Okay P1’ns you wanted it I got it.
Just look at Terence’s arms while I talk to him. 340 pounds…....340 P..O..U..N..D..S! I’m 250 in the shot. You do the math, that’s like 100 and tweeentt or 100 and eighttt well, it’s a ton more.

Some random Graham Slams as the games are about to begin…

HALL POISED FOR HUGE YEAR:
In the scrimmages I watched in camp Max Hall was in total command, had pinpoint accuracy and had the looks of a senior QB ready to have an outstanding season.  While it’s tough to lose Austin Collie it could be a blessing in disguise as Hall will have no choice but to spread the ball around.  While Dennis Pitta will be primary target number one, the potential of McKay Jacobson and O’Neill Chambers could make this year’s receiving corps better top to bottom than a year ago.  The key obviously is for the make-shift OLine to give Hall time to throw and allow him to stay healthy. 

THERE IS HOPE FOR BYU SECONDARY:
The secondary coming into camp was the biggest question mark and still is as they head into game week for Oklahoma.  Injuries didn’t help and while they have better depth than a year ago they still don’t appear to have the athletes necessary to be an above average unit.  Hope though comes from a defensive line and linebacking group that are much improved and if DC Jaime Hill implements a more aggressive system that could provide more pressure on QB’s which in turn help the DB’s.  The biggest encouraging sign is Jan Jorgensen dropped weight and is stronger than a year ago when he was asked to put on the pounds and play a different role on the line leading to just a five sack season.  Remember two years ago, a slimmer Jorgensen led the MWC in sacks with 14.  If the coaching staff allows him to be unleashed again, look out.

UTES OFFENSE WILL BE AN ISSUE:
How can it not be?  New QB, new OC, new spread system and an OLine that is starting the season banged up?  The big question is how quickly this unit can come together.  Obviously they have plenty of playmakers and if Terrance Cain and/or Jordan Wynn can be efficient early and get better as the season goes along this team will be a contender for a MWC Title since they don’t have to play TCU and BYU until November.  Can they just avoid stumbling early as they learn the ropes?  I think they can because…

UTES DEFENSE WILL DOMINATE:
This defense hasn’t missed a beat and has the potential to be as good if not better than they were a year ago even with three players gone to the NFL.  Once healthy, Koa Misi can be as dominant as Paul Kruger and the DLine as a whole is deeper and more talented than a year ago.  Stevenson Sylvester should have a monster year and if the front seven can apply enough pressure, which they should, R.J. Stanford and Brandon Burton will be fine as the new corners to go along with experienced safeties Robert Johnson and Joe Dale. 

UTAH STATE WILL HANG WITH UTAH:
While the Aggies still don’t have the athletes to beat the Utes, they are stronger, faster, have more confidence and a better coach than they have had in years.  Offensively they have a QB in Diondre Borel that has the legs to potentially avoid the Utes rush and make some plays.  And you know defensively Gary Andersen will cook up a bunch of different schemes that will at times confuse Utah’s new QB.  My guess come the second half, the Aggies will give up a couple big plays and the Utes will break the game open.  In the end, I think Utah State fans will be encouraged of what the future holds.

KEVIN GRAHAM EMPIRE GROWS:
Probably more like a very small lot in a village, but starting Tuesday in addition to this blog and the show, I will be the MWC Blogger for Versus.com.  I’ve wanted to give writing a shot so when this opportunity arose I jumped on it.  These days it’s usually writers expanding into broadcast media so I’m trying the opposite route.  Wish me luck and always feel free to give me your feedback at (JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).

AND FINALLY:
Gordon, Jake and most of you listeners always give me flack for being a Kid Rock fan.  Here’s a CNN news story of what he’s doing for the city of Detroit.  Some of you may not like his music, but after watching this video you have to at least give him some credit for trying to do something for his hometown.  Quick note…my wife and I were at the concert they show in the story.  She got me eighth row seats for my 40th Birthday!  Good times!

If you haven’t joined my Twitter group yet do so here at http://www.twitter.com/kgraham1280.  I try to provide the latest news and random, insightful thoughts which you can view below…

VIDEO OF FORMER UTE ALEX SMITH MISSING HIS CALLING AS A FULLBACK! HE KO’S RAIDERS LB GREG ELLIS ON THIS PLAY….

WHITTINGHAM NOT IN A GOOD MOOD DUE TO LATE PRACTICE INJURIES TO O-LINE, STILL STICKING TO QB COMPANY LINE

MAYBE….JUST MAYBE THE FRESHMAN IS STARTING TO CRACK…...

1994 Copper Bowl: BYU 31 Oklahaoma 6 Enjoy…...........

Enjoy some more…......

 

Apparently Carlos Boozer is selling his Miami home.  Interesting since it’s where he said he would like to stay and play.  For just 6.9mil it can be yours! 

You can view all the details and see more pics here.  Also if you haven’t joined my Twitter group yet do so here at http://www.twitter.com/kgraham1280.  I try to provide the latest news and random, insightful thoughts which you can view below…

UTES CAMP WRAP: THE STORY LINES, HEADLINES AND UNANSWERED QUESTIONS

 

THE HEADLINES

1. WHO’S THE QB?: Everyday we asked Kyle Whittingham this question. First it was Louks job to lose and he lost it. After that the freshman Jordan Wynn sat atop the depth chart but KW clearly said it was just a pecking order and not a done deal. In the later part of camp JC transfer Terrance Cain gained confidence and looked the best of the bunch. Whittingham won’t have a rotation and does seem to personally favor Wynn and seems to give him every chance to get the #1 job. Whitt is fond of terms like “1A and 1B” and “A dead heat”, the Utes open with the Aggies so I could play QB and they would win behind Asiata and defense. Cain has looked the best, but Wynn is the guy they seem to like. Louks eventually transfered and will play at Nevada. His package won’t be abandoned as Asiata and Sausan Shakerin ran the Wildcat formation in camp and WR Devonte Christopher, a former QB was mentioned as a guy who could give the Utes a throwing demention off of that formation as well. By the way, Louks earned the 3rd job, he was terrible throwing the ball and was tight in camp.

2. KOA MISI HURT LATE IN CAMP: It was a non-contact drill and Misi hadn’t participated much in camp anyway but he went down with a mysterious back injury and Utes fans held their breath. Good sourced insiders tell us that it isn’t as bad as initially feared and Koa could miss the USU game and nothing more. If he’s out long term, there is no one capable of replacing a #1 NFL pick regardless of what the staff says to the media. Misi, not Sylvester is the Utes best defensive player.

3. WHO REPLACES TWO NFL PICKS AT CORNER?: The freak Sean Smith is already starting in Miami and for everything Brice McCain wasn’t, he ran a 4.21 40 and was picked in the 6th round by Houston while Brian Johnson wasn’t picked at all, go figure. Brandon Burton and RJ Stanford are fast, each running in the low 4.3’s, but can they play tough man to man bump and run coverage? Both have improved in camp, but Stanford still has trouble tracking the ball in the air. The Utes scheme relies heavily on nickel and dime backs as well and Justin Jones (5’9 180) and Lamar Chapman (5’8 170) two undersized but quick athletes won those jobs. It was dissapointing that hyped JC corners Kameron Yancy, Maxwell Lacy and Conroy Black weren’t factors because they didn’t get in camp (Lacy) or weren’t that good when given the chance. Former WR Ryan Lacy moved over from WR in camp and looked like he has future potential, he runs in the low 4.3s as well.

STORYLINES

1. TALKED ABOUT: Just about everyday Whittngham mentioned freshman DT Latu Heimuli form Highland, QB turned WR Devonte Christopher and DT Dave Kruger. Heimuli is a 6’3 300 pound fireplug who is tough to move out of the middle and has rare quickness for a kid his size. For all the depth the Utes have inside, Kruger’s body type is not the run-stuffing type of Eliapo, Siliga, Talamaivao and others in the deep rotation. He’s a solid 6’6 275 and has much better strength and technique than a year ago. Christopher has gone from a project WR to pushing for a starting job among the top 4 wideouts. KW told me that Devonte has been the most improved player from spring ball through fall camp. Others who were often mentioned as having solid camps overall were RB’s Eddie Wide and Sausan Shakerin, OG’s Walter Watts and Tevita Stevens, WR’s Aiona Key and Shaky Smithson and K Ben Vroman.

2. THE STANDOUTS: Obviously the team leaders who the Utes will rely on game in and game out had solid camps. Robert Johnson capped his stellar camp with 2 picks in the final scrimmage on Saturday. Stevenson Sylvester didn’t get a ton of reps but one coach told me he was unblockable during camp. Beofre his injury Misi was unblockable as well. The left side of the O-line with Beadles, Schlauderaff and Zane Taylor has been good and Tony Bergstrom has been solid at RT. Matt Asiata will carry the load at RB much like Darrell Mack did in 2007. There won’t be a mix in carries like last year but Eddie Wide will be a nice #2 change up. At WR the Utes won’t have any drop off from 2008. David Reed is the clear #1, but Aiona Key will surprise with his athletic ability, he high jumps 7’3, and he has rare size at 6’4 195. Jereme Brooks plays the slot at 5’7 170 and is super quick and has looked good. Shaky Smithson, Luke Matthews, Elijah Wesson and Devonte Christopher all can make plays and old man John Peel was the Bradon Godfrey of the group in camp, making tough over the middle grabs. This group will be similar to a year ago in that a defense can’t stop one or the others will make plays.

3. SURPRISES: Wynn coming out at one point at the top of the depth chart, Heimuli being so good, so fast, the WR’s being so good and deep—remember this group lost Castell, Godfrey and Brown. Louks leaving. Corbin “won” the #3 job but he had a chance to sit out a year and be a good safety in a safety friendly system. Instead he’ll go to Nevada and play safety in a quarters system which is much tougher to master, he won’t even get a shot at QB, which is why he said he left in the first place. The whole thing just turned out strange and by the end of camp KW wouldn’t address the Louks situation.

GOOD AND BAD

Maybe this should be called concerns and not bad….Oh well…..

THE GOOD:

*DT: With Kenape Eliapo and Lei Talamaivao starting and depth provided by Latu Heimuli, Sealver Siliga and Dave Kruger, the Utes are set inside. There was even some talk of redshirting Siliga, who played solid as a true freshman last year through all the early DT injuries.

*O-LINE: The Utes are set in the trenches where Beadles at LT is an All-American type, Schlauderaff is all hairy and set at LG and Zane Taylor is a strongman All-MWC type at C. Tevita Stevens and Walter Watts are set to rotate at RG, which makes me a little uneasy, but RT Tony Bergstrom has been solid in replacing underrated RT Dustin Hensel from a year ago.
*WR: Who do you try to take away? When a team loses a Casteel, Godfrey and Brown, there should be a drop off. However this group has every style of WR in the book. Key is an end zone jump ball nightmare at 6’4 and athletic, Brooks is quick and small in the slot with run after the catch ability,  Reed can jump and run and is a solid 6’0 190, Wesson is a playmaker, Christopher is big, 6’1 190 and was called the most improved in camp. He could also run the Louks package. Smithson is a bulky 5’11 210 and broke tackles everytime he touched the ball. Matthews was an early star in camp and is 6’1 205 and while Peel is close to medicare, he did the dirty work over the middle. This is a play making group that is deep, diverse and athletic.

*RB: Asiata will carry the load 75% of the time. He’s quicker and lighter than a year ago in anticipation of the increased work this year. I think he’s the most important piece of the offensive pie only because the Utes have no one else like him. Also, with an inexperienced QB either way, Asiata has to take the pressure off the signal caller. Wide and Shaq provide a change up and each is different. Wide is quick and gets up field in a hurry which is a nice chnage to Asiata’s bulldozer style. Shaq is an upright 6’2 225 pounder who can run over or around you. He needs to get his pad level down on a more consistent basis. Both Asiata and Shaq ran the Wildcat in camp.
*LB: While Sly didn’t participate a ton in camp, he and Misi were the most dominant players on defense along with Robert Jonson. Kepa Gaison continued his solid play from the Sugar Bowl and Mike Wright was good as well. The reason why this group is taking the next step though is depth. Mo Neal, if he can stay out of trouble is solid in the middle, JJ Williams is back from his mission and looked good and Chaz Walker has a year of playing time under his belt. In addition, Matt Martinez is back from injuries and former QB Chad Manis and his leg tattoo has a year on the defense and is better.

*S: Between Misi, Sly and Robert Johnson the Utes have a star at every level on the defense. Joe Dale was banged up most of camp but he’s solid as well when healthy. Justin Taplin-Ross had a nice camp and is big at 6’3 212. Freshman Victor Spikes could add some depth here as he was solid in camp. Unfortunately, freshman Chris Washington, who looked good early, suffered a season ending shoulder injury.

CONCERNS:

QB:  No one said it would be easy to replace BJ, but when you have two QB’s you have none. Glass half full says the race is too clse to call, glass half empty says no one has stepped forward to grab the job. The staff likes Wynn a ton and I think is looking for enough seperation to name him the guy, especially given the two games to start the season. However, Cain was the better QB late in camp. Stay tuned, as this drama possibly won’t end until the Utes first possession against Utah State. By the way, although Gary Andersen doesn’t have the horses to beat the Utes in the opener, he could give an inexpereinced QB fits at least early, knowing the Utah scheme. Ultimately that would be a good test for whoever starts the season and could payoff long term.

K: Your kicker was a rockstar last season. He won games vs. Oregon State and Air Force and was swayed a couple others. Ben Vroman has a big leg and the ball has been booming in camp. But how will he do at TCU, BYU or Oregon with just a few ticks on the clock? No one knows.

DE: Our insiders are telling us good things about Koa Misi’s back. He may just miss the USU game and you or I could play DE and the Utes would win. However, Whittingham admits that he doesn’t know if this is a lingering injury and along with RJ, Beadles and Asiata, Koa is must have member of this team. Shelby is good, Fotu is an animal and Christian Cox and Junior Tu’one aren’t bad, but as one Utes insider told me, “They ain’t Koa.” Misi is a #1 NFL pick and plays the run and pass equally well despite his 6’3 263 pound frame. He quick and strong, so much so that he could play inside and will on some running downs. If things do linger, you could see Sly with a hand on the ground in passing situations this season.

CB: With the MWC going pass happy and Oregon having WR’s that average 6’3, the Utes corners better be good. Utah relies on these guys to be on an island so they can set other players free. RJ and Dale are good, but they need to roam the middle and make plays. The front seven and safeties are undenibly great, if the corners don’t come through in replacing McCain and Smith the Utes will have to adjust. The group is deep and athletic but can they play? Also, Utah likes to employ allot of nickel and dime and the depth has to be solid as well. JC guys who were supposed to help, Conroy Black, Maxwell Lacy and Kameron Yancy either didn’t get in camp or weren’t stand outs when they did play. Ryan Lacy, who was a WR at the start of camp and has 4.3 speed was moved in part because of a lack of depth at the corner spot. He’ll start the season as the 5th corner behind Stanford and Burton the starters and Justin Jones and Lamar Chapman the nickel and dime backs.

PR: The Utes tried everybody back here last season and had trouble. Will one player out of Justin Taplin-Ross, John Peel, Jereme Brooks, Elijah Wesson, Justin Jones or someone else prevail or will this be a trouble spot again? 

INJURIES

It always is a topic of conversation of how much hitting or physical contact should be done during camp. The Utes hit more, do more full speed drills and play at an overall higher intensity rate than BYU. BYU had many injuries this camp and the only major injury the Utes had that could potentially affect this season happened in a non-contact drill so who knows what is the right way to do things. With that said, here are the noteable injuries which happened in camp or are lingering as we get close to the season opener vs. Utah State:
Koa Misi: Injured back. Happened in a non-contact drill. Original prognosis was scary and there wasn’t much info as the Utes would only say out until further notice. However our sources told us that it wasn’t as bad as originally feared and KW said Saturday he may miss only the USU game. However no one is saying whether the injury could linger this season.
Joe Dale Still dealing with some off-season stuff and didn’t play much in camp but should be okay for the opener vs. the Aggies.
Shaky Smithson Has dealt with knee tendinitis off and on in camp. With Utah’s WR depth this shouldn’t be an issue.
Walter Watts Hyper extended his right knee late in camp but should be fine.
Chris Washington The former Northridge High (Layton) star safety has had shoulder surgery and is out for the year. He looked good early, but wasn’t slated to get a ton of time this season, he’ll redshirt.
Thor Salanoa Strangest injury from camp. The redshirt freshman DE broke his scapula when he was tackled by a 3rd-string QB after an interception during a scrimmage late in camp.

NOT HERE

The #1 JC recruit in the nation by some services, DE James Aiono had grade transfer issues and won’t be eligible until January. This didn’t seem like a huge deal for the former Snow College standout until Misi started having back issues. Aiono at 6’3 280 could play tackle or end. He’ll have 2 years of eligibilty remaining when he enrolls. CB Maxwell Lacy would have given the Utes similar size to the departed Sean Smith at 6’2 195, but he too had grade transfer issues and never made it to camp as well as WR Ray Magee who at 6’4 225 would have provided the Utes with more size outside. Aiona Key was late to camp last year and didn’t play much on offense because of catch up time but did provide a spark on special teams. Possibly these players could do that if they come in late, but Key is a freakish athelte who KW wanted to get on the field somehow.

 

This is huge news, it couldn’t come at a better time. This will boost moral. He just has to deal with BYU administration now.