In May, BYU will host the 2009 NCAA Men's Volleyball Final Four for the first time ever.

The timing could have been better.

While hosting the Final Four is a unique opportunity, the three-time national champion Cougars are going through their biggest rebuilding project since winning their first NCAA title in 1999. Getting to the Final Four -- playing in their own back yard, as it were -- will be a difficult task.

Still, there is optimism within the program that BYU can stay at home for the postseason.

"We came here to BYU to be a Top 5 school every year, and that's what we hope to be," said senior outside hitter Andrew Stewart. "We don't have that target on our back this year, so we're hoping to surprise a lot of people."

Sure, there's good young talent in the BYU pipeline. But the Cougars also play in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation, the premier men's college volleyball league in the country. Generally, inexperienced teams get chewed up and spit out. But the Cougars beat UC Irvine, USC and Hawaii in preseason tournaments, so they won't be an easy out.

The media expectations are low: BYU was picked to finish eighth in the 12-team MPSF and ninth in the national rankings.

"I like my team," BYU head coach Shawn Patchell said. "They've bonded well. We've worked very hard in the offseason and low and behold, we've had success in the preseason with good wins over quality teams."

Here's a look at what to expect in 2009.

Where Were We?

The Cougars were ranked No. 1 for the first seven weeks of the 2008 season and finished 25-5 overall, 18-4 in the MPSF. BYU served match point against Pepperdine in the MPSF Finals but couldn't convert, eventually losing both the match (in five grueling sets) and a chance at the Final Four.

The losses to graduation are considerable. There's four-year starter and three-time All-American middle blocker Russell Holmes (172 total blocks in 2008); Ivan Perez, the Cougars No. 2 hitter all-time with 1,494 career kills; lefty opposite hitter Jonathan Charette (3.29 kills per game) and dependable middle blocker Trent Sorensen (140 total blocks). Setter Brian Congelliere was also a strong contributor.

2009 Personnel

SETTER

Yamil Perez, a 6-1 junior from Guaynabo, Puerto Rico, started as freshman but was injured much of 2008. Last year he shared court time with Congelliere and Reed Chilton, a 6-3 junior from Centerville, Ohio. Chilton, a team captain along with Stewart, has an edge after a strong preseason performance against UC Irvine but expect to see both players on the court this season.

"Reed does some things very well that Yamil doesn't do, and Yamil does some things very well that Reed doesn't do," Patchell said. "Those guys are battling it out and the competition makes them stronger."

LIBERO

The passing of the libero keys the whole offense, and BYU has a good one. Joel Silva (6-2 Jr.) returns for a third year as starter after playing with his native Venezuelan national team in this summer's Beijing Olympics.

"if guys like Joel can pass well like he can, that takes a lot of pressure off the new guys at the other positions," Patchell said.

B.J. Hiapo, a 6-0 sophomore from Gilbert, Ariz., is Silva's backup.

OUTSIDE HITTER

Stewart (6-6 Jr. Sandy, Utah) is a returning starter who averaged 2.46 kills per game and was third on the team with 89 total blocks last season. Jeff Robinson (6-4 So. Las Vegas) appears to have a leg up on the competition for the other outside spot.

But the Cougars will be hard-pressed to replace Perez's experience and power.

"Jeff is starting, but we have a lot of other good outsides," Patchell said. "We have some very good athletes, but something you just can't replace or replicate is experience with MPSF competition."

Others in the mix include Kevin Sagers (6-3 So. Las Vegas), Joe Kauliakamoa (6-4 Fr. Las Vegas), Alex DaPron (6-5 So. Valley Center, Calif.) and Phillip Fuchs (6-4 Fr. Menomonee Falls, Wisc.).

OPPOSITE HITTER

The opposite position is very important in the BYU system and the job comes down to Orem native Mat Taylor (6-6 Jr.) and Kent Tuttle, a 6-6 junior from El Dorado Hills, Calif. Both players picked up valuable experience as reserves in 2008.

Early in the preseason, Mat was the guy," Patchell said. "Kent really improved during the preseason. I like the fact we have two guys battling over there as well."

MIDDLE BLOCKER

BYU will start two freshmen in the middle in highly touted Russell Lavaja (6-7 St. Charles, Ill.) and 6-8, 250-pound returned missionary Futi Tavana. Patchell moved Tavana from the outside to the middle during the preseason and liked what he saw. The Cougars also pulled from the fertile soil of Brazil to sign Otavio Souza, a promising 6-7 sophomore.

"We'll start Russell and Futi, and Otavio is a guy we really like," Patchell said.

Max Guillaume (6-8 Fr. Redwood City, Calif.) and Skyler Seymour (6-6 Fr. Valencia, Calif.) are also being trained in the middle.

COACHING

Finally, this is Patchell's program.

After the resignation of Tom Peterson in 2007, Patchell stepped up from his assistant job to share the head coaching title with Ryan Millar. When Millar left to train with the Olympic team, Patchell was the interim head coach in 2008. Last March, the Cougars were placed on three-year probation for what were deemed as improper benefits to prospective Cuban athletes by a booster during Peterson's tenure. BYU was hit with a scholarship reduction and recruiting restrictions but will still be able to compete for the NCAA title.

Patchell will be assisted by former BYU setter Rob Nielson. Another former Cougar, Rodrigo Gomes, is in his first season as a volunteer assistant.

SCHEDULE

The Cougars begin with the Elephant Bar Invitational in Santa Barbara against No. 8 Stanford this afternoon. Also competing in the tournament are No. 2 UCLA, No. 4 Long Beach State, No. 5 Northridge, No. 6 UC Irvine, No. 14 UC Santa Barbara and unranked Pacific.

There are also the usual landmines associated with playing in the MPSF. BYU gets Long Beach State, UCLA and UC Irvine at home but finishes the season with two matches at No. 3 Pepperdine. Though the Cougars were voted eighth in the MPSF preseason polls they were also tabbed ninth in the Top 15 national polls, showing the strength of the league. Defending national champion Penn State is the top team in the poll.

The Cougars have been particularly good at home in the Smith Fieldhouse, posting a 14-1 record last season.

OUTLOOK

Without the experience and firepower of Perez, Charette and Holmes, BYU will have to rely on strong passing and defense to compete in the MPSF.

"If we can be in system, we can be good," Patchell said. "One thing we do well is we have some ball control. But if we don't get that perfect pass or perfect set, our inexperience will show."

While Patchell admits his team might lose more matches than last year, he is optimistic they will find a way to be a factor in the MPSF race.

"I like where we are," Patchell said. "We're gonna beat some teams and we're gonna be good in the Smith Fieldhouse. That's what we do. On the road we'll gain a lot of experience and we'll see how it goes. We just want to get in the playoffs. If we're No. 8, we make the playoffs, so that's good. The guys have high expectations and I have high expectations for them, and that's really what matters."

And then there's the dream of playing for the national championship in the comfy confines of the Smith Fieldhouse.

"There's no better place to play than the Smith Fieldhouse," Stewart said. "I can imagine the place being packed for the Final Four, and we can't lose if we host it here. We're really concentrating a lot on team chemistry. Last year we had a lot of individual talent. This year we're trying to be tight-knit group, and we've been pretty pleased with our performance so far."

• Daily Herald Sports Editor Darnell Dickson can be reached at 344-2555 or by e-mail at ddickson@heraldextra.com