Why Tanner Mangum will have a huge year for BYU Football

Some fans have written off the possibility of a great season for Tanner Mangum in 2018. Don’t close the book yet on his chances.

Something has become very clear as I’ve studied game footage of the 2015 BYU football season. It’s funny that somehow it’s been forgotten.

Tanner Mangum is a star.

There’s simply no other way to describe it. No one but a star could not waltz into Memorial Stadium and do what he did against Nebraska. He did the same in the Boise State game, not to mentioned his heroics in the fourth quarter against East Carolina, as well as Utah in the Vegas Bowl.

Somehow, Cougar Nation forgot that season, his 3,377 passing yards and 23 touchdown passes. Some think that they misjudged his abilities. A notion that Mangum was a Hail Mary slinger that solely depended on tall receivers to bail him out from his errant passes pretty much prevails now among the fan base.

The reality is that of the 267 passes Mangum completed his freshman year, only two were Hail Mary passes. With such a small sample size, this categorization of the quarterback is not only unfair, but a little ridiculous.

The other misconception can be disproven as well. The assumption is that Mangum was successful only because of his targets being above average height. Yes, he completed 54 passes to Mitch Mathews (6’6), 39 passes to Nick Kurtz (6’6), and 37 to Terenn Houk (6’5).

However, it should be remembered that he didn’t have any trouble getting the ball to the smaller guys, either. 46 completions to Devon Blackmon (6’0), 37 to Mitch Jeurgens (5’10), and another 22 to Colby Pearson (6’0) put that argument to bed.

So, how in the world could a star fall to where he is now? A walk down memory lane shows the story.

A Coach’s Job

People first point to an overly difficult schedule and poor pass protection. Lack of competition for the position and an offense that didn’t fit Mangum’s style also are mentioned. Personally, I’d like to shift he focus to something else.

Typically, when a player has a huge season like Mangum did, something happens to his coach. An incredible amount of pressure falls on his shoulders to keep the athlete at the same performance level. This accountability should not only be expected, but it is deserved.

It can be assumed that when an individual has excelled in a certain level of competition, he should be able to maintain this, if not exceed it. That is, in the right conditions. These expectations for coaches have not been present in Tanner Mangum’s case.

With the arrival of a new coaching staff, and the return of another star, Taysom Hill, from injury, these expectations got lost in the shuffle. Sure, former offensive coordinator Ty Detmer was held responsible for the poor offense from a year ago, and lost his job for it.

But Mangum is still taking a lot of the blame for those problems. And although he is not blameless in those results, not once have I ever heard anyone ask the following question: Why was the last staff able to be so successful with Tanner Mangum, while the next one wasn’t?

It’s a question that must be answered. It’s not fair to Mangum, or BYU football to not do so.

A coach has a responsibility to his team to not only put the right players on the field, but to place them in a position to succeed. They need to create a situation where athletes most likely flourish and utilize their talents to the maximum.

Been There, Done That

This is not an easy task, but it is possible. In fact, it was done just a few years ago right here at BYU. For proof of this, look no further than the 2015 BYU football season.

Offensive coordinator Robert Anae had no intentions of his offense being lead by Tanner Mangum. He had designed it for a quarterback with a much different skill set, Taysom Hill. Yet, when the need arose for adjustments to be made for Tanner’s abilities, they happened. The rest, as they say, is history.

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I can already hear some of you asking the question, so I’ll get right to the chase: “What you’re saying is if Tanner was great before, he should be great again?” My answer, “Precisely.” Next comes, “With the right coaching, this will happen?” The response, “Absolutely!”

Before I continue, I want to be clear on one matter. I do not have a problem with the current quarterback competition with freshman Zach Wilson. In fact, I think this healthy process will only help the senior to progress.

I do, however, have an issue with underestimating Mangum because of the mismanagement of his abilities by past coaches. It is inexcusable for the coaches to not expect him to be able to play at the same level he did as a freshman.

If Jeff Grimes is the coach I think he is, Tanner Mangum will have a huge year in 2018. With the right circumstances, I believe that Mangum will throw over 3,500 yards and 30 touchdown passes this season.

And why shouldn’t he? He’s more experienced, in better physical shape, and of course he understands the game better than he did three years ago. He also has at his disposal what should be an improved offensive line, with a much better pass protection scheme.

Asking a coach to help a former star to return to his previous form is not a stretch. It’s one of the standards that all coaches are judged by.

Not only should it happen, it needs to.

Many may consider my proposal as pure insanity. I only have one thing to say to that.

He’s done it before!

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