It was Urlacher's. Only a few hours after the Lobos arrived home from a game in San Diego, he was anxious to discover how well - or not - he had played.

So Mendenhall unlocked the door, then handed Urlacher a copy of the videotape and each went about his work: the defensive coordinator, evaluating his players; the All-American, grading himself.

"His performance mattered to him," said Mendenhall, now Brigham Young's coach. "Even though he was the best player on the team, and clearly so, that shows how driven he was."

Still is, actually. Seven years later, Urlacher is the heart of the Chicago Bears' defense, the player everyone associates with both the team's past and present as a middle linebacker in the tradition of Dick Butkus and Mike Singletary. He's leading the Bears in Sunday's Super Bowl XLI against Indianapolis at Dolphin Stadium, which is about the only thing Mendenhall did not promise team officials.

They called him on draft day in 2000, thinking about taking Urlacher with the No. 9 overall pick. Mendenhall's endorsement included forecasts of Pro Bowls and Rookie of the Year honors - based mostly on the player's attitude, aside from his ability.

Good call. "It's no surprise to me how it's played out," Mendenhall said, citing the player's "walk-on mentality and first-round draft choice's body."

Urlacher credits Mendenhall for developing him into a NFL player, remembering mostly the "weird stuff" - the same sort of things the BYU Cougars do now, staging fitness competitions that included running in the mountains.

"He did it with us, so it made it a little more fun," Urlacher said.

Mendenhall also had to coach him carefully, because as funny as this may sound now, he lacked confidence. Harsh criticism "would have just devastated him," Mendenhall said.

Mendenhall had inherited him by joining new coach Rocky Long's staff in the middle of Urlacher's college career. Barely recruited from the tiny, southeastern New Mexico town of Lovington, Urlacher was a reserve defensive back the previous season when the Lobos won a Western Athletic Conference division title under coach Dennis Franchione.

Long and Mendenhall brought their 3-3-5 defensive scheme to UNM, making Urlacher the "Lobo" - a hybrid safety/linebacker, who would roam the field.

"We designed it for him to make every play," Mendenhall said.

Which he practically did, leading the nation with 178 tackles as a junior. The next season, Urlacher became the only Player of the Year in Mountain West Conference history; the award was discontinued after that inaugural 1999 season.

Versatility was part of his appeal. The Lobos used him much like Utah recently deployed Eric Weddle, although Urlacher's specialty was catching lobbed passes. Of his seven receptions as a senior, six were for touchdowns.

Urlacher was honored by the MWC, even though the Lobos won only four games that season. Mendenhall believes Urlacher's impact in Albuquerque continued after he left for Chicago, because the Lobos improved by one victory for each of the next four seasons, having adopted his work ethic.

With the Bears, Urlacher had to adjust to playing a traditional position, lining up in the middle on every play. "The best thing about it was I still in space, so I could run around quite a bit," he said.

He's still making tackles all over the place, as a 6-foot-4, 260-pound player who can run. "That middle linebacker," said CBS Sports broadcaster Phil Simms, "is a genetic freak."

Naturally, he inspires comparisons to the Bears' linebacking greats. Yet Butkus himself is occasionally critical of Urlacher, saying he should tackle more ferociously. You know, like a Bear. Urlacher's response? Uh, the NFL has rules now.

"Butkus was mean," Urlacher said this week. "Back then, you could do whatever you wanted to somebody and you didn't get fined, you wouldn't get suspended."

As for the 1985 Bears defense that featured Singletary, Urlacher acknowledged, "We don't compare. They won a Super Bowl. We have a chance to do that right now, but look at their numbers - they were amazing. . . . There have been games when we were dominant this year, but they were dominant all season."

Urlacher will have to be dominant Sunday for the Bears to control the Colts' offense. But this opportunity is all he ever wanted. The ex-Lobo who always had to get there first - whether he was running a warmup lap before practice or making a required breakfast check-in with his coach before class - has a chance to end up No. 1 in the world.

kkragthorpe@sltrib.com

* Best friends and former BYU players Rob Morris and John Tait will be reunited - on opposite sides of the field - Sunday. A1

* Played from 1996-99 as a linebacker/free safety and saw occasional duty as a receiver his senior year.

* Led the nation with 178 tackles his junior year, when he was a consensus first-team All-American and one of three finalists for the Jim Thorpe Award.

* Finished his career third all-time at UNM with 442 tackles.

"His performance mattered to him. Even though he was the best player on the team, and clearly so, that shows how driven he was."

BRONCO MENDENHALL

Former New Mexico defensive coordinator,

on Brian Urlacher's commitment to film study

Super Bowl XLI x

Bears vs. Colts

Sunday, 4:25 p.m., Ch. 2