BYU’s Jay Hill Focusing On ‘Be Smart’ Advice After Health Scare
Oct 4, 2024, 1:14 PM
BYU football defensive coordinator Jay Hill continues focus on "Be Smart" weeks after health scare. (Spenser Heaps, Deseret News)
(Spenser Heaps, Deseret News)
PROVO, Utah – BYU football defensive coordinator Jay Hill has continued to work since suffering a heart attack two days before BYU’s 2024 season kicked off.
It’s been a delicate balance for Hill, who, before his heart attack, was leading BYU’s defense from the sidelines a season ago. This year, he has been in the booth calling the defensive plays for a defense ranked 26th nationally in total defense.
During practices, Hill has called the defense from the Student Athlete Building balcony on a headset.
Hill provided an update on how he’s feeling five weeks after suffering a heart attack with the KSL Sports Zone’s Hans & Scotty G.
Jay Hill focusing on “Be Smart” advice from doctors
“Well, I’m feeling better every day,” Hill said on the KSL Sports Zone. “But what’s crazy about this whole deal is that I was feeling great the morning of the heart attack. Like, I really was feeling awesome. I had gone on long runs the day before and felt good. It came out of nowhere, which was surprising to me and everybody.”
Individuals throughout the state and football communities around the country were surprised and immediately expressed their support for Hill and his family.
Utah head coach Kyle Whittingham, who Hill once played for and worked under at Utah, said on September 2, days after Hill suffered the heart attack, “It was shocking.”
“Jay is a guy that’s always been in great shape and keeps himself fit,” Whittingham added. “He’s only 49 years old, which is a sobering thought that it could happen to anybody, I guess.”
Hill has listened to his doctors carefully to continue improving.
“Since that time, the doctors tell you, ‘You better be smart,’ because you’ve obviously got some issues. So be smart.”
Since the health scare, Hill has focused on being smart. But that’s challenging in college football, where coaches work around the clock to find competitive advantages against their opponents, especially those in power conferences.
“I’ve tried to [be smart], but you also have a job to do. So I don’t know what ‘Be Smart’ is. For most people, that probably means taking two or three weeks off and figure out life and all of that stuff. For a football coach, that might be cutting down to 60 hours a week. So I don’t know what that represents, other than I feel better right now than I did two weeks ago, and I feel like I’m getting better every day.”
Moving forward for Hill, BYU football after the bye week
It’s unclear if Hill will stay in the box to call his defense when BYU returns to action next week to take on Arizona.
Last month, he said he would reevaluate during the bye for a possible return to the field.
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During BYU’s 5-0 start this season, some wins went down to the wire at SMU and Baylor. Those are nerve-wracking moments, but for Hill, he hasn’t knowingly been fazed by those moments.
“I’ll be honest, I’ve never felt it. At least, I don’t think I did,” Hill said to the KSL Sports Zone. “Maybe we just learned to internalize it so well that we don’t think it’s there. But obviously, I was doing something wrong, either internalizing something that I didn’t know was there or whatever.
“That’s also part of what we love about the game is when it builds and the tension and the anxiety and will the guys step up and make a play? I mean, that’s my favorite part of the game is watching those moments unfold. It’s kind of a two-edged sword, right? It’s what you love so much about the game. But health-wise, maybe that’s what you’ve got to be smart with.”
Mitch Harper is a BYU Insider for sports.ksl.com and hosts the Cougar Tracks Podcast (SUBSCRIBE) and Cougar Sports Saturday (12–3 p.m.) on KSL Newsradio. Follow Mitch’s coverage of BYU in the Big 12 Conference on X: @Mitch_Harper.
