By DARREN WILCOX
The defensive tackles for BYU this season may be different from a year ago, but the names are familiar.
Daren Yancey, the starting right defensive end from last season has moved over to play left tackle this year. Yancey will fill the spot vacated by the graduation of first team All-WAC defensive lineman Henry Bloomfield.
Yancey, the tallest defensive lineman at 6-6, 275 pounds, begins his junior year after ranking third on the team last season with four sacks. Yancey, from Blackfoot, Idaho, will bring his experience in pass rushing to the new position.
The shuffling comes on the news that returning starter Harland Ah You will not be academically eligible for the home opener against the University of Washington. According to Defensive Line coach Tom Ramage, even if Ah You is declared eligible to play he will not immediately return to his starting position at right defensive tackle.
Having missed all of the fall practice so far, Ah You would need some time to get his conditioning to where it should be for the season. Ah You, a junior from Laie, Hawaii, is 6-2, 280 pounds, but it is his experience as a starter that will be missed.
Stepping in for Ah You is junior Issiah Magalei, a 6-3, 280 pound tackle from Wheat Ridge, Colo. Magalei, who has played as a backup the past two seasons, is slated to start Saturday. According to Ramage, he will share time with 6-4, 265 pound redshirt freshman Hans Olsen.
Olsen, whose prefers his first name to be spelled Hance to ensure correct pronunciation, is the nephew of Hall of Fame lineman Merlin Olsen. Also expected to see playing time at defensive tackle are 6-2, 275 pound redshirt freshman Chris Hoke and 6-2, 295 pound sophomore Shane Magalei, the older brother of Issiah.
Ramage is upbeat about his group of lineman and said he feels good about the season.
“They all have good size and quickness and they are tall which I like,” Ramage said. “They are also pretty strong guys and they have been working hard in the weight room.”
The keys for the season, according to Ramage, are for the tackles to be consistent. Ramage has been working them hard on their pass rush and on filling the gaps in the line to avoid big running plays.
Head coach LaVell Edwards has also been watching the progress of the tackles and said the backups have done well in stepping up in the absence of Ah You.
As for Ah You, his situation could determine the Cougar’s effectiveness in the long run. If he were declared eligible, it would give BYU’s line a even deeper and more experienced look. Edwards said that Ah You is working hard academically in order to make it back on the team. For now, he has to wait for word to come down from the BYU administration.
Without Ah You, BYU will have to expect more from its young crew of backups. How quickly they adjust to the college game and how well they react to a more prominent role in the defense will determine in part the effectiveness of BYU’s pass rush.
For now, Yancey will have to step in as the experienced veteran and inspire the other tackles to follow his example.
