The BYU football team continued its spring practices on Friday and assistant head coach Ed Lamb, offensive coordinator Ty Detmer, senior fullback Algie Brown and senior defensive end Sae Tautu spoke to the media.
About halfway through the team’s spring practices, Lamb made note of some players that were making a real impact.
One of those players was wide receiver Akile Davis. Davis, a 6-foot-2 sophomore from Texas, has been practicing on both sides of the ball. Lamb said he believes Davis is “slotted as a starting wide receiver,” but noted his ability to play cornerback and be a good tackler.
“He did a tremendous job and really struck through today as a tackler,” Lamb said. “To show up as a tackler was not something that we were expecting from a guy coming over from offense. We thought that may be the last part of his game to develop, so (it’s) really exciting.”
Lamb said the cross training began after seeing him on punt return as a corner. He said Davis was “consistently getting the best reps” there, but noted that the coaching staff has yet to reach a decision on where Davis will play.
After three years of playing linebacker, Tautu is now learning to play defensive end.
He is putting on weight and currently working with BYU nutritionist Dan Wilcox to bulk up. In terms of play, he said he’s switching between a two and three-point stance on the edge.
Schematically, Tautu said the switch to a 4-3 defense allows players “to make plays.” He noted that Bronco Mendenhall’s defense was about “people managing certain gaps” and “setting up levels,” but said that he enjoys the new defense more.
“I like it a lot,” Tautu said. “This defense is nice for me because it allows me to go do some more flashy things, so I’m excited about that.”
Other Notes
– Lamb said that Trey Dye had a “great” scrimmage today, noting that the former receiver was running with power and hitting holes well.
– Former center Tejan Koroma said earlier in the week that he wanted to return to BYU. Detmer said that he was unsure of what would happen. “We’re just waiting to see what happens in his process,” he said.
– Tautu said the team was more than aware of the massive stakes this season. When asked if the team had lost some of its excitement, he was quick to dismiss it. “I think there’s still a buzz because of what’s on the line here. We have a huge schedule with brand new coaches in a scheme that none of us have played before. I’d say this spring we’re more motivated than I’ve seen in the past.”
– Detmer said the quarterbacks have been “playing great” and “making good reads.”
– Brown said that the team put in a new fullback dive play and said he enjoys the physical nature of the position.
