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Provo • Junior receiver Colby Pearson is eager to shed the red jersey he's been wearing during BYU's spring football camp practices, but that has nothing to do with his dislike for the Cougars' big rival in Salt Lake City.
The red jersey signifies that Pearson is coming off an injury that cut short his promising sophomore season last fall, and is off-limits to contact. The playmaker from Blackfoot, Idaho, hopes to be able to take it off when the Cougars resume spring workouts on Monday.
Pearson said he feels fine and is back to 100 percent after undergoing surgery last November for a fractured clavicle suffered against UNLV on Nov. 15 and a separated shoulder he played through since damaging it in the opener against Connecticut.
"I feel fine now, 100 percent," he said. "It doesn't bother me at all, either my collar bone or shoulder. I don't even think about it. I even went to the ground a couple times today, either to dive for balls or whatever, and it felt fine."
The devastating injury came last year when the walk-on was starting to make a big impact. He had five catches for 109 yards and a touchdown against Boise State, and he followed that with a three-reception, one-touchdown, 45-yard game at Middle Tennessee State.
He was hurt in the first quarter against UNLV after a 34-yard reception.
"I was pretty disappointed, because I felt like I was finally coming up, on the rise, and all that," Pearson said. "I felt really prepared, knew what my assignments were, what I would be doing every play. It was really frustrating and really tough to accept, but luckily it wasn't worse than what it was."
Quarterback Taysom Hill said Tuesday that BYU's corps of receivers in 2015 will likely be the best it has had while he's been in the program, and Pearson figures to be in the mix for a starting spot along with returnees Mitch Mathews, Nick Kurtz, Devon Blackmon, Terenn Houk, Mitchell Juergens and Kurt Henderson.
Pearson said he will be put on scholarship shortly, either this summer or fall.
Mystery receiver
Along with talking about the aforementioned receivers, receivers coach Guy Holliday mentioned returned missionaries Josh Weeks, Talon Shumway and Moroni Laulu-Pututau and incoming freshmen Micah Simon and Akile Davis as possible contributors in the fall.
"Making the bus [traveling team] is going to be a challenge, and it hasn't always been that way," Holliday said.
Then he mentioned a walk-on returned missionary in camp, a receiver who has transferred from a Division I school, where he was a walk-on before his mission after initially signing with a Division II school, "who is actually pretty good."
When pressed for it, Holliday declined to give the player's name.
A quick check of the roster and research shows he was probably talking about Elliot Knox, a 6-foot-1, 175-pound receiver from St. George who previously has been rostered at Dixie State College and Arizona State.
Staying mum on brawl
Offensive center Tejan Koroma spoke to reporters for the first time since his involvement in the brawl after the Miami Beach Bowl but declined to offer any specific details regarding the disciplinary measures that have or will be taken against him. Koroma said he hasn't apologized to anyone from Memphis, as safety Kai Nacua confirmed he did last week. Asked whether he expects to play in the first game against Nebraska, Koroma said: "I don't know if I should say yes or no. Hopefully. We will see."
Asked what precipitated the brawl, Koroma said: "It was a great game. Emotions were running high. Not much more I can say about that."
Twitter: @drewjay —
BYU Walk-on Receiver Colby Pearson in 2014
Catches Yards TDs Long
16 270 3 81