Yoeli Childs: Pope, Staff Have Been Incredible, Done More Than Promised

Oct 10, 2019, 5:19 PM | Updated: 5:23 pm

KSL Sports

PROVO, Utah – BYU forward Yoeli Childs said that Mark Pope and his staff have incredible and they’ve done more for him and the team they’d promised.

Childs spoke about his relationship with Pope and what his focus is this season with KSLSports.com’s Sam Farnsworth during BYU Basketball Media Day on Wednesday, October 9.

“It’s been incredible. Honestly,” Childs told Farnsworth about Pope’s time as head coach of the Cougars. “He and this coaching staff have done more for me and this team than they promised.”

#BYUHoops coach @CoachMarkPope has been singing the praises of his senior leadership on this team. He says seniors can do “magical things” and have a calming influence on the younger players. #KSLSports pic.twitter.com/CnImhajaAA

— Sam Farnsworth (@SFarnsworthKSL) October 9, 2019

Pope was hired as head coach of the Cougars in April 2019 following the retirement of Dave Rose. Pope, who was an assistant at BYU from 2011-15, most recently served as the head coach at Utah Valley. He posted a 77-56 overall record in four seasons at UVU. He led the Wolverines to a 25-10 record and an appearance in the College Basketball Invitational last season.

Pope brought on Chris Burgess, Cody Fueger, and Nick Robinson as his assistant coaches.

The staff took over a program that has missed the NCAA tournament each season since 2014-15. They looked to bring a “24/7” mentality to the Cougars’ basketball program in an attempt to get BYU back national prominence and the NCAA Tournament.

“It’s been intense. Every single day is a battle,” continued Childs. “Every drill is a battle and they do a great job instilling positive habits into this team. They communicate very clearly what needs to be done and what they expect from each guy and they expect nothing but excellence and it’s been awesome.”

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Returning to Provo and dealing with suspension

The senior forward decided to return to BYU for his final year of eligibility after testing the waters for a professional opportunity. This past offseason was the second year in a row that Childs explored early entry into the NBA.

Following last season, Childs declared for the 2019 NBA Draft and signed with an agent. As of the end of the 2018-19 season, student-athletes with remaining eligibility are permitted by the NCAA to sign with an agent and maintain their remaining eligibility while they explore their options.

Agents are permitted to cover certain expenses for their clients during that time.

After Pope was hired and Childs had explored his options, the forward surprised BYU fans by announcing that he would be withdrawing from the NBA Draft process and returning to Provo for his senior season.

The NCAA determined that Childs’ signing with an agent was impermissible due to the fact that he signed before filing paperwork required by the NCAA and was suspended for the first nine games of the 2019-20 season.

BYU filed an appeal of the decision but was denied and Childs’ suspension was upheld.

“It was a crazy process but something that this team really focuses on and that I really focus on is control what you can control,” said Childs told KSLSports.com. “Things are gonna happen, people are gonna make decisions and whether you agree with them or not, it is what it is. I’m just honestly so excited to be a part of this team. Whether there’s ups or downs, I can’t be anything but happy right now. I’m so excited to play with these guys and to play for this staff and to represent this university.”

"I can't be anything but happy right now."
That's the quote that stood out to me in my conversation with @BYUbasketball star @yochilds22 today. Hear what else he told me about the NCAA's decision to have him sit the first 9 games of the season. #BYUHoops #KSLSports pic.twitter.com/CKvbbZPxvV

— Sam Farnsworth (@SFarnsworthKSL) October 10, 2019

Goals for his senior season

Entering his senior year, Childs to Farnsworth that he had two main things he wanted to work on.

“I have two main focuses. One is being a leader on and off the court,” said Childs. “The other thing is just improving every day.”

As a junior, Childs averaged 21.2 points per game and 9.7 rebounds per game earning first-team All-WCC honors for the second year in a row. He led the WCC in scoring at 20.7 points per game and was second in rebounds at 9.5 per game. He also was named to the All-WCC Freshman team during the 2016-17 season.

“I have an extra month basically,” said Childs about using his suspension as an opportunity to improve. “I don’t have to worry about being fresh for a game or anything like that so just try to get better at every little skill and get stronger and stay in the weight room and do those type of things.”

Childs has been a prominent member of BYU’s squads each of his three seasons in Provo but has never made the NCAA tournament. The Cougars have made a lower tournament, the National Invitation Tournament each of the forward’s seasons but Childs says that the team is “locked in” on winning this season.

“We’re all just locked in on winning,” said Childs. “I think that’s the biggest thing is, a lot of us have done cool individual things and we all know that we’re good players but the biggest thing now is that we just want to win. We want to get to the tournament and we want to win big.”

The Cougars open the season with Midnight Madness on October 23 at 10:30 p.m. (MDT).

Childs returns from suspension against the University of Utah on December 4.

When asked where he sees himself at the end of his final year Childs said, “I envision us going to the NCAA Tournament and making a run at it.”