BYU football: Beck taking a break before Miami camp

Ex-BYU quarterback is back in Utah for youth football camp

Published: Tuesday, June 24, 2008 12:04 a.m. MDT
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John Beck estimates he's thrown 8,000 passes since the Miami Dolphins new regime took over, deploying his reputation as a gym rat to dive into the challenge of becoming the starting quarterback.

But now, Beck says, it is time to take a rest. He's thrown enough balls.

As part of his break, Beck will spend family time vacationing in Utah, playing a lot of golf, doing some fishing and he'll join former teammate Cameron Jensen in hosting a youth football camp in mid-July at Provo High School.

Both Beck and Jensen were team captains given key leadership roles in Bronco Mendenhall's first Mountain West Conference championship team of 2006, a squad that finished 11-2 with a win over Oregon in the Las Vegas Bowl. Jensen recently retired from football after a brief stint with the Seattle Seahawks.

This spring and summer, Beck is locked in battle with veteran Josh McCown and rookie Chad Henne for the starting job. During camp, Beck took the first reps with the No. 1 offense but rotated that duty with McCown during every practice.

While the Dolphins return to training camp the third week of July, players have been given a lifting and running regime to keep.

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"It's a new offense, a new coaching staff, a new everything and there is a lot of learning going on," said Beck after returning from a golf tournament in California where he and other NFL quarterbacks participated in a charity event organized by Carson Palmer. Beck was in Utah to play in a golf tournament to benefit American Indians hosted by Steve Young.

"I think I've made big strides," said Beck of his preparation and conditioning, "but now that camp is over, I can see where I need to improve."

Back in Miami, the Dolphins have essentially recycled old offensive players out and brought in a new crew surrounding the quarterback spot, which remains the biggest issue on the table for the 1-15 club. Miami drafted Michigan OL Jake Long No. 1 and signed him for $57.75 million. It made Long the highest paid offensive lineman in the league.

McCown, who had mixed results in 31 career starts with Arizona and Oakland, is seen as a safety net for the Dolphins. Bill Parcells will likely make the QB job Beck's to lose. Henne led Michigan to nine comeback victories during his college career, but was 0-4 against rival Ohio State. If Beck or McCown don't answer the challenge, Henne is viewed by some Dolphin insiders to be the long-term answer at quarterback.

So far, nobody at Miami has thrown Beck a bone about where he stands — offensive coaches have been more focused on providing feedback to all quarterbacks on how they want things done, what needs to be tweaked and emphasized.

"The focus has been on us and how we can change this and that around," Beck said.

Recent comments

Talk to me in November.

Fan | June 28, 2008 at 4:18 p.m.

unfortunately, you sound just like many of the rude, clueless, adolescent...

to: ty | June 27, 2008 at 9:59 a.m.

yewt fans are a laughing joke!! How can you even compare the success...

ty | June 26, 2008 at 11:22 p.m.

Miami quarterback John Beck, scrambling in a game against Cincinnati last year, is holding a youth camp in Utah next month before going to the Dolphins' training camp in late July.  (Doug Benc, Getty Images)
Doug Benc, Getty Images
Miami quarterback John Beck, scrambling in a game against Cincinnati last year, is holding a youth camp in Utah next month before going to the Dolphins' training camp in late July.