BYU Announces 2012 Football Recruiting Class

PROVO, Utah - BYU head coach Bronco Mendenhall today announced the Cougars’ 2012 football recruiting class featuring 17 talented prospects. The class includes 10 defensive and seven offensive players. In addition, 12 scholarship players are joining the program after serving missions for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

“We are excited to have this next excellent group of young men join our program,” Mendenhall said. “We recruit young men who are excellent football players, quality students and exceptional individuals. This class, along with those we have returning from missions, will help us continue to build and grow as one of the nation’s top programs.”

Coming off its first season as a football independent, BYU earned a 10-3 record in 2011 and finished with a final top-25 ranking for the fifth time in the last six years. The Cougars’ 2012 recruiting class features 14 high school seniors, two returned missionaries starting their Division I careers and one community college transfer.

Watch video from today's press conference with Coach Mendenhall announcing this year's recruiting class.

Joining the program as a mid-year enrollee, Taysom Hill, a 6-foot-2, 210-pound quarterback, was originally a Stanford commit before serving a mission in Sydney, Australia. Hill helped Highland High to a 5A Idaho state title, was an All-State selection and was rated the No. 1 prospect in the state by Rivals.com. Also returning from the mission field as a mid-year enrollee is Ammon Olsen, a 6-foot-3, 198-pound quarterback. Olsen, a Utah Gatorade Player of the Year honoree, led Alta High to a 2008 state championship and then played his freshman year at Southern Utah before leaving on a mission to Mexico City.

Tanner Mangum, a 6-foot-3, 195-pounder from Eagle, Idaho, completes the quarterback class for 2012. Mangum was rated the No. 3 quarterback prospect in the nation by Rivals.com and No. 59 overall prospect. Mangum is expected to serve a mission before enrolling.

In addition to Mangum, two more recruits are rated in the top 20 nationally at their respective positions by Rivals.com. Troy Hinds, a 6-foot-5, 235-pound defensive end from Kaysville, Utah, comes in rated No. 14 as a four-star recruit by both Scout.com and Rivals.com. Rated the No. 1 recruit in the state by 247Sports, Hinds is expected to play outside linebacker at BYU and will also serve a mission before joining the team. Another top linebacker recruit is Butch Pau’u, a 5-foot-11, 215-pound linebacker from Anaheim, Calif., who is rated the No. 20 middle linebacker in the nation by Rivals.com.

Jamaal Williams from Fontana, Calif., and Summit High is a 6-foot-1, 193-pound running back who committed to the Cougars over other schools such as Oregon and UCLA. Strengthening the linebacker class is Rhett Sandlin, a 6-foot-3, 200-pound linebacker from Sandy, Utah, who is listed as the No. 7 recruit in the state by Rivals.com.

Five of the Cougars’ 10 defensive recruits are linebackers, two are defensive backs and three are defensive lineman. The seven offensive recruits include three quarterbacks, two wide receivers, one offensive lineman and one running back.

Seven recruits hail from California while five are from Utah. Members of the class also include two from Idaho along with one each from Florida, Arizona and Washington.

Of the 12 additional players returning from missions, seven are on the defensive side and five are offensive players. Four players, including senior defensive lineman Russell Tialavea and sophomores Craig Bills (safety), Brett Thompson (wide receiver) and Fono Vakalahi (offensive lineman), are returning lettermen with Tialavea returning with three years of starting experience.

BYUtv Sports Special: BYU Football Signing Day

Tune in to watch an hour-long "BYUtv Sports Special: BYU Football Signing Day" Wednesday night at 7 p.m. MT on BYUtv and online at www.byutvsports.com or www.byutv.org. Coaches, players, Cougars in the NFL, Athletic Director Tom Holmoe and analysts will discuss Cougar Football as BYU welcomes a new crop of players and prepares for the 2012 season.

"BYUtv Sports Special: BYU Football Signing Day" will be broadcast twice after the 7 p.m. MT inaugural airing. It can also be viewed later Wednesday evening at 10 p.m. MT or at 1 a.m. MT Thursday morning on BYUtv and online at www.byutvsports.com.

Biographies and a complete list of the 2012 class are included below.

CLASS OF 2012

First-team Trinity League … First-team All-Pac 5 … 2011 Trinity League Defensive MVP … team co-captain … won state title as a sophomore … played linebacker, defensive end, fullback and offensive guard in high school … rated No. 5 fullback in the nation by Scout.com … also recruited by Oregon State, Colorado, Hawaii and UCLA … coached by Troy Thomas

Defensive Back
5-11, 190
Connell, Wash.
Connel High School

Offensive Line
6-7, 260
Jackson, Calif.
Argonaut High School

2011 Cal-Hi All-State First Team … 2011 League MVP, 2011 All-Area Second Team Defense, 2010 First team All-League … ranked the No. 12 defensive end in the west and No. 78 overall player in California by Scout.com … recorded 70 tackles, 2 sacks and scored two defensive touchdowns (1 fumble recovery and 1 interception return) as a senior … also caught 10 passes for 325 yards, 4 touchdowns and caught a 2-point conversion at tight end … recorded 109 tackles, 5 sacks, 2 blocked kicks and recovered a fumble as a junior while catching 8 passes for 111 yards and one touchdown at tight end … Academic All-League in 2010 and 2011 … was student-body president as a senior …. Honor roll all four years of high school also was All-League in basketball in 2010 and 2011 … also recruited by Utah, Air Force, Oregon, Oregon State, Washington, Washington State, UCLA, Arizona, Army, Harvard and Utah State … coached by Rich Davis

Running Back
6-1, 193
Fontana, Calif.
Summit HS

League and CIF offensive MVP … First-team All-CIF, First-team All-League … CIF Championship as a senior with a 13-1 record and league title … had 141 rushes for 1,252 yards and 22 touchdowns as a senior … also recorded 13 receptions for 254 yards and 1 touchdown … rushed 93 times for 717 yards a junior with 11 touchdowns … assistant coach was Tony Crutchfield, former BYU defensive back … also recruited by Boise State, Arizona State, Utah, Idaho, San Diego State, UCLA and Oregon … coached by Tony Barile

Outside Linebacker
6-5, 235
Kaysville, Utah
Davis HS

Rated No.1 recruit in Utah by 247Sports ... Four-star recruit by Rivals.com, rated the No. 14 defensive end and No. 2 overall prospect in state of Utah and No. 2 in the state by ESPN … four-star recruit by Scout.com, ranked the No. 23 overall defensive end … 5A All-State selection all four years of high school … Maxpreps All-American … All-Region MVP and All-Area MVP … led team in sacks as sophomore (8.0), junior (7.5) and senior (9.0) … led team in tackles sophomore (96) … led Davis to a league title in 2009 and 23-9-1 record in three years … recorded 7 tackles, one sack and caught a 39-yard touchdown pass in a 14-10 victory over Syracuse as a senior … forced four fumbles as a senior … also lettered in basketball and track … also recruited by Arizona, Arizona State, Cal, Georgia Tech, Colorado, Michigan, Nebraska, Notre Dame, Oklahoma Stanford, UCLA, Utah and Washington State … coached by Ryan Bishop

Defensive Line
6-4, 240
Sandy, Utah
Alta HS

Defensive Back
6-1, 190
Alpine, UT
Lone Peak HS

5A First Team All-State in 2011 … honorable mention All-State in 2010 … won 5A state title in 2011 … helped Lone Peak to 25-2 record in two years … recorded 58 tackles, two sacks, six pass breakups and forced one fumble as a senior … also caught 35 passes for 526 yards and eight touchdowns … brother, Jacob, will also play defensive back for BYU … also recruited by Southern Utah, Utah and Utah State … coached by Tony McGeary

Wide Receiver
6-4, 200
Show Low, Ariz.
Show Low HS

Maxpreps All-American (2009, 2010) … 2011 AzFCA All-State … selected to play in 2011 Semper Fi All-American Bowl …  AZ Republic All-Arizona (2009, 2010, 2011) … set six 3A Arizona high school records in career and is Arizona’s all-time leader in career receptions (187) and receiving yards (3,851)  and receiving touchdowns (46) … played multiple positions as a senior and rushed 130 times for 1,161 yards and 13 touchdowns, caught 38 passes for 540 yards and 5 touchdowns and threw for 527 yards and 8 touchdowns … as a junior caught 73 passes for 1,561 yards and 20 touchdowns … had 47 receptions, 1,223 yards and 15 touchdowns as a sophomore … won 2010 3A state championship … also ran track and won the 2011 400-meter state title … National Football Foundation Scholar Athlete of the Year (2011) … also recruited by Florida, Florida State, Nevada, North Carolina, Arizona, Arizona State and Ohio State … coached by Randy Ricedorff

Quarterback
6-3, 195
Eagle, Idaho
Eagle HS

Rated No. 1 prospect in the state of Idaho, No. 3 overall quarterback in the nation and No. 59 overall prospect by Rivals.com … rated No. 15 quarterback by Scout.com … Co-MVP of Elite 11 Camp … MVP of the Under Armour All-America Game … participated in The Opening, a five-day Nike football event and was named to the 7on7 All-Tournament team after leading his squad to the championship game … 5A Southern Idaho Conference Offensive Player of the Year … All-State … completed a school-record 268 of 393 passes for 3,885 yards and 35 touchdowns as a senior … set a single-game school record completing 37 of 53 passes for 469 yards and six touchdowns … threw for 874 yards and 10 touchdowns before missing most of his junior year with a an injury … Academic All-Conference all of high school … ESPN lists him as “an efficient, technically consistent pocket passer that is an above average athlete as well” … older brother, Parker, also played football at BYU while sister, Meredith, played soccer at Boise State … also recruited by Arkansas, Boise State, Oregon, Oregon State, Stanford, Utah and Washington State … coached by Paul Peterson

Linebacker
6-0, 230
Orlando, FL
Dr. Phillips High School

2011 All-Metro West Conference … team captain and defensive MVP … had 50 tackles in four games, including a season-high 16 tackles in the third game of the season before tearing his ACL in October of his senior year … as a junior totaled 128 tackles, 5 sacks and an interception … led high school team to 45-4 record in career …  helped school win 36-straight regular-season games … in state title game junior season … principal’s honor roll … National Honors Society … has seven brothers and sisters … also recruited by Florida Atlantic, Duke, Miami, North Carolina, Georgia Tech, Purdue, Indiana and Wisconsin … coached by Rodney Wells

Defensive Lineman
6-2, 310
Los Angeles, Calif.
El Camino CC
*mid-year enrollee

First-team All-League, Second-team All-City … Team captain and lineman of the year … led El Camino to a No. 2 ranking in sacks (38), pass defense (176.5 ypg) and scoring defense (19 ppg) and No. 3 in total defense (288.5 ypg) … recorded a team-high 14.5 tackles for loss for minus-38 yards, four sacks, forced one fumble and recovered one fumble … earned Scholar Baller Award … has three brothers and sisters … also recruited by Indiana, Washington State and Texas Tech … coached by Ruffin Patterson

Quarterback
6-3, 198
Draper, Utah
Southern Utah University
*mid-year enrollee

Utah’s 5A Most Valuable Player and Gatorade Player of the Year honors as a senior while leading Alta High School to the 2008 state title … completed 193 of 306 passes (63.1 percent) for 3,209 yards and 36 touchdowns and ran for 860 yards and another 11 scores as a senior while leading his team to four second-half comeback wins … member of back-to-back state championship teams in 2007 and 2008 as well as three consecutive region title teams … exceptional athlete was also a three-year letterman on the AHS basketball team, earning Region 2 MVP honors as a senior …  Attended Southern Utah University as a freshman in 2009, playing in six games while completing 57.1 percent of his passes (8-of-14) for 115 yards and two touchdowns …  added 44 yards rushing on 10 carries (4.4 ypc) … served an LDS mission to Mexico City … coached in high school by Les Hamilton 

Quarterback
6-2, 210
Pocatello, Idaho
Highland HS
*mid-year enrollee

2008 5A All-Idaho Player of the Year as a senior after quarterbacking Highland to its first state title since 2002 … listed as the 30th-best quarterback prospect in the nation coming out of high school in 2009 by Scout.com and Rivals.com ... listed as the top recruit in the state of Idaho by Rivals.com ... led Highland to the Idaho State 5A championship as a senior ... Idaho's Gatorade High School Player of the Year as a senior ... first team all-state selection also earned all-region and conference player of the year accolades ... completed 166-of-258 passes (64.3 percent) and threw for 2,269 yards and 18 touchdowns as a senior ... also rushed for 1,491 yards and 24 TDs, averaging 10.2 yards per carry and 124.3 rushing yards per game ... holds school single-season and career records for total offense ... also lettered in basketball and track and field ... older brother Jordan played defensive tackle at Arizona State and other brother Dexter played quarterback at Scottsdale (Ariz.) Community College, Northern Iowa and Dixie State (Utah) ... served LDS mission to Sydney, Australia … originally committed to Stanford before mission … also recruited by Arizona, Washington State, Boise State and Utah … coached by Gino Mariani