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Provo • Like most people who have met BYU football walk-ons Mitchell and Garrett Juergens, coaches at Langham Creek High School in the Houston area had trouble telling the identical twins apart.
So the boys devised a plan to help their coaches and teammates out. Mitchell wore white socks everywhere he went, and Garrett wore black socks.
Problem solved.
Thursday night, the Juergens brothers hope to give a different set of Houston coaches and players a different kind of dilemma. Just five days after stunning Texas 41-7 to vault into the national rankings, No. 25 BYU plays host to the Houston Cougars at 7 p.m.
The game pitting 2-0 BYU and 1-1 Houston, a rematch of BYU's dramatic 47-46 win last year at Reliant Stadium, will be televised nationally by ESPN. Both teams will wear special alternate helmets with patriotic themes to commemorate the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, honor America and show support for the United States Armed Forces.
This isn't one of those stories about players hoping for revenge after being snubbed by their hometown teams, however. The twins, who are now 5-foot-10, 185-pound redshirt sophomores, dreamed of playing for BYU their whole lives and didn't receive any Division I scholarship offers at all. And if they had a non-BYU favorite, it was Texas A&M.
Still, Mitchell Juergens said, "I have had a lot of friends go to Houston, so I watched them growing up. But I always liked the Cougars in blue. It will be fun to go out there and play against some local guys."
A defensive back and member of the scout team, Garrett isn't likely to play unless the game gets out of hand. Mitchell has emerged, somewhat surprisingly, as a valuable inside receiver and punt returner, and will probably be on the field a lot.
Mitchell caught two passes for 19 yards in the 35-10 win over UConn and also had a 43-yard reception nullified by an illegal-use-of-hands penalty. He returned a punt 24 yards in the opener, then returned three punts for 26 yards against Texas, including an 18-yarder that set up the third touchdown.
Seemingly, Mitchell would be jealous of his brother's success, but the opposite is the case, and family members are not surprised. Their father, Kurt Juergens, said there has never been an ounce of sibling rivalry between the two.
"There was never any real individual competition between them. They were equally talented in everything they did, and always encouraged each other," said Kurt Juergens. "I don't think in our years of raising them that we ever heard them argue. They have just been best friends, and each other's champion."
The boys were always on the playing fields and courts together in high school, comprising two-thirds of Langham Creek's outfield, its backcourt in basketball or its receiving corps in football until Garrett was moved to running back. They also ran track together. When the pair walked on at BYU in 2010, Garrett was moved to defense.
"The only way I can explain it is just complete excitement for him," Garrett said of Mitchell's success. "I have seen him work through spring and summer and fall, just making play after play. He deserves it. I am so happy for him, and very supportive. … One of our dreams is to be able to play at the same time. But right now, it is just a blessing to watch him. I am just so excited for him."
BYU safety Dallin Leavitt said at first it was tough to tell the twins apart, "but if you hang around with them for awhile, you figure out who is who. I mean, I love both of them. They are some freakin' ballers, man."
Coach Bronco Mendenhall said he can tell them apart, but is more proud of the fact that they are making impacts at BYU despite being walk-ons. He recently awarded scholarships to former walk-ons Kurt Henderson, Trevor Samson and Zac Stout.
After redshirting in 2010, the twins finally separated for the first time in their lives. Garrett went to northern Peru on his two-year church mission, while Mitchell went to Mexico City.
"We were prepared for it, but it was still kinda weird," Mitchell said.
Mitchell received his mission assignment first in a letter from church headquarters in Salt Lake City, but waited a few days until Garrett got his so they could open them together. That's just their way, they said.
"I don't think there's much to say, other than we are best friends," Garrett said, noting that they shared a bedroom growing up in Langham Creek and have roomed together at BYU before and after their missions. "We have been that way since we were little, and it has been a blessing to go to the same places, play on the same sports teams, be in the same classes, and always have someone to motivate you and support you. It has been amazing. I can't imagine it any other way."
Twitter: @drewjay —
Houston's Juergens family
(And their ties to BYU)
• Twins Garrett, a defensive back, and Mitchell, a receiver, earned All-District honors playing football for Langham Creek High in Houston before walking on at BYU.
• Parents Kurt and Gretchen Juergens attended BYU and Kurt coached the twins in four sports when they were growing up.
• Heidi Juergens, only sister, was captain of the Cougarettes dance team.
• Older brother, Tyler Juergens, received his master's degree in accounting from BYU. —
Houston at No. 25 BYU
O At LaVell Edwards Stadium
Kickoff • Thursday, 7 p.m.
TV • ESPN Radio • 1160 AM/102.7 FM
Records • BYU 2-0, Houston 1-1
Series history • BYU leads, 1-0
Last meeting • BYU 47, Houston 46 (Oct. 19, 2013)
About the Houston Cougars • They opened the season with a 27-7 home loss to Texas-San Antonio, then defeated Grambling 47-0 last week. … QB John O'Korn led all true freshmen in the country last year with 28 touchdown passes. … LB Derrick Mathews is the NCAA's active leader in tackles with 371.
About the BYU Cougars • They are ranked in the AP Top 25 for the first time since Sept. 9, 2012. … They are 17-2 against American Athletic Conference opponents, including a 35-10 win at UConn on Aug. 29. … QB Taysom Hill became the seventh play in NCAA history to throw for more than 400 yards and run for more than 100 yards in the same game last year vs. UH.