So far, injury bug hasn't bitten Cougars hard

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Camp Cougar

Player of the Day: Junior cornerback Corby Eason worked with the first-team defense, all part of BYU's natural plan to produce solid depth. Eason has been a continuous bright spot for head coach Bronco Mendenhall and defensive coordinator Jaime Hill, and they see Eason as a solid third option at CB right now.

Play of the Day: Defense dominated the second and last portion of team drills. No play was fancier than freshman linebacker Kyle Van Noy's gazelle-like roam backward into coverage, knocking down a 15-yard pass.

Quote of the Day: "I couldn't tell you a thing different from what I said last week. There's no one that is emerging clearly at any of those spots to say 'that's our guy'." Mendenhall, declining to give any edges to the position battles of quarterback, tight end and linebacker after reviewing the Saturday scrimmage that included about 70 plays.



It's a joyous topic of sorts, yet also a sensitive one around BYU football camp.

Injuries.

There haven't been many, all things considered, early into the second week of practices. And some of the especially common ones this time of year really haven't been a factor. Hamstrings and groins in particular -- two nagging ailments that can keep players off the field, and even worse, be hard to heal -- haven't been much of a factor through a full week.

This is a noteworthy occurrence compared to past years, according to head athletic trainer Kevin Morris, who nonetheless half-jokingly turns around and goes looking for a piece of wood to knock on when the topic is mentioned.

Morris, along with players like Corby Eason, a cornerback who appears to be making a name for himself as a junior, credit strength and conditioning coach Jay Omer for an offseason program that included a lot of core-stabilization exercises.

Working on back and abdominal muscles, players like Eason say, has alleviated issues on other parts of the body that have plagued them in the past. For Eason, it was a groin injury in camp last fall that hurt his chances to contribute.

Others who have suffered such muscle injuries also say health promotes even better health.

"If you're staying healthy, not only are you getting a chance to improve on the field, but you're also building a higher level of strength that makes it even tough to get injured sometimes," said receiver McKay Jacobson, a former hamstring casualty. "Otherwise, you're just trying to work back up to what you were at before; and that's tougher."

Yes, there are injuries. BYU hasn't turned invincible. Bell-ringers -- head trauma -- have been a concern, as they are in every football camp.

Head coach Bronco Mendenhall said Monday that he doesn't really compare where his team is a week into this camp to previous years at the same point. He jokes about having notes, but bad handwriting and too many other things going on make a progress diary from a year ago not make much sense.

"It's not a good system," he said.

Meanwhile, Morris was curious about injury data of now and then. He produced a report to Mendenhall that showed how these Cougars were about eight days in compared to the same timeframe in the past six years.

True, there have also been no epidemics like the horrific Lisfranc (mid-foot) injuries of early in the 2007 fall camp. No major knee damage to speak of, either.

Some of the misfortune is random, but Morris was pleased to point out that BYU's been doing more team drills so far -- when injuries tend to add up -- than at this point of past years and yet the team appears to be holding up fine. The numbers are right in the middle.

More Eason: He's earned the praise of Mendenhall and defensive coordinator Jaime Hill as a potential third cornerback after the Georgia native last year saw action in 12 games, but made just a pair of tackles.

On Monday he ran with the first-team defense.

"He is doing a nice job, and playing at a much higher level than he did a year ago, so again we are going to continue to look for the best combinations, and then reward guys who are playing well," Mendenhall said.

The coach expects to see more solidifying of the depth chart this week, including a possible pair of scrimmages midweek and Saturday that could be "pretty significant."

"So you will probably see a lot of that this week. The closer we get to the game, the more you would like to have the guys playing together," Mendenhall said. "And the live work that we will probably do this week in a couple of instances, the further out from the game the less risk of injury that could impact the game. So I think that is what you are seeing."

Mendenhall did not go into any great detail about his extra opinions of Saturday's scrimmage, basically saying the three main position competitions -- quarterback, linebacker and tight end -- are still too close to call.

Speaking of injuries: One guy Mendenhall liked seeing on the field in the morning session was anticipated starting linebacker Jordan Pendleton. He's continuing to rehab from offseason shoulder surgery and will not be part of much contact, if any, before the Sept. 4 opener against Washington.

Pendleton had his first live action of camp.

"Yeah, it was fun to have him out there," Mendenhall said. "He makes a difference, obviously, and did a really nice job. We have been using good judgment on him. I haven't made the decision when he comes back (for a scrimmage). I think we have basically taken the approach that he goes in when he is ready. And so it is fun to see him think he is ready."

Life of Riley: Riley Stephenson has been impressive at punting and kickoffs. But kicking PATs has not been a strong point for him, as he's had extra timea at that since Mitch Payne's ankle injury last week.

KSL Radio's Greg Wrubell pointed out to the head coach that Stephenson has missed seven of his past 11 tries. A bunch of those, a sportswriter could have blocked, frankly. Stephenson has drilled the ball directly into the linemen.

Fair to say special teams coach Paul Tidwell was not pleased when Stephenson had one particular PAT blocked. He summoned Stephenson over to him at the morning practice. Tidwell was clearly giving hand motions as if to tell the player he needed to get under the ball more -- produce more loft.

Mendenhall, who praised Stephenson for his other strengths, said he was "serious" when he was now considering asking players in a team meeting who has any kicking experience. Payne should be back soon, after spraining an ankle last week, but the fact is BYU needs a backup plan and it's not looking like Stephenson is the right second-stringer at this spot.

Fan fest: Today is the annual Cougar Kickoff fan fest at Haws Field (west of the Indoor Practice Facility). The event runs from 6-8:30 p.m. There will be members of the football team, along with players from the women's volleyball and soccer teams, and men's and women's basketball and cross country team. The event is free.

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