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PROVO — This time last year, Ryner Swanson was hanging 10 off the Southern California beaches, far removed from the eventual disappointing season BYU football was about to endure.
But second-hand experience is good enough for him to understand the stakes going into this season. The freshman tight end knows the Cougars need substantial improvement to reverse last season's 5-7 record.
"We're not freakin' messing around this year," Swanson declared after a recent practice.
From what he's heard, Swanson said last season players strayed from the details every team requires for success. His teammates said to him that some were late to meetings, among other things.
This offseason, the coaches used a point system to keep track of most everything the players did, both good and bad, Swanson said. The heavily recruited Swanson, who totaled 2,555 receiving yards and 27 touchdowns for Laguna Beach High, arrived at BYU in January.
"In football, the small things are the most important," he said. "The little things are the most important, and we're dialing in on that this year."
Rated by 247Sports as the nation's No. 18 tight end, Swanson didn't choose BYU to play for a loser. During his last two years in high school, he was part of Laguna Beach's first CIF-Southern Section championship in 88 years as a junior, and the team followed it up by going 9-2 last year.
As a youngster, he was more into surfing, baseball and basketball and didn't think of a future in football until three years ago. His immense talent resulted in numerous scholarship offers, which included Texas and Oregon.
"I love the coaches here, and this is the place for me," said Swanson, who will send in the paperwork this week to serve a church mission beginning after the season.
Players and coaches have backed up Swanson, echoing similar comments on using last season as motivation going into this year. As all of them know, the Cougars were 2-7 in the program's Big 12 debut and finished the season on a five-game losing streak.
"It drives me nuts every single day," said sophomore linebacker Harrison Taggart.
According to the oddsmakers, Taggart will go crazy again this next offseason. The Cougars are picked to finish 13th in the newly expanded 16-team conference, with most win totals placed well below the required six to reach bowl eligibility.
Now down to less than two weeks before the season opener against Southern Illinois, BYU still does not have a starting quarterback.
Offensive coordinator Aaron Roderick and coach Kalani Sitake walked off the practice together Monday but neither offered any declarative information on the competition between Gerry Bohanon and Jake Retzlaff.
The Cougars will begin game preparation in the next day or two, a timeframe that forces a solidified depth chart. While not ruling out any possibilities, Roderick does not prefer to rotate quarterbacks during games.
Both quarterbacks, he said, continue to show well in practice and are making it a tough decision. Roderick also has consistently said he anticipates needing both players during the season.
"The worst is if nobody pulls away because neither one of them are any good," he said. "I believe this battle has been close because both of them are playing well and both are moving the team."
At the same time, Roderick has been hesitant to dole out compliments individually and for the offense as a whole. Considering last season's subpar performance, even as he has plenty of faith in this team, Roderick is waiting until the games before going public with high praise.
"I've told everyone on our offense that we've got a lot to prove," he said, "and we're going to play with a chip on our shoulder this year."
