This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2015, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.

By now, every college football fan in the country has probably viewed the video clip from Saturday's BYU-Boise State game that shows BYU sophomore offensive lineman Ului Lapuaho punching Boise State's Chanceller Davis below the belt in the second quarter at LaVell Edwards Stadium.

Referee Cooper Castleberry of the Big 12 Conference called an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty on Lapuaho (not a personal foul, as has been widely reported; there is a difference). Because the recovery came at the 22-yard-line, the penalty amounted to 11 yards.

On Monday, BYU coach Bronco Mendenhall addressed Lapuaho's status.

"He has had team discipline issued," Mendenhall said. "It is not going to require missing any games. We have a very clear policy in place for personal fouls and so that is what he has faced up to. He made a mistake. He knows it. I know it. I think the world knows it. The team, certainly, we have addressed it and plan to move forward and I am comfortable with what has happened."

I asked Mendenhall if he had talked to any representatives from the school's contracted officiating organization, College Football Officiating West (CFO West), which basically governs discipline for BYU, a football independent.

"I haven't," he said. "And I really don't [expect to], but it will be interesting to see if that happens. If their statement is different, then we will obviously do whatever is required."

However, late Monday night, BYU announced that it had just received notification from CFO West regarding the foul called on Lapuaho, and that no suspension was being levied by that organization.

"CFO West has advised the athletic department and the student-athlete of appropriate disciplinary action. Details of communications regarding student-athletes are generally not made public unless an announcement is warranted (e.g., disqualification, suspension, public reprimand)."

So, Lapuaho will play in Saturday's game, it appears.

Later in Mendenhall's briefing, when asked to assess the play of sophomore backup linebacker Sione Takitaki, who was flagged for roughing the passer early in the third quarter, a costly mistake after an incomplete pass on 3rd-and-16 that led to a Boise State field touchdown run by Jeremy McNichols, Mendenhall referred to Lapuaho's punishment again.

"Sione was undisciplined and not assignment-sound, and played with emotion and aggression," Mendenhall said. "But he has the exact same punishment, within the program, in my eyes, as Lui [because] of his hit on the quarterback, and his hands to the face, and so the world might view that different. But as a coach, I view that the same, and I am every bit as frustrated with that as I am with the other."

Mendenhall was asked, albeit indirectly, about whether BSU's Chanceller Davis deserved a penalty for jumping on Lapuaho.

"I don't know if there is balance, and I have never seen it called when a guy is recovering a fumble, if someone else jumps on him. But if that's a penalty, maybe by the letter of the rule it is, but I don't think that was an issue. I think [Lapuaho] just reacted and wasn't composed. On a positive note, last year in the first two games I think there were 23 penalties. This year, there are nine. So our team is playing a lot cleaner football. So rather than the 180-something yards in penalties, it is 80-something, and so I have actually been really pleased with the lack of extra things that are happening."

A few more tidbits from Mendenhall's 15-minute press briefing today:

* Safety Jordan Preator had an undisclosed injury and was unavailable to play vs. BSU. He won't play vs. UCLA this week, but for a different reason. "With Jordan, he is still not healthy, but it has shifted, in addition to his injuries, he has a team discipline issue also. And so possibly for Michigan game would be as early as he could return," Mendenhall said.

* The coach said freshman running back Francis Bernard, who suffered a broken finger before the Nebraska game, could return this week. "I would say possible right now. I haven't heard anything yet today or if that is going to happen or not. But that was the report going into the surgery, and coming out, that it was possible for UCLA. And I don't have that confirmed yet."

* Mendenhall on UCLA freshman quarterback Josh Rosen: "Really skilled and poised for a young player. I have been really impressed." He said he knows UCLA coach Jim Mora "only by reputation."

* Asked if junior running back Algernon Brown is 100 percent healthy, Mendenhall said: "He is 100 percent. He is just being asked to do a lot of different things. And it is a long, long season, with not a lot of depth at running back, so I think we have managed it actually pretty well, based on the outcome, and how the games have come out, it is a unique balance between a marathon and a sprint. So we are using him enough, but also have him for an entire year."

* Mendenhall said he will meet with Taysom Hill this week to discuss whether Hill wants to remain a team captain. In the time being, offensive and special teams captains will be chosen on a weekly, rotating basis based on performance from the previous week. This week, receiver Mitch Mathews will be the special teams captain and receiver Mitchell Juergens will be the offensive captain. Bronson Kaufusi will remain the defensive captain all season.