Kind of ironic
 

That Taysom would go out like this.

Before the game, I thought to myself, would be ironic if he was hurt again in his last LES game. And that he might be carried out on a stretcher, and he would have this last moment of a thumbs up from the stretcher, and the crowd would cheer as he exited our lives forever.

It didn't quite happen like that.

I thought there was an element of class to the muted cheers for Mangum when he came in. Some respect for the fallen.

And thus ends the Taysom Hill era. It started with so much promise. It ended with so much ineptitude and mediocrity, that despite his alpha-looks and bearing, he became one of the most hated players in the history of cougarboard. Not for anything about his personal character, but merely for the fact of sucking. So hard.

This has to be one of the worst passing seasons for BYU in modern history.

If Detmer repeats this next year with Mangum the grumbling will turn into pitchforks and torches.

Think about this--BYU led the nation in takeaways. And yet couldn't turn that gift into something in terms of wins-losses.

Sagarin right now has BYU at #31, with the 67th toughest schedule.

The only G5 teams ahead of BYU in the Sagarin ratings: Western Michigan and Houston. Houston had the 75th toughest schedule.

That's not bad for a first season from an inexperienced staff. I think in particular the defense looks like it's well-coached. The same cannot be said for the offense. A lot of talent left on the table untouched.

Would be remiss not to give a tip of the hat to Jamaal Williams. He is the best RB for BYU in history. Of course he's the career rush leader. But what puts him over the top is his longevity and durability, his ruggedness. There's no doubt in my mind that he's better than Staley. And certainly better than Unga. I hope he gets some play in the NFL.

Nacua will be missed. He brought toughness and swagger to the team. Great ball hawk.

Takenaka - I guess he is a senior too. Seems like yesterday I was reading about his signing. And now he is gone. Time sure goes by quick.

[just looked up Eric Takenaka's profile, he was a JC transfer, forgot about that part].

Mangum is way better than Hill. Hill played with a lot of passion but he's a terrible passer. No excuses. His 116 passing efficiency over the season is good for #99 nationally. I know some will want to blame the new offense, but the reality is Hill has never been a good passer.

For Mangum, in limited action his PE was 182. I get it that his opposition was against the easier opponents, but given how he played last year, it's still pretty safe to say he's a much better passer. At least this way he has three weeks or so to get ready for the bowl game. Let's see what happens in that game. Wouldn't it be funny if suddenly the offense looked good? I don't think that's so far fetched. Having a QB who can't throw worth a spit is a huge disadvantage for an offense. And was it really Detmer's call to go with Hill, or was it Sitake's?

Also, for what it's worth, I read over the weekend that BYU was 10-2 against the spread. That would seem to indicate they over-performed national expectations against their schedule.

I trust that Hill makes a full recovery. I was hoping he would stay healthy for the remainder of the season, but sadly he did not.

The main issue will be the line, but BYU won't be facing the best defenses in either Wyoming or SDSU. It will be interesting to see how the offense does.

I actually think it was Sitake's call. I think Sitake made a fool's promise to Hill that if he stayed, he would start every game. And he kept his promise.

If Mangum plays well next year, the Taysomites will be patting themselves on the back about how Mangum had the opportunity to "learn the offense" as a backup. And now the coaching staff and the players are "on the same page." And how Taysom "took one for the team."

Passing is not the point. Winning is. I think BYU made a huge mistake not hiring Coach K form Navy by any means available.

Didn't he turn the job down? He probably wasn't willing to take a pay cut for the Lord, so to speak.

Option football? No, thank you. It's not a given that playing that way would lead to winning at BYU. The game has changed. It hasn't worked for a very long time at any school other than Navy or Air Force. Hasn't even worked at Army. Former Navy coaches have tried it at other schools with little success. Better for him to stay where he's at and take the pay raise. Better for BYU to go a different direction.