Day 27 - Thanksgiving 2014

Today I am grateful for love. It is an unseen force between family members and between God and the individual person. It can conquer fear, and it can generate safety when there is otherwise none. I know that the bond of love between me and my family is something that keeps me strong, and knowing that God loves me more than I can imagine is something that brings safety and comfort to me.

Day 26 - Thanksgiving 2014

Today I am grateful for my dad. He is a great leader in my eyes as he leads his ward (an LDS congregation). He truly cares for all under his care. He is especially a great leader in our home. He has led my family with faith and love. I'm grateful for all the things he has taught me and continues to teach me. Thank you, Dad.

Day 25 - Thanksgiving 2014

Today I am grateful for board and card games. I love playing games with my wife and other family members. In the end it doesn't matter who wins (even though it does feel good to win every once in a while), it matters that we spend time together. My wife and I have lots of fun especially with some of our favorite games: Ticket to Ride, Five Crowns, Phase 10 Twist, and 99 or Bust. I know that as we take time to play games, we come closer as a family.

Day 24 - Thanksgiving 2014

Today I am grateful for my wife's parents specifically (on a different day I lumped her parents with the rest of her family; today I'll just talk a little bit about them). They have raised a beautiful daughter. I am grateful for the examples they set for her and the things they taught her. I can see them through my wife, and I love that my wife can call her mom whenever she needs some advice from her or even to talk. Thank you from me.

Day 23 - Thanksgiving 2014

Today I am grateful for my sisters. I've been close to them ever since we were little, and I'm grateful for how good of examples they are for me. I hope that they continually find peace midst any trials they receive, and I am always mindful and thinking of how they are doing. I love them. Happy Thanksgiving, my sisters.

BYU Wins vs. Savannah State

BYU has a blowout against Savannah State University (now 0-12) at home in Provo today, Saturday, November 22, 2014, with a final score of 64-0. With a current record of 7-4, there was no sloppiness today on the last home game for the seniors on the team. Not only did the starters have many great plays, a lot of other players from second string, third string, etc., had great plays too. Three quarterbacks, Christian Stewart, McCoy Hill, and Hunter Moore, had minutes to play and opportunities to shine. Plus, a defensive back, Nacua, also got to play for one down. Kai Nacua played as quarterback back in high school.

There were many players with rushing and passing/receiving yards, but most importantly, the starters showed with their good execution and consistency that they are ready to face a California team from the Pac-12 Conference whose offense is really good with about 500 yards a game. The BYU's defense will face a good challenge in California, so we will see if they can help BYU's offense get the win in their final regular season game. I believe that if the defense can be as consistent in execution as the offense has been in this and their last two wins, I believe they will be finish the regular season with an 8-4 record. Then it's off to the bowl game in Miami!

So, as I said, BYU will face off against California in Berkeley, California on Saturday, November 29, 2014 at a time that will be announced early next week before the game. It will be broadcast on the Pac-12 Network. For those of you who don't have the Pac-12 Network, you can hear the game on BYU Radio online, on KSL's radio channel, or on Sirius XM 143. The usual Pre- and Post-Game shows will be shown on BYUtv.

Here are some stats from the game:
PASSING/RECEIVING (223 total yards; 4 touchdowns; 15.9 average yards per pass)
Christian Stewart (QB; Senior): 12 completions for 17 attempts (70.59%); 196 total yards; 4 TOUCHDOWNS; longest pass was 71 yards for a touchdown; 11.5 average passing yards per attempt
McCoy Hill (QB): 2 completions for 2 attempts (100%); 27 total yards; longest pass was 19 yards; 13.5 average passing yards per attempt
Mitch Mathews (WR): 110 yards with 27.5 average; 2 TOUCHDOWNS; longest catch was 71 yards for a touchdown
Jordan Leslie (WR; Senior): 36 yards with 12.0 average; 1 TOUCHDOWN; longest catch was 23 yards
Devin Mahina (TE; Senior): 32 yards with 16.0 average; longest catch was 24 yards
Terenn Houk (WR): 12 yards with 6.0 average; 1 TOUCHDOWN; longest catch was 9 yards
Other players with catches: Mitchell Juergens (WR; 19-yard catch), Nate Carter (RB; 8-yard catch), and Paul Lasike (RB; 6-yard catch)

RUSHING (264 net (316 total) yards; 4 touchdowns)
Nate Carter (RB): 116 net yards (lost 1 yard) with 5.8 average; 1 TOUCHDOWN; longest rush was 15 yards
AJ Moore (RB): 62 yards with 6.2 average; 1 TOUCHDOWN; longest rush was 22 yards
Christian Stewart (QB; Senior): 44 yards with 8.8 average; 2 TOUCHDOWNS; longest rush was 16 yards
Hunter Moore (QB): 30 yards with 4.3 average; longest rush was 8 yards
McCoy Hill (QB): 27 net yards (lost 2 yards) with 5.4 average; longest rush was 12 yards
Algernon Brown (RB): 17 yards with 8.5 average; longest rush was 17 yards
Adam Hine (RB): 9 yards with 2.3 average; longest rush was 4 yards
Paul Lasike (RB; Senior): 8 yards with 2.7 average; longest rush was 6 yards
Other players with rushes: Toloa'i Ho Ching (RB; 1 rush)

PUNTING
Scott Arellano (P; Senior): 103 yards with 51.5 average; longest punt was 61 yards; 1 of 2 punts was within the 20-yard line
David Kessler (WR): punt return was 21 yards long

KICKING
Trevor Samson (K; Senior): 2 for 2 on field goals (longest was 32 yards); 8 for 8 on extra points

DEFENSIVE (no points allowed; 2 sacks; 2 forced fumbles; 1 interception)
Alani Fua (LB; Senior): 1 INTERCEPTION and returned it for 20 yards
Kavika Fonua (DB): 5 total (5 solo) tackles; 1 tackle for loss for 1 yard
Zac Stout (LB; Senior): 5 total (3 solo) tackles; 1 tackle for loss for 1 yard; 1 pass broken up; 1 forced fumble
Austin Heder (LB): 4 total (2 solo) tackles
Harvey Jackson (DB; Senior): 4 total (2 solo) tackles; 1 sack; 1 tackle for loss for 1 yard; 1 QB hit
Theodore King (DL): 3 total (3 solo) tackles
Sione Takitaki (LB): 3 total (3 solo) tackles; 1 tackle for loss for 2 yards
Michael Alisa (LB; Senior): 3 total (2 solo) tackles; 1 QB hit
Michael Wadsworth (DB): 2 total (2 solo) tackles
Remington Peck (DL): 2 total (2 solo) tackles
Tanner Balderree (DL): 2 total tackles; 0.5 sack; 0.5 tackle for loss for 5 yards
Skye PoVey (DB; Senior): 1 solo tackle; 1 forced fumble
Kesni Tausinga (DL): 1 tackle; 0.5 sack; 0.5 tackle for loss for 5 yards
Jordan Preator (DB): 1 pass broken up
Kai Nacua (DB): 1 pass broken up

BYU MBBall Win 2 Before Hawaii

In their two games this last week, BYU Men's Basketball won both in preparation to going to Hawaii this next week for the EA SPORTS Maui Invitational.

Their first one was a Maui Invitational game @ home on Tuesday, November 18, 2014, against Arkansas-Little Rock with a win and a final score of 91-62. BYU struggled a bit in the first half on scoring but in the second half picked it up a lot. At half time the score was 37-28 with BYU winning, and then BYU scored 54 points in the second half to solidify the win. BYU was always in the lead. Some other highlights were fast break points (12 for BYU; 0 for Arkansas), points off of turnovers (24 for BYU (20 in the second half); 7 for Arkansas), and points in paint (52 for BYU (36 in the second half); 20 for Arkansas). BYU had 14 total players play.

The second game was an easier game against Southern Virginia University on Wednesday, November 19, 2014. It was at home in Provo with a win and final score of 101-48. Hitting the century mark in points, BYU had a great game with holding Southern Virginia to less than 30 points in each half. BYU had 49 points in the first half and 52 in the second. BYU dominated in points in paint (54-16), points off turnovers (35-8), second chance points (20-12), fast break points (24-2), and bench points (66-26). If they can keep up their execution and consistency next week, they should do well in the Maui Invitational in Hawaii.

I feel that with their performance in both games and an overall 3-0 record so far, they are on their way to having a really good season.

For your information some short comments on women's basketball are at the bottom of this post for you women's fans.

As I mentioned earlier, BYU will be playing starting on Monday, November 24, 2014, in Lahaina, Hawaii in the EA SPORTS Maui Invitational. They will start off at 9:30 PM MST against #16 San Diego State on ESPN2 which will be a good challenge for them. From that they will either play Pittsburgh or Chaminade at an unknown time Tuesday on ESPN or ESPN2. Their last game in Hawaii will be on Wednesday against an unknown team as of for now. Then BYU goes back home to Provo on Saturday, November 29, 2014, to play Eastern Kentucky at 7:00 PM MST on BYUtv.

Here are some stats:
University of Arkansas-Little Rock
Points: Chase Fischer with 19 (4-7 on three-pointers); Tyler Haws with 18; Anson Winder with 9; Nate Austin with 8 (4-4 on total field goals); Luke Worthington with 7
Rebounds (47 total rebounds; 34 defensive): Nate Austin with 11 (9 defensive); Kyle Collinsworth with 8 (5 defensive); Anson Winder with 5 defensive rebounds
Asissts: Kyle Collinsworth with 6; Tyler Haws with 5; Skyler Halford with 3
Steals: Tyler Haws and Nate Austin each with 2

Southern Virginia University
Points: Jake Toolson with 15; Isaac Neilson with 13; Tyler Haws with 13; Luke Worthington with 12; Chase Fischer, Dalton Nixon, and Anson Winder each with 10
Rebounds (51 total rebounds): Jake Toolson with 7 defensive rebounds; Isaac Neilson with 7 (5 offensive); Frank Bartley IV with 6 defensive rebounds
Assists: Frank Bartley IV with 7; Jake Toolson with 4; Chase Fischer with 3;
Blocks: Anson Winder and Frank Bartley IV each with 2; Josh Sharp with 1
Steals: Jake Toolson, Isaac Neilson, and Frank Bartley IV each with 4; Anson Winder and Luke Worthington each with 2

For the BYU Women's Basketball team their first game (Game #1) was on November 14, 2014, against South Dakota State in South Dakota. It was tough loss of 65-75. They lost again (Game #2) this last Wednesday, November 19, 2014, at home against CSUN (California State University, Northridge) with a final score of 54-63. The fought hard on both but weren't able to pull out the wins. Some top players for Game #1 were Morgan Bailey (25 points, 8 rebounds), Ashley Garfield (6 points, 8 rebounds), and Makenzi Morrison (11 points). Some top players for Game #2 were Morgan Bailey (22 points), Ashley Garfield (7 rebounds), and Lexi Eaton (8 points).
Next Few Games:
Nevada ... Saturday, November 22, 2014 (tonight) ... 7:30 PM MST ... BYUtv
[These next three games are part of the Tom Weston Invitational in Laie, Hawaii]
Butler ... Wednesday, November 26, 2014 ... 6:00 PM MST
BYU-Hawaii ... Thursday, November 27, 2014 ... 4:00 PM MST
Oregon State ... Saturday, November 29, 2014 ... 4:00 PM MST

Day 22 - Thanksgiving 2014

Today I am grateful for leaders...those who have leadership skills and are ready to lead others to a unified goal. There are many individuals I can think of: BYU quarterback Taysom Hill in how he can instill confidence in his team even when he's off the field; the prophet of the LDS church (my church), President Monson, who is a leader who counsels and guides us as we struggle with different things in our everyday lives; and lastly, the BYU football head coach, Bronco Mendenhall, who not only strives to help his team get wins but is also a great spiritual leader. I am grateful for these leadership examples in my life. And these are just a few examples of many more.

Day 21 - Thanksgiving 2014

Today (really yesterday since this is a day late) I am grateful for my mom. She is a family history guru and loves working with the cub scouts. She is a great example to me of dedication and motherly love. I remember many nights when I needed to talk with someone. I was very shy, but I always felt comfortable with talking to my mom. She would help me a lot with that, and she still does. Thank you for being my mom.

Day 20 - Thanksgiving 2014

Today I am grateful for Microsoft Excel...a Microsoft Office program. I love how great of a tool it is in doing calculations, tables of calculations, plots, and much more. It is useful with things I do for school and also at home.

Day 19 - Thanksgiving 2014

Today I am grateful for a cell phone. A cell phone is a device through which we can easily communicate with our family and friends through calling and/or texting. Landline phones are great for that too, but I appreciate cell phones even more since you can carry them anywhere and use them in most places. Nevertheless, no matter what phone you use, we should thank Heavenly Father for devices to communicate with our family and friends with.

Day 18 - Thanksgiving 2014

Today I am grateful for my brother and his wife who live in Utah. They are always fun to spend time with, and they are a great support to his and her family.

BYU Wins vs. UNLV

BYU gets another win after playing UNLV tonight (November 15, 2014) at home in Provo with a final score of 42-23. They now have a record of 6-4, and they received and accepted an invitation to the Miami Beach Bowl in December. That will make it 10 bowls in a row for BYU with a 6-3 records for the last 9 bowls. If you missed the game, you can watch it on BYUtv's website: http://www.byutv.org/.

The win came with a great offensive performance and a not-so-good performance by the defense and special teams. The defense was inconsistent in their execution; they had great drives and they had not-so-great drives. Special teams weren't able to tackle the returners fast enough sometimes, and they gave up two fumbles because they couldn't catch the punts. The semi-good thing was that those were the only two turnovers by BYU; the offense didn't commit any. The offense had great drives with good passes and rushes. They had a total of 592 yards (almost 600!) with the passing having about 50 more yardage than the rushing. They had higher averages on passing and rushing compared to UNLV, and they did it in less time than UNLV used. The defense also had positive aspects of their game. 3 sacks, 9 passes broken up, an interception (and almost another one) were some of the highlights of their performance. The top players of the game for me were Christian Stewart (who was the player of the game), Paul Lasike, Mitch Mathews, Jordan Leslie, Colby Pearson, Bronson Kaufusi, and Kai Nacua (for their stats, look below). The only injury that occured was Colby Pearson (WR). As he made a catch that got BYU a big first down, he got injured (the injury is unknown as far as I know; the injury was sad for me because he is from my hometown and high school).

So overall it was a good performance and win against a now 2-9 UNLV team. The defense and special teams has some execution problems to fix, but otherwise they are ready for their next game on Saturday.

With the goal of raising their current record to 7-4 next week, they are playing Savannah State (a Division I-AA team) on Saturday, November 22, 2014 in Provo, Utah at 1:00 PM MST. The game will be broadcast at that time on BYUtv. The usual pre- and post-game shows will also be on BYUtv. After that game, their last regular season one will be a week after that one in California against the University of California team.

Here are some stats from the game:
PASSING/RECEIVING (325 total yards; 3 touchdowns; 18.1 average receiving yards)
Christian Stewart (QB): 18 completions for 32 attempts (56.25%); 3 TOUCHDOWNS; longest pass was 48 yards; 0 interceptions; 2 sacks; 10.2 yards per average attempt
Mitch Mathews (WR): 120 yards with 20.0 average; longest catch was 48 yards; 1 TOUCHDOWN
Jordan Leslie (WR): 68 yards with 13.6 average; longest catch was 35 yards
Terenn Houk (WR): 38 yards with 19.0 average; longest catch was 22 yards
Colby Pearson (WR): 1 catch for 34 yards
Paul Lasike (RB): 1 catch for 26 yards; 1 TOUCHDOWN
Devin Mahina (TE): 1 catch for 15 yards; 1 TOUCHDOWN
Other players with catches: Ross Apo (WR; 13-yard catch) and Mitchell Juergens (WR; 11-yard catch)

RUSHING (267 net (299 total) yards; 3 touchdowns)
Paul Lasike (RB): 70 net yards with 8.8 average; longest run was 39 yards; 2 TOUCHDOWNS
Nate Carter (RB): 55 net yards with 7.9 average; longest run was 31 yards
Adam Hine (RB): 45 net yards with 5.6 average; longest run was 25 yards
Christian Stewart (QB): 38 net yards (18 lost) with 6.3 average; longest run was 25 yards
Jordan Leslie (WR): 33 net yards with 16.5 average; longest run was 30 yards; 1 TOUCHDOWN
Algernon Brown (RB): 32 net yards with 5.3 average; longest run was 25 yards
Other players with rushes: Trey Dye (WR; -2 net yards)

PUNTING
Scott Arellano (P): longest punt was 58 yards; 3 of 7 punts inside the 20-yard line; average punt yardage was 41.0

DEFENSIVE (3 sacks; 1 interception; 9 passes broken up; 5 tackles for loss for 30 yards; 70 total tackles)
Bronson Kaufusi (LB): 9 total (8 solo) tackles; 2 SACKS; 3 tackles for loss for 21 yards
Kai Nacua (DB): 5 total (4 solo) tackles; 1 INTERCEPTION and returned it for 32 yards (he almost had a second); 1 pass broken up; 1 tackle for loss for 1 yard
Dallin Leavitt (DB): 5 total (4 solo) tackles
Zac Stout (LB): 5 total (3 solo) tackles
Manoa Pikula (LB): 5 total (3 solo) tackles
Jordan Preator (DB): 4 total (4 solo) tackles; 3 passes broken up
Skye PoVey (DB): 4 total (3 solo) tackles; 1 pass broken up
Jherremya Leuta-Douyere (DB): 4 total (3 solo) tackles
Teu Kautai (LB): 3 total (3 solo) tackles
Travis Tuiloma (DL): 3 total (3 solo) tackles

Robertson Daniel (DB): 2 total (2 solo) tackles; 2 passes broken up

Graham Rowley (DL): 1 tackle for loss for 8 yards; 1 SACK

Players with QB hits: Michael Alisa (LB; 1 QB hit) and Logan Taele (DL; 1 QB hit)

Other players with passes broken up: Logan Taele (DL) and Remington Peck (DL) each with 1

Day 17 - Thanksgiving 2014

Today I am grateful for gloves and coats. They keep you warm when it is 32 degrees Fahrenheit or below outside, and I'm grateful to whoever invented them.

Day 16 - Thanksgiving 2014

Today I am grateful for prayer. Because of prayer I can find comfort, guidance, peace, and love from my Heavenly Father. I know that God answers prayers every day, and He will never leave those who seek him alone.

BYU Men's BB Wins vs. Long Beach State

Since BYU's win yesterday was so intense, I decided to write about it today in it's own post.

BYU yesterday, Friday, November 14, 2014, won in men's basketball in Provo against Long Beach State 95-90. It was a very closely fought game with each team shooting well. 5 BYU players had 10 points or more with their top scorer, Haws, ending with 21. Haws probably could have gotten more, bu Long Beach's two-man defense on Haws for a lot of the game stopped him from doing that. Other players like Halford and Fischer stepped up to the plate and helped BYU get the win. I feel BYU could do better on defense, but I do also have to say that Long Beach State had a really good offense. And BYU still did good on defense...just not enough to keep Long Beach State from staying up with them. If BYU can improve on their defense some more, they will be a stronger well-rounded team than they already are. 

BYU's next two games will be this next Tuesday (Arkansas-Little Rock; 7:30 PM MST) and Wednesday (Southern Virginia; 7:00 PM MST) (November 18th & 19th) and will both be broadcasted on BYUtv. The Arkansas-LR game will be the first game of the EA Sports Maui Invitational (the rest of those games will be played in a little over a week from now in Hawaii).

Here are top stats:

Top Scorers

Tyler Haws with 21 points; Skyler Halford with 18 points (with best field goal and 3-pointer percentage); Chase Fischer with 17 points; Anson Winder with 12 points; Isaac Neilson with 10 points

Top in Rebounds

Nate Austin with 9 (6 defensive); Anson Winder with 6 (6 defensive); Tyler Haws & Chase Fischer both with 3 each (all were defensive)

Top in Assists

Skyler Halford with 7; Chase Fischer with 5

Blocks/Steals

Tyler Haws with 1 block & 3 steals; Nate Austin with 2 blocks

I will do a post probably next weekend or something like that for the women's team. That one will include a quick commentary on their game yesterday in which they lost a close game 75-65 against South Dakota State.

Day 15 - Thanksgiving 2014

Today I am grateful for my son's snow boots. Because he has them, he can enjoy being out in the snow more. Even though he slips sometimes as he tries to get accustomed to walking on it, he still thoroughly enjoys playing out there. He especially loves it when I make a snowball and throw it.

Day 14 - Thanksgiving 2014

Today I am grateful for pine trees. I know that sounds like a random thing to be grateful for, but I truly am. I love how pine trees stay green all year long. Living up here in Idaho, I have seen lots of pine trees in the winter, and it's always cool to have some green midst all the white.

Day 13 - Thanksgiving 2014

Today I am grateful for a my son. This morning he dumped out the dirty white clothes and was trying to fold some. He just wanted to help :) That's one thing I love about him. He tries to help with something when what he's trying to do isn't what that thing needs at the time. He has his moments when he's causing trouble or what not, but he also many times where he is adorable. I love my son, and I am extremely grateful that Heavenly Father has blessed my wife and I with him. We are also grateful for the blessing of having another son next year :)

Day 12 - Thanksgiving 2014

Today I am grateful for my wife. She is a loving individual who supports me even in my low points. She is a great mother to our son and future son. She is a spiritually-strong individual who is always striving to do what she knows is right. She helps me become a better person, and I love her immensely for that. I hope that I can always provide for her needs, support her in her goals, and treat her with the same respect she treats me with. I love you, sweetheart! Thank you.

Day 11 - Thanksgiving 2014

Today I am grateful for all of my friends and family who serve in a branch of the military. They sacrifice much to do that, and I am proud of them. I fully support what they do. I also give my thanks to all veterans today who served to fight for our country.

Veteran's Day 2014

So for this year I wanted to post a video of a wonderful song, "Who are the Brave?", which was composed by Joseph M. Martin and sung in this video by the men in the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. It is a very moving song that reminds us who we need to remember on Veteran's Day. I hope y'all enjoy it as much as I did.

I personally honor all those who fought in the many past wars. Many sacrifices were made so that we remain free. For example, if we had lost World War II, who knows what Hitler would've done with the nations of this world. Those who fought in that and many other wars knew who they were fighting for. They were fighting for us and our freedom. In a book of scripture from my church, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, called the Book of Mormon, a great leader back in 73-72 B.C. wrote something we should all remember. "And it came to pass that he rent his coat; and he took a piece thereof, and wrote upon it--In memory of our God, our religion, and freedom, and our peace, our wives, and our children..." (Alma 46:12, The Book of Mormon). These are things that soldiers today and veteran fight and fought for.

Let us remember those who sacrificed and fought for our freedom and liberty...for protection of freedom of religion and protection of our families.

Below is a half-hour video by the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. It was something they performed on Veteran's Day in 2012. It includes the song above plus other patriotic ones. If y'all have time, I suggest watching it too.

BYU Exhibition Basketball

The exhibition (pre-season) games for BYU men's and women's basketball finished this last Saturday, November 8, 2014. The BYU women's basketball team lost their first one and won their second one, and the BYU men's basketball team won both. All four games were at BYU.

Here is a quick summary of the stuff below. The stuff below is in a lot more detail.

---> So the men's team had two good exhibition games with a lot of contribution from many players in both wins. Tyler Haws and Chase Fischer were the two high-scorers, respectively. The men's team dominated in overall bench points, off-turnovers points, and fast break points. The women's team had a tough but close loss for their first game, and then they dominated their second one. They had many players who contributed and had overall a great pre-season like the men's team.

Here is the details (men's first and then women's):
The men's team first played Colorado School of Mines (a team of engineers playing basketball basically) on Saturday, November 1, 2014 and won 82-64. BYU had great contribution from all of the guys who played. They dominated in about all of the aspects of the game. One neat statistic from the game was that BYU's bench players (those who weren't initially starting the game in the first 5 players) scored 37 points compared to Colorado who only scored 18. BYU after getting offensive rebounds scored 12 points for a 2nd chance compared to Colorado who had 0, and BYU had 14 fast break points compared to Colorado's 2.

Here are the top players and their stats (S = Starter):
(S) Tyler Haws: 29 total points, 4-4 free throws, 12-19 total field goals, 4 offensive rebounds
(S) Chase Fischer: 13 total points, 5 assists, 2 turnovers, 4 defensive rebounds
(S) Anson Winder: 1-2 on three-pointers, 2 turnovers (2 steals)
Ryan Andrus: 2 defensive and 1 offensive rebounds
Jake Toolson: 12 total points, 5-11 total field goals, 3 defensive rebounds
Skyler Halford: 5 total points, 2-3 total field goals, 7 assists, 2 steals
Frank Bartley IV: 4 total points, 2-3 total field goals, 3 turnovers
Dalton Nixon: 10 total points, 3-5 total field goals, 2-2 on three-pointers, 3 defensive rebounds, 3 blocks
Isaac Neilson: 9 defensive rebounds, 3 assists, 2 blocks, 2 steals

The men's team then played Seattle Pacific on Saturday, November 8, 2014 and won 75-44. It was another great game with contribution from all players who played. They dominated again in bench points, and they also dominated in points off turnovers with 34 points compared to Seattle with 7. At half time, the game was close with BYU ahead 30-40, but in the second half, BYU pulled ahead even more with only allowing Seattle 14 points.

Top players and stats:
(S) Chase Fischer: 21 total points, 9-13 total field goals, 4 assists, 2 steals, 2-5 on three-pointers
(S) Tyler Haws: 15 total points, 7-11 total field goals, 1-1 on three-pointers, 4 steals
(S) Kyle Collinsworth: 3 defensive rebounds, 4 assists, 2 turnovers
Jordan Ellis: 4 defensive rebounds
Anson Winder: 11 total points, 3 total rebounds, 5-9 total field goals, 3 assists, 2 steals
Skyler Halford: 3 assists, 2 steals
Dalton Nixon: 6 defensive rebounds, 2 blocks
Isaac Neilson: 2 offensive and 2 defensive rebounds, 1 steal
Corbin Kaufusi: 2 offensive and 6 defensive rebounds, 3 blocks, 1 steal

The women's team lost a closely-fought game on November 1 against Westminster 54-59. The top players for that game were: Lexi Eaton with 17 total points, Kylie Maeda with 12 total points, Morgan Bailey with 10 total points, 9 total (6 defensive) rebounds, & 4 steals, Ashley Garfield with 7 total (4 defensive, 3 offensive) rebounds, 4 assists, 3 blocks, & 3 steals, Cassie Broadhead with 7 total points, & 2 blocks.

The women's team won their last exhibition game on November 8 against Fort Lewis College 79-43 with a good blowout game. This game had a great spread of contribution from a lot of players At half-time, BYU was leading 41-18, and then in the second half, they scored another 38 points compared to Fort Lewis (25 points). The top players for that game were: Lexi Eaton with 14 total points & 2 steals, Ashley Garfield with 4 defensive rebounds, Makenzi Morrison with 2 defensive and 2 offensive rebounds, & 4 assists, Morgan Bailey with 3 steals, Kylie Maeda with 5 assists, Maddy Ziering-Smith with 11 points, Savannah Irwin with 4 turnovers, Micaelee Orton with 9 total (5 defensive and 4 offensive) rebounds, & 3 turnovers, Amanda Wayment with 6 total (4 defensive) rebounds

Day 10 - Thanksgiving 2014

Today I am grateful for a this blog and blogging in general. I find it to be a way to release my thoughts and interests and share them with anyone who wants to read them. It's a way I can relax. Plus, a blog can be a great way to share with others pictures, etc... of things you do or what your family does. If any you of need some channel like this, I challenge ya to start a blog. You don't have to feel pressured to post every day or anything like that. Just do what you want, and I think it will help you.

Preparation - Drop by Drop

little side note: I've decided to get rid of the numbering of my life insight posts

This talk is from the General Women's Session of last month's general conference for the LDS Church.

Prepared in a Manner That Never Had Been Known
by Linda K. Burton (Relief Society General President)

"...'personal worthiness is an essential requirement to enjoy the blessings of the temple. ...Worthy character is best forged from a life of consistent, correct choices centered in the teachings of the Master.' I love the word consistent. To be consistent is to be steady, constant, and dependable. What a great description of the principle of worthiness!"

What I took away from this talk
There is one thing that hit home for me. It is that preparation is not one, big instance. It takes drop by drop in order to spiritually prepare. Sister Burton specifically talked about spiritually preparing to enter the temple. The blessings we can receive in the temple is a spiritual feast. In order to be spiritually prepared for that, there are many things of obedience we can do like scripture study, prayer, and attending our church meetings. She also mentions many more. Another thing she said that we need to make sure of is that our home (house or apartment) is a place where the spirit can dwell. I loved this talk. It helped remind me what it is I need to improve on in my own life like being more consistent in my daily scripture study and being more sincere with my prayers. I challenge y'all to read this talk and find the things you can improve on in order to be more spiritually prepared.

In conclusion, here is a quote...

"Elder Russell M. Nelson taught, 'As temples are prepared for the people, the people need to prepare themselves for the temple.'"

Day 9 - Thanksgiving 2014

I'm thankful for my wife's parents, brothers, and sisters (and their families). We have a lot of fun with them when we get together. Our son's cousins love playing with him when they are together, and there is huge support for each other in my wife's family. Thank you, y'all, for being the amazing people you are.

Day 8 - Thanksgiving 2014

Today I am grateful for my brother and wife who live in Idaho Falls! We had the opportunity to spend time with them today and loved it. They have a sweet spirit in their home, and it's always great to go visit them. We love y'all!

Expecting a Second

My wife and I found out that we are expecting our second son, and he is due early next year. We are excited to have another child in our life. Our first son certainly does things that upsets us, but we still love him immensely. I want to share with y'all that even though there are challenges with having children, it is completely worth it. They bring a certain happiness, love, and energy into the home that otherwise would not be present.

Pins from Pinterest! #24 [Pumpkin meets Cheesecake]

http://www.pinterest.com/pin/553450241682017551/

This sounds like a delicious idea for this month. Pumpkin and cheesecake always go together well for me in a dessert!

Day 7 - Thanksgiving 2014

Today I am grateful for college football. It is source of entertainment for me that helps me relax even though I get really excited when my BYU team is winning. It is more exciting for me than any other sport. Let's go Cougars!

Day 6 - Thanksgiving 2014

Today I am grateful for my Grandma and Granddad Stewart. They are always welcoming me and my family every time we go to visit them at their home. I'm grateful to them for the times they made the trip from their home up to Idaho to support my brothers, sisters, and me. Thank you, Grandma and Granddad!

Day 5 - Thanksgiving 2014

Today I am grateful for my son's balls. They always make him happy...especially when we play ball with him. He loves it when we throw them around the apartment and he runs after them.

Day 4 - Thanksgiving 2014

Today I am grateful for books. Reading them is a relaxing way to escape our lives and delve into a fictional world for an amount of time. I think that if you spend at least 20 minutes a day reading a good, wholesome book, your life will be less stressful.

Day 3 - Thanksgiving 2014

Today I am grateful for a working car. Our 2001 Ford Escape has had its problems in the past and still does have some, but it nevertheless continues to perform and get us where we need and want to go whether that be to the store, to church, to visit family, or to go on a fun family outing. I'm thankful to God for blessing us with a functioning car.

Day 2 - Thanksgiving 2014

Today I am grateful for moisture. If we didn't have rain and/or snow, drought would be everywhere, and we would have lots of problems. I implore everyone to pray for those who are experiencing drought like people in California and other places.

BYU Wins @ Middle Tennessee State!

With a much-improved defense and decent offense, BYU went to Tennessee and beat Middle Tennessee State 27-7 today, Saturday, November 1, 2014. BYU now has a 5-4 record with four games left in the season against UNLV, Savannah State, and California. They just need one more win to be eligible for the Miami Beach Bowl in Florida this December (which they already have a contract to go to if they get six wins).

Great things happened for all aspects of the team. For passing/receiving, quarterback Christian Stewart had NO interceptions and performed well in leading the offense. 8 out of the 10 players with receiving yards had an average of 10 or higher. For rushing, four out of the five BYU running backs contributed to the total offensive performance. Even Nate Carter (the fifth-team running back) gave a good showing with his five runs during the last few minutes of the game with an average of 4.8 yards. There is great depth there. The defensive performed well with their sacks, interceptions, and ratio of solo tackles to total tackles. The defense has improved a lot compared to last week versus Boise State and hopefully this win propels them forward to another one in two weeks against UNLV. The BYU punter, Scott Arellano, broke the longest BYU punt record for 81 yards as the wind helped propel the ball forward. The previous record was 80 yards.

With an efficient offense and an improved defense that only held Middle Tennessee to 119 passing yards with only one big play of 22 yards for a touchdown (which is much better compared to last week against Boise State), I believe BYU is ready to win at least two or their last three regular season games. There were still penalities, but one positive thing about that is that there were no special teams penalties like there usually is. Also, Jamaal Williams (running back) sadly strained his knee (due to being tackled at the knees) and is out again. We don't know for how long yet. We will continue to see if they can be consistent in execution and achieve more team wins like today. After today's game, an 8-4 final record for the regular season doesn't seem as unreachable as it once did! Let's go Cougars!!!

Their next game will be in two weeks (they have a bye week this next week) on Saturday, November 15, 2014, at home in Provo against UNLV (University of Nevada, Las Vegas) at 5:00 PM MST on ESPNU. It is a black-out game where the players will be wearing their special black jerseys. The usual pre- and post-game shows will be on BYUtv.

Here are some stats:
PASSING/RECEIVING (316 total yards, 2 touchdowns, 11.3 average receiving yards)
Christian Stewart (QB): 28 completions for 45 attempts (62.2%), 2 TOUCHDOWNS, longest pass was 37 yards, threw to 10 different players, 0 interceptions, 3 sacks
Mitch Mathews (WR): 6 catches for 60 yards (10.0 average), longest pass was 14 yards
Devin Mahina (TE): 4 catches for 40 yards (10.0 average), longest pass was 22 yards
Paul Lasike (RB): 4 catches for 22 yards, longest pass was 14 yards
Colby Pearson (WR): 3 catches for 45 yards (15.0 average), 1 TOUCHDOWN, longest pass was 37 yards (touchdown pass)
Jordan Leslie (WR): 3 catches for 33 yards (11.0 average), 1 TOUCHDOWN, longest pass was 19 yards (touchdown pass)
Terenn Houk (WR): 2 catches for 28 yards (14.0 average), longest pass was 16 yards
Jamaal Williams (RB): 2 catches for 24 yards (12.0 average), longest pass was 28 yards
Mitchell Juergens (WR): 2 catches for 12 yards, longest pass was 8 yards
Kurt Henderson (WR): 1 catch for 33 yards (about 1 yard short of a touchdown)
Keanu Nelson (WR): 1 catch for 19 yards

RUSHING (128 total net yards (20 lost), 2 touchdowns)
Jamaal Williams (RB): 49 net yards (1 yard lost) with 3.1 average, longest rush was 9 yards
Paul Lasike (RB): 28 total yards with 5.6 average, 1 TOUCHDOWN, longest rush was 13 yards
Adam Hine (RB): 25 total yards with 8.3 average, longest rush was 18 yards
Nate Carter (RB): 24 total yards with 4.8 average
Mitchell Juergens (WR): 5 total yards
Christian Stewart (QB): 5 net yards (11 lost due to sacks) with 0.7 average, 1 TOUCHDOWN, longest rush was 8 yards

PUNTING
Scott Arellano (P): longest punt was 81 yards, 5 out of 7 punts were within the 20-yard line, average punt yardage was 46.3 yards

DEFENSE (54 total (52 solo) tackles, 4 sacks, 2 interceptions, 2 forced fumbles, 7 tackles for loss for 35 yards)
Skye PoVey (DB): 8 total (7 solo) tackles, 1 tackle for loss for 2 yards
Zac Stout (LB): 7 total (7 solo) tackles
Bronson Kafusi (LB): 6 total (5 solo) tackles, 1 SACK, 1 tackle for loss for 6 yards
Dallin Leavitt (DB): 5 total (5 solo) tackles
Teu Kautai (LB): 3 total (3 solo) tackles, 3 SACKS, 3 tackles for loss for 23 yards, 1 FORCED FUMBLE
Logan Taele (DL): 2 total (2 solo) tackles, 1 quarterback hit
Tomasi Laulile (DL): 2 total (2 solo) tackles, 1 tackle for loss for 3 yards, 1 quarterback hit, 1 INTERCEPTION
Jordan Preator (DB): 2 total (2 solo) tackles, 2 passes broken up, 1 FORCED FUMBLE, 1 INTERCEPTION
Harvey Jackson (DB): 2 total (2 solo) tackles, 1 tackle for loss for 1 yard
Other players with passes broken up: Robertson Daniel (DB) and Michael Alisa (LB) each with one

Day 1 - Thanksgiving 2014

A new month of November has finally arrived! I hope y'all had a wonderful Halloween yesterday!

Today I am thankful for my Grandpa Cottam. I have many great memories of coming to visit his home in Arizona. He and my late Grandma always showed us much love when we went to visit. One of my most recent memories is when one night, he and I sat down, and he pulled up some family history sites on his computer...places he remembered from his youth. It was great to be able to bond with my grandpa. It is also fun to be able to sit down and watch football with my grandpa.

I wanted to let you know, Grandpa, that I love you, and I think you are an amazing man. Thank you also, Grandpa, for coming to my wedding and my mission homecoming.