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Show COUGAR SPORTS Cougar Sports Magazine feels that the Mountain West Football Team a.nnnounced earlier has some serious omissions. We recognize there is much more to football than statistics alone.. .like the value to your team in leadership, being there to make plays, opposing blockers etc. However, such factors are often subjective or biased. out-muscli- ng Therefore, Cougar Sports Magazine Team by names its 1999 simply comparing the statistics. Kevin Feterik, Jared Lee and All-MW- C Owen Pochman highlight Cougar Sports Magazine's 1999 West Conference football team. Feterik was named by the league coaches to the first team offense, but lost out to Colorado State's Kevin McDougal as MWC Offensive Player of the Year. We give that honor to Feterik. He accounted for far more yardage this season than any other conference electee and nearly three Owen Pochman All-Mount- times as many yards as McDougal. Pochman was named second team kicker. CSM selects him as the Special Teams Player of the Year. Pochman easily led all competitors in Cougar safety Lee was inexplicably left off both first and second team selections. CSM honors Lee, with his be involved. If a tie, does somone at the top disperse picks in order to "gain balance"? as a member Sports Cougar Remaining Magazine selections coincide with other Mountain West Conference 96 tackles, of the first team defense. the honor along with Byron Frisch and Brian team-leadin- g He deserves Rob Morris, Gray. Morris had a good season with 77 tackles. addition, Chris Hoke, Cougar defensive lineman with 51 tackles, ranks up there with other linemen honored, but is placed on the MWC In Second Team. One wonders points scored in 1999 with 90. if any politics could selections. Elevating Lee to first team pushes out San Diego State defensive back Rico Curtis (83 total tackles) is moved to the second team. Kevin Thomas, from UNLV is moved to "Honorable Mention" status. Curtis had no interceptions, and no passes broken up. g and led the Cougars in total career points, not make the allconference team? high-scorin- covering football for more than four decades. I've seen some injustices it when comes to In naming All-St- ar post-seaso- n teams. But none exceed the omission of BYU safety Jared Lee to the new Mountain West Conference First Team. Forget that he was left off the second honor squad as well. He did- n't belong there; he belonged on the first team. One of the best defensive players ever saw was Utah's Larry Wilson. He was everywhere. And he starred with the St. Louis Cardinal pro eleven for many years as everyone expected. The Cougars' Derwin Gray made many fine plays against Miami. He had a head for the game and knocked down a key pass late in the fray in BYU's end zone to preserve that memorable 28-2- 1 triumph over the Hurricanes. But I have never witnessed a better defensive back than Jared Lee. Through every game the Cougars played, I followed the ball with studied all the game binoculars. films. If it hadn't been for Lee, the BYU defense would have given up I I far more yards, most likely far more Marshall Thunders in points. The fact that he didn't start the Cougs' first four games, then led in team tackles (Rob Morris came second) was apparently overlooked by the team selectors. Nor did BYU give Lee a nickname. Why should you have to? The selectors happen to be the coaches who should know talent when they see it. But busily trying to win games, do they really take note of what each individual oppononent is doing? Do they say, "We've got to n team?" put him on our The system must be flawed. Since Jared is a junior, maybe he can be properly recognized next year. But a note for you, Jared: every time you make a tackle, break up a pass, steal it, pounce on a fumble and lead teammates to the ball, as you did so many times this year, stop for a minute to thump on your chest. I'm not sure exactly why, but I was rooting for you, Marshall. You All-St- ar post-seaso- will delay the game for perhaps half an hour, but maybe someone will notice. It While we're at it, put down BYU defensive lineman Chris Hoke for at least second team honors. And how could a guy like Owen Pochman, who kicked 1 6 consecutive field goals and all the PATs, plus booted every kickoff beyond the end zone looked like anything but a Thundering Herd in the first half against a team you were favored to beat by 20 points and came back from 23 down to win But BYU deserves to play a team ranked (11th) as high as you. The Cougars want to prove they can dethrone a perfect team. See, they need it to complete a season which ended in double disappointment. The fact that you had to win this n game or miss record-expo- ses 0 previously posting an some of the ills of the bowl selection process. But with your victory over Western Michigan (a fine team in its own right), you are not only perfect but the perfect team for BYU to play. Yet, that second half comeback via a TD pass with four seconds left makes you somewhat suspect. BYU could probably find an easier team to beat in the Motor City Bowl at Pontiac, Mich. Dec. 27. But it's too late now. Our guys have to play you. Meantime, the weather has turned terrible in Provo. The Cougs are still without an indoor practice facility for these bowl games they 34-3- 0. p!ay--aft- post-seaso- 11-- er Lee had four interceptions and eight passes broken up. It is hard to say why Curtis might have been named over Lee except that By comparison, the Aztec is a senior, Lee a junior. CSM sees no reason for choosing one class over another. Let the stats speak for themselves. Our selections our not meant to belittle the accomplishments of the other players. Thomas had 24 passes continued on pg 15 see CONFERENCE TEAM keep playing in. Yet, the local team did have the advantage of watching you on national TV. They saw some things on both sides they hope to avoid. Like proving how tough you are at the expense of your own team: a 1 penalty for hitting after the whistle at your own goal line? BYU would never do that. Would they? This team clad in (if not navy, BYU) blue and white has many weapons to toss against you. Some not always used in those last two games. That was to throw you off in case you look at our game films. Meantime, you have some scary weapons of your own. Chad Pennington's accurate arm, for one. He'll keep our pass defense, which has given up a grundle of touchdowns this year, scrambling. Maybe you'll show some respect and not throw toward Brian Gray. On defense you looked a little soft at pass defending the corners. But we'll try to take whatever your defense gives us: Most of all, we're glad you won. And I'll bet the Motor City Bowl Committee is too. This should be one of the great matchups of the year. We have a pretty good quarterback of our own in Kevin Feterik to oppose your man, Chad. Kevin didn't like the way the season ended. He's hungry. This is a chance to do it right. Move over Fiesta, Sugar, Orange, Rose bowls. We're up first. 5-y- |