What happened with the Former Players?

I was going to post this under the Hans Olson podcast thread, because I think some good conversation can come of this.



I have to believe that some of the bridge burning came from the players side of the equation.



Does anyone remember the first spring under Bronco? They sent a letter to every living former football player (including the head coach and assistant coaches of their rival) inviting them to a closed practice and barbecue.



During that spring and fall he had former players as guest speakers all the time. He talked a lot about returning to the tradition, including reaching back to former great players. The players were always invited to practice. Crowton was the one that wanted a break from the past, and Bronco spent a lot of time trying to reach out and fix that.



So...what happened between then and now?



I have no inside info on this. Out of the 3 that have been vocal (Staley, Stevenson, Olson) the only one I feel kind of bad for is Staley.

I'm not sure, all I know is my buddy who is a former player gets invited to an event every year, but typically doesn't make it, because he lives out of state.

What podcast?

found the podcast and listened. I actually agree with Hans on this one. Bronco is a self professed introvert. I don't think he is really interested in connecting with the alumni. Having said that, it is definitely something that would be good for him to improve on, and also there is some blame on the AD (Tom Holmoe) as well. BYU really needs to reach out more to the alumni and utilize that resource to improve the program.

They still have alumni days every spring. They just had one last month where hundreds of former players were in attendance.



http://byucougars.com/m-football/byu-wraps-spring-practice-alumni-day" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;



It's not covered as much in-depth any more because it's old news to the media.



My experience with the disaffected alums is that they are guys who feel like they need to be worshipped or treated more specially than the rest of the alums and so feel disrespected because the guy who play 10 minutes in his career is getting the same treatment as the almighty Hans Olsen, who we all know "God put [him] on this earth so [he] could play professional football" so he could covert the world with his dynamic professional career, oh....wait.....



Bronco treats the alums the same way he treats his team--everyone is a contributor and has the same inherent value as long as they sacrifice for the logo on the helmet. That just rubs the "entitled" alums the wrong way, much the same way he chafes entitled players and fans the wrong way. You can add Vai to your list of alums who are irritated that Bronco doesn't grant them mentor status.

I doubt BYU has any more disgruntled former players than any other school. Ben Olson. Sure. But that one was on Crowton. And Ben Olson has more reason to be disgruntled with UCLA than BYU. Quit. Left early.



Maybe the Olson somebody listed above was Hans Olsen himself. Bust, really. Over hyped. Press conference guy. Lump him in with Heaps.



Staley. If he is disgruntled, that is sad. Left early, though. Sold his legacy. But, with his injury, hard to blame him. Likely would not have been able to play again even if he stayed. BYU should mend this fence.



Jim McMahon. Wait.......... Tom and Bronco just mended that bridge.



I think this whole issue has been overblown.



[ Post made via Mobile Device ] http://cougarcorner.com/images/mobile.png" alt="" loading="lazy" style="max-width:100%">

stuckinbig10country wrote:
I was going to post this under the Hans Olson podcast thread, because I think some good conversation can come of this.



I have to believe that some of the bridge burning came from the players side of the equation.



Does anyone remember the first spring under Bronco? They sent a letter to every living former football player (including the head coach and assistant coaches of their rival) inviting them to a closed practice and barbecue.



During that spring and fall he had former players as guest speakers all the time. He talked a lot about returning to the tradition, including reaching back to former great players. The players were always invited to practice. Crowton was the one that wanted a break from the past, and Bronco spent a lot of time trying to reach out and fix that.



So...what happened between then and now?



I have no inside info on this. Out of the 3 that have been vocal (Staley, Stevenson, Olson) the only one I feel kind of bad for is Staley.

Stevenson. Had to Google that one. Are you referring to Derek Stevenson? Reserve linebacker. Withdrew from school after 2nd brush with the law. Fired a gun into the air to break up a fight his friend got into at Snow College. Sentenced. Probation required anger management. I found a 2014 Spring Football blog he wrote proclaiming himself to be a BYU Fan. Is he the disgruntled one referred to here? If so, so what?



[ Post made via Mobile Device ] http://cougarcorner.com/images/mobile.png" alt="" loading="lazy" style="max-width:100%">