Mahe opts to leave BYU
Deseret News 19Jun99 L3
By Dirk Facer: Deseret News sports writer

PROVO, UTAH -- BYU's sophomore star running back Junior Mahe, under investigation by the BYU Honor Code office, has withdrawn from BYU because of the investigation. Mahe follows running back Ronney Jenkins, who left BYU just six months ago, also because of honor code violations.

"It's a huge loss. We were counting on Junior a lot. It's going to hurt. We'll have to find something different to do," said Norm Chow, BYU's offensive coordinator. "I don't know what else we can say. We'll miss him, but we have to march on."

The losses leave BYU without their two top rushers from just one year ago. In 1998 Jenkins and Mahe rushed for a combined 1,699 yards and scored 22 touchdowns. No one else on the team had more than 140 yards rushing. In spite of the losses, BYU is still picked to win the first season of the Mountain West Conference, to which BYU will switch from the Western Athletic Conference effective July 1st.

Mahe's status is still uncertain, since specific details regarding the Honor Code review are not known. Unnamed sources claim that Mahe could re-enroll next year. BYU spokesperson Carri Jenkins provided some support for that idea. "Junior Mahe has made the decision to leave the university," she said. "Just like any other student, he can apply for re-admission."

Chow hopes that something like that can happen. "Obviously, we'd like to have him back and hope he comes back." But Chow couldn't say for sure what Mahe's plans were.