Left up to Aaron Francisco, Pop Warner youth football would have been the last time BYU's senior Cougarback stepped foot on a football field.
The 6-2, 206 senior from Laie, Hawai`i had no desire to play football his freshman year in high school. His love initially fell on the basketball court.
But Francisco's father, James Francisco, knew his son had potential and relentlessly sought ways to change his mind. Knowing his son would still keep to basketball his sophomore year, James went and signed up Aaron himself, paying the $150 fee and promising the coaches his son would be there for the first day of practice.
Seeking refuge through his mother, Lisa, Aaron told her he didn't want to play football. She told him, "Your dad paid the money already, and the coaches are expecting you to come, so you go play this year, and if you don't like playing football, you don't have to play after this."
Seven years later, Francisco has no intention of ever giving the sport up, as he leads the BYU Cougars into the 2004 season.
"Everything he does, he's going to like because he's good at it," his father said.
Francisco admits the move turned out to be the right choice.
"Once I got out there and played my first season, I did really well," Francisco said. "The coaches really liked me. From then on, I kind of stuck with football. I still play all the other sports, but football became my favorite."
BASKETBALL, NOT FOOTBALL
Because Francisco was the only son in his family, James taught him the skills early on, helping him develop into a star athlete. When Francisco was only four-years-old, James taught him to surf and then to play basketball and baseball.
"My dad always wanted a boy, so he pretty much spoiled me," Francisco said. "When he was a kid, he always wanted to play sports, but his family was very poor at the time. He never got to play any sports as a kid, so I guess he kind of lives his dream through me."
His father admits basketball is the sport where Francisco developed his own skills, and at the same time, taught himself the determination he would need to make it on the football field.
At seven-years-old, Francisco's mother bought him the Michael Jordan video "Come Fly With Me." He would watch the movie over and over, so his father bought him a child's basketball rim and ball and put it on the wall where Francisco could reach it and emulate Jordan's dunks.
"He would go outside by himself and play for hours, killing all our grass in front of our house," James said. "Then he would come in the house all sweaty and watch his video again, and then go out and shoot some more."
The hours spent trying to be "like Mike" translated into Francisco's skills on the basketball court.
He made the varsity basketball team at Kahuku High School as a freshman in 1997 after impressing the team's coach, Charles "Chic" Hess, a former BYU-Hawai`i head basketball coach. Francisco amazed Hess at a summer workout after making just about every shot from the basket to the three-point line.
The two-time NAIA District 29 Basketball Coach of the Year talked Francisco into committing to be only a basketball player. Although Francisco would back out of the commitment his sophomore year, he became a four-year varsity basketball player and an all-state first team selection his senior year.
THE TRANSITION
Originally against his will, Francisco joined Kahuku's junior-varsity football team his sophomore year. He chose to try out as a safety and helped the school become Oahu Interscholastic Association Red Division JV football champions for its second-straight year.
"He went to defense knowing he had a better chance to not only play and start on the defense, but also maybe they would throw the ball up in the air and he would have the chance to steal one of those for an interception," his father said.
Kahuku head varsity coach Siuaki Livai said he knew Francisco would compete at the college level the first day he saw him play.
"He was a very good player and very talented," Livai said. "He was always there to do what was asked. He never complained and worked hard to try to get better every time. He meant business. He didn't fool around. I knew he would be a great player."
As the starting free safety on the varsity squad his final two years in high school, Francisco earned an all-state and all-league selection as a senior and helped lead the Red Raiders to a state championship as a senior. As a result, he earned a trip to the Hawai`i All-Star game.
COMING TO BYU
Toward the end of his high school football career, Arizona, Utah, Hawai`i,
Texas Tech, Washington and BYU recruited a surprised Francisco.
"To be honest, I never really thought I would be playing college football," Francisco said. "I never thought I was going to get a scholarship for anything. My junior year, I didn't even know what a scholarship was. I didn't know they got scholarships until my senior year when a lot of people started calling me."
Following in the footsteps of his grandfather Harold T.K. Yap who played college football for the Washington State Cougars in the '30s, Francisco decided to join the BYU's program. Before coming to BYU, Francisco's family looked up to Yap as its lone college star. Yap helped Washington State reach the Rose Bowl in 1931.
Francisco's parents were happy with his decision to come to Provo where his grandmother resides and his two older sisters attended school.
"We're really happy he came to BYU," his father said. "When he had the offer from BYU, that's where my wife and I wanted him to go and play. But we didn't tell him where he should play because we wanted him to make his own decision."
The Cougars' leader in tackles last year said his beliefs were a major factor in deciding to don the Cougar Blue, White and Gold. He liked the idea of attending a school where game preparation included prayer.
"I think prayer is always a good thing to do before you go out and play," Francisco said. "I'm glad that I'm not at a university that doesn't do that."
A GOOD BEGINNING AND MORE
Starting off with a bang, Francisco registered a season-high six tackles in his career debut, including four solo tackles in a start against Tulane in 2001.
He competed in all 14 games for the Cougars and also started against Air Force. Posting two interceptions on the season, one at New Mexico and one at Hawai`i, Francisco recorded 27 tackles as a true freshman, including 20 unassisted takedowns.
Francisco earned All-Mountain West Conference honorable-mention honors and the teams' Defensive Most Valuable Player in his sophomore year. He ranked second on the BYU roster with 99 tackles, including a team-high 51 solo takedowns.
A NEW POSITION
With the arrival of defensive coordinator Bronco Mendenhall in 2003, Francisco transferred from safety to the team's newly created Cougarback position.
"It's the same thing as a safety, but it also has different responsibilities because it's a whole different scheme than what I did for the first years here," Francisco said. "But I like it a lot because I get to be a lot more aggressive. I think that's the kind of player I am, so it brings out the best in me."
The position allowed Francisco to be involved in nearly every defensive play leading to career highs in tackles (116), solo takedowns (53) and interceptions (3).
"I love that," Francisco said. "That's why I play. It's to hit people (see article below) and make plays. That's why everybody plays. I was fortunate enough to get that spot, to be in the middle of the mix and in almost every play."
Francisco also accomplished his incredible numbers during his junior season while playing through a foot injury that bothered him all year. Prior to the beginning of the year, he fractured a bone in his foot and required surgery, but worked hard to be ready for the opening game against Georgia Tech.
"I guess I don't consider it being hurt," Francisco said. "I was in pain, but I'm grateful I could still be out there playing. I wasn't like some guy on crutches who couldn't even get in the game."
Credit for much of the defensive turnaround for the Cougars who ended the season ranked No. 18 in the nation in 2003 goes to Mendenhall, Francisco said.
"Just the first couple of weeks he was here, I could see the whole difference in his style of coaching," Francisco said. "He's gotten everybody to put in more effort in our workouts, in the weight room, on the field in practice and everything we do in the film room. Everything is so much more intense with him, and he expects you to be at your best at all times whether he's watching you or not."
THE FUTURE
Although the past two seasons have been difficult for the Cougars, Francisco looks forward to the 2004 season that may be the best BYU home schedule ever.
"I'm excited, especially as a defense," Francisco said. "We did so good last year. We showed we can compete against any offense no matter who it is."
Francisco believes its important for the team to move on from past struggles.
"We're not really trying to look back on the past seasons we've had," he continued. "We know the kind of seasons we've had the past couple of years. Now we're trying to look forward and better ourselves in every practice that we go through, in every day that goes by. We're not trying to dwell on what happened last year and the year before. We're trying to look forward to this year."
With the home opener against Notre Dame and non-conference games scheduled against USC, Stanford and Boise State, Francisco will have plenty of opportunities to shine in his senior season. And BYU's first ever Cougarback wants to go out making sure his opponents' offense and his fans remember his No. 33.
"Everyone wants to be remembered by the school for the type of player he was; what he did on the field," Francisco said. "That's the way I want to go out."
THE VENDOR OF THE "HAWAIIAN PUNCH"
Matt Berry steps back to throw. The Cougars exciting new wide receiver Todd Watkins breaks free of coverage. Berry steps up and hits Watkins with the ball. The speedy Watkins is racing for the end zone, just like he did earlier in the game.
But Cougarback Aaron Francisco (see article above) is determined to keep Watkins from scoring again. Francisco meets Watkins at the goal line. With the strength and vengeance Cougar fans have come to expect from Francisco, he knocks the ball loose from Watkins forcing a fumble the defense recovers.
Watkins has just learned the hard way how intimidating the Francisco-lead Cougar defense can be.
"Our defense is everywhere," Watkins said. "They can hit. They're always trying to strip the ball or make you fumble. They'll keep us in a lot of games."
Watkins also admitted to dropping a couple more passes in the first fall scrimmage for fear of another Francisco blow.
The senior from Laie, Hawai`i continued to dominate practices when he
intercepted a pass to end a 45-minute session of the two-minute drill. During the session, the defense forced three turnovers and kept the offense scoreless, thanks in large part to Francisco's effort.
"I thought the defense played really well," Head Coach Gary Crowton said after the drill.
Francisco has laid out his fair share of opponents throughout his career at BYU. The senior averaged more than nine tackles a game last year on his way to named to the All-Mountain West Conference team. He was also named the team's defensive Most Valuable Player.
Practices have gotten more physical in anticipation of Notre Dame.
"Red zone and two minute, those are the toughest drills," Crowton said. "We've been doing well on both sides of the ball in those two drills."
But Francisco doesn't mind the intensity, in fact he relishes for the chance to keep people out of the end zone.
"I love to hit people," he said. "I take it as a challenge when they come my way."
Given the nickname "Hawaiian Punch" because of his punishing blows, Francisco posted 10 or more tackles in six games last season, including a stretch of three straight. He posted a season high 13 tackles against Notre Dame.
Francisco has not missed a single game since coming to BYU in 2001 and has started 26 games in that span.
Francisco was recently named to the Jim Thorpe Award watchlist for 2004. The award is given annually to the nation's top defensive back.
The vendor for "Hawaiian Punch" is a soft-drink company, but Francisco has patented the moniker for his hard-hits
Francisco will be featured as the centerfold for the BYU-USC game.