All-American Kyle Van Noy staying at BYU for senior season

Linebacker joins Cougar WR Cody Hoffman in deciding to complete eligibility prior to pursuing NFL career

PROVO, Utah -- BYU junior All-American linebacker Kyle Van Noy today announced he will remain at BYU for his senior season and will not declare for the 2013 NFL Draft.

"I’ve decided to stay and complete my senior season at BYU," Van Noy said. "I plan to finish what I started and feel like I’ve still got some unfinished business. I’m looking forward to being on the field this next season with my Cougar teammates." 

A 6-foot-3, 235-pound outside linebacker from Reno, Nev., Van Noy earned 2012 All-America honors from CBSSports.com (second team) and The Associated Press (third team) while leading BYU’s No. 3-ranked defense with 13 sacks, 22 tackles for loss, eight quarterback hurries, a school record six forced fumbles and two blocked kicks. He totaled 53 tackles while adding five pass breakups, two interceptions, one fumble recovery and two touchdowns to become the only player in the nation to record a stat in every major defensive category each of the last two seasons.

Van Noy is currently ranked No. 1 nationally in sacks, tied with four other players. He is tied for second in the nation in forced fumbles, ranks No. 3 nationally in tackles for loss and is tied for seventh in blocked kicks. He helped BYU rank No. 4 nationally in scoring defense in 2012, holding six opponents (Washington State, Boise State, Utah State, Hawaii, Georgia Tech and San Diego State) without an offensive touchdown. 

The playmaking linebacker scored two touchdowns in the fourth quarter to lead BYU to a 23-6 victory over San Diego State in the Poinsettia Bowl on Dec. 20, earning defensive MVP honors. In addition to his two scores, Van Noy contributed eight tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss, 1.5 sacks, a forced fumble, a fumble recovery, an interception and a blocked punt. His first touchdown came with BYU trailing 6-3 in the fourth quarter after forcing and recovering a fumble in the end zone. The second came on a pick-six later in the quarter to help seal the Cougars' fourth straight bowl victory and sixth in eight years under head coach Bronco Mendenhall.

Van Noy joins junior wide receiver Cody Hoffman in deciding to stay at BYU for his final season. Hoffman announced on Friday his intention to complete his eligibility before pursuing an NFL career. 

Hoffman averaged 101.5 all-purpose yards per game to lead BYU in 2012. The 6-foot-4, 215-pound wideout from Crescent City, Calif., earned All-America honorable mention while totaling 1,248 yards on 100 catches, including 11 touchdowns. He currently ranks No. 8 nationally in receptions, No. 11 in receiving yards and tied for No. 13 in touchdown catches. He was named the Poinsettia Bowl offensive MVP after logging his eighth 100-yard receiving game of the season with 114 yards on 10 catches. 

"I’m proud to announce that I'll be returning to BYU for my senior year," Hoffman said on Friday.

A two-time bowl MVP, Hoffman holds the BYU bowl record for career bowl receptions, yards and touchdowns with 26 receptions for 373 yards and six touchdowns. Overall, he has caught a pass in 32 straight games and 38 of 39 career games and ranks fifth all time at BYU with 2,718 career receiving yards. He also ranks fourth with 203 career receptions and is just the third player in school history to record 100 receptions in a season and the fourth to have more than 200 receptions for his career.