ’08 and Jonny Harline in ’06.
2.7 Ronney Jenkins (drafted by Tax Commissioner Danny)
Ronney Jenkins racked up a massive 1,656 running and receiving yards in 1998, good for the 4th highest yardage output ever by a BYU RB. The dude was electric. Funny story with Ronney. My brother once made a poster of Ronney Jenkins and forged his signature to make it look authentic. The only problem was in the source picture Ronney was covering the number 1 on his jersey with the ball, so my brother mistakenly signed it as #6 instead of #16. Needless to say this poster didn’t gain much traction on eBay.
2.8 Dennis Pitta (drafted by Cousin Newt)
In the NCAA record books, in the entire history of college football, who stands at the top of the list for receiving yards by a tight end in a career? Dennis is that man. Cousin Newt’s first two picks combine the most voluminous passer (Detmer) and receiving tight end (Pitta) in BYU history. That’s quite a start to the draft.
2.9 JJ DiLuigi (drafted by BRoyalBlueCoug)
2.10 Matt Bushman (drafted by Jay Drew)
Quietly Matt Bushman – excuse me, Matt ManBush – has risen to 6th all-time in TE receiving yards at BYU. This, despite being saddled with a quarterback combination of Tanner Mangum, Joe “Firecrotch” Critchlow, Beau Hoge, and Koy Detmer for the first two years of his career. Wow. An elite senior season changes the complexion of this pick, but for now I can’t help but think Gordon Hudson or Chris Smith should have been taken here.
Parting Thoughts from Round 2
Thought #1
Round 1
Quietly Matt Bushman – excuse me, Matt ManBush – has risen to 6th all-time in TE receiving yards at BYU. This, despite being saddled with a quarterback combination of Tanner Mangum, Joe “Firecrotch” Critchlow, Beau Hoge, and Koy Detmer for the first two years of his career. Wow. An elite senior season changes the complexion of this pick, but for now I can’t help but think Gordon Hudson or Chris Smith should have been taken here.
Parting Thoughts from Round 2
Thought #1
I feel bad for not writing something nice about JJ DiLuigi. Yeah it’s a little crazy to see him drafted so early, but I’ll be if the guy didn’t give BYU four years of quality, drama free service. He was 10 receiving yards shy of being a 1,000 yard rusher and a 1,000 yard receiver for his career, with 19 TDs to boot. He's 16th in BYU history in combined rushing/receiving yards. His 48-yard receiving TD against Washington in 2010 was awesome. And I was shocked to review the start of his 2010 campaign and find he went over 100 combined receiving and rushing yards in each of the first six games, and he’d do it in three more times before the season ended. He was a scat back, but in this case “scat” does not equal it’s animal excrement equivalent.
Thought #2.
Thought #2.
By picking Harvey Unga 12th overall, as well as Max Hall back in the first round, Devon “Lasersheep” Smith is on track to recreate the core that guided BYU during the perennially underappreciated 2007 to 2009 run. Many fans look back on those years with disappointment because BYU never made a BCS game while all our peers did (Boise, Utah, and TCU).
It also didn’t help that BYU lost big in 2009 to TCU and FSU, and even bigger to Utah and TCU in 2008. But from 2007 to 2009 do you know how many games BYU lost beside those I just listed? Just three, and two of them came in Max Hall's second and third career starts! (both of which came on the road)
It also didn’t help that BYU lost big in 2009 to TCU and FSU, and even bigger to Utah and TCU in 2008. But from 2007 to 2009 do you know how many games BYU lost beside those I just listed? Just three, and two of them came in Max Hall's second and third career starts! (both of which came on the road)
And by the way the Utah team BYU lost to in 2008 finished the season as the #2 team in the nation. The TCU team they lost to in 2009 finished as the #6 team in the nation. Yeah, we never got a BCS game but don’t let that stain your memory of what was an all-time run.
Round by Round Recap
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