PROVO -- Mother Nature forced the BYU practice indoors for the first time this Spring as the Cougars centered their full-padded workout on the running game.
"We have structured our practice to make Tuesday and Thursday to be more run-oriented," head coach Bronco Mendenhall said. "I think the running game will be one of the strengths of our offense. With that in mind, we are trying to get everyone from our tight ends to our offensive line ready."
Mendenhall likened the increased attention to the running game to the installation of the new defensive scheme last Spring.
"Our focus defensively was to limit points and keep our opponents out of the end zone once they reach the Blue Zone," he said.
The practice started with position-specific drills before the team came together and focused on the running attack and the play-action passing game.
In the team segments, the defense asserted itself early and often. On the second play of team drills Kelly Poppinga busted through the middle to tackle Manase Tonga for a four-yard loss. Brett Denney and Dan Van Sweden got loose on the next drive with each recording a sack.
Chris Bolden and Sean Sullivan combined to record a non-contact sack on quarterback Max Hall. On the offensive side, David Foote recorded the longest run of the day, an 11-yard scamper. Tonga had rushes of 10 and six yards while Ryan Folsom added a six-yard run.
Cade Cooper found Ryan Neeley for a long pass of 13 yards on a broken play.
Cooper completed 3-of-6 passes for 23 yards while Hall completed 1-of-3 passes for two yards on the day. The defense held the offense out of the end zone for the entire team segments of practice.