Eric Nielsen
Men’s Basketball
When the Cougars defeated UC Irvine in the first round of the 2002 National Invitation Tournament, they maintained their nation-leading home-court winning streak of 36 and a perfect 16-0 record at home this season.
BYU forward Eric J. Nielsen, ’02, was named to the 2002 Verizon Academic All-District VIII men’s basketball team.
Football
For the first time since 1995, five BYU players were selected in the NFL Draft.
As the 23rd selection in the second round (55th overall), tight end Doug T. Jolley, ’01, was taken by the Oakland Raiders. Defensive end Ryan C. Denney,’01, the 29th pick in the second round (61st overall), was drafted by the Buffalo Bills.
Quarterback Brandon G. Doman, ’02, was selected in the fifth round by the San Francisco 49ers.
Doak Walker Award winner Luke T. Staley, ’03, was selected in the seventh round by the Detroit Lions. Defensive end Brett C. Keisel, ’02, was also a seventh-round selection, taken by the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Former head football coach R. LaVell Edwards, ’78, and his wife, Patti Covey Edwards, ’94, are serving an 18-month mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in New York City.
Swimming and Diving
Justin Wilcock
Divers Justin S. Wilcock, ’03, and Andrew L. Bradley, ’05, both earned All-America citations for their performances at the 2002 Men’s NCAA Championships at the University of Georgia. They helped the Cougars finish 23rd in the country.
Wilcock earned first-team All-America status in the 3-meter event by placing seventh in the country with a score of 569.35. Wilcock is the first Cougar diver to earn first-team status since head diving coach J. Keith Russell, ’73. Wilcock earned second-team All-America citations in the 1-meter and platform events.
Bradley earned second-team All-America honors for his 16th-place finish in the 1-meter event with a score of 285.50. Bradley is the sixth diver in school history to earn All-America accolades.
The men’s and women’s swimming and diving teams won their third consecutive Mountain West Conference championship March 2 in Oklahoma City, Okla. The men scored a conference record 931.5 points, while the women tallied 601 points, edging UNLV by 26 points.
