When the BYU women's volleyball team aces its opponents, Bracken Webb and Greg Hunt are the off-court heroes rushing for the wild ball.

These guys are not your average ball boys. Webb and Hunt have a passion for what they do.

They are the ball boys for all the women's volleyball home games, and they take their job seriously.

"Our responsibilities are more or less in the area of ball management," Hunt said. "We try to magnify our calling."

Hunt and Webb do so by acting as a sideshow at the games; they dance to music, bowl with volleyballs and do the Worm.

"We try to make each other laugh," Hunt said. "We try to make the players laugh - not during the game, of course. We try to add to the fans' enjoyment, too."

The entertainment began two years ago when Webb's sister, Erin, played on the volleyball team. Webb and Hunt went to summer camps and games to support Erin.

"We stumbled across the idea that it would be fun to be the ball boys," said Hunt. "We asked what the coaches thought, and they were open to it, so we jumped aboard."

The grueling task of ballboying requires many hours of off-season training, Hunt said.

"In the off-season, we spend at least 14 hours in an entire month practicing," he said.

Their training has paid off. Webb and Hunt said their job has opened many opportunities for them. A ward asked them to emcee their talent show, and a girl asked Hunt for dance lessons.

The men's volleyball team even asked them to ballboy because of their "standout work."

The job definitely has its benefits.

"We do have some very attractive Mountain West Conference T-shirts that we wear throughout the games," Hunt said.

When asked if the job ever attracted women, Hunt said, "It's kind of a funny thing. I think sometimes people have the assumption that it's all about getting chicks, but we pretty much go home alone after those games."

Despite his loneliness, Hunt does not hesitate to profess his love for the volleyball team.

"I love all of them," he said. "I have a huge crush on each and every one of those players."

Hunt and Webb make their job look easy. They even won the envy of BYUSA President Dave Johnson.

"He asked if he could ballboy," Webb said. "We have a deal in the works."

Webb and Hunt want to trade one game of ballboy privileges for seats on the podium at a Tuesday devotional. Negotiations are still in progress.

Both men are serious students off the volleyball court. Webb is a junior majoring in microbiology, and Hunt is a first-year law student with a bachelor's degree in sociology. Both of them have high aspirations for the future.

"If I could live comfortably and support a family as a ball boy, that would be my dream job," Hunt said. "Since I doubt that will ever be the case ... perhaps something with the law."

Webb's dream job sounds similar.

"In this field? Wimbledon," he said with a smile. Once the grin wore off, he revealed what his second choice would be.

"An oral surgeon. I like to play with people's teeth," he said.

Not everyone agrees with Webb and Hunt's career goals.

"They're not quite Wimbledon quality yet," said volleyball player Carrie Bowers. "They've had a few mis-rolls, but they're getting better."

This season BYU women's volleyball is taking on a whole new look with a few males out on the court.

Two of the Cougars' newest "ball boys" are Bracken Webb, 21, a junior from Sandy, Utah, majoring in microbiology, and Greg Hunt, 24, from Pleasant Grove, Utah, who recently graduated from BYU in sociology.

"I was inspired to assist women's volleyball in the capacity of ball boy this summer as I watched them play summer tournaments at the University of Utah and here in the Smith Fieldhouse," Hunt said. "There was a great need for quality ball boys in the game."

Hunt and Webb approached Mari Carpenter, assistant coach of women's volleyball, hoping to obtain the title of "official ball boys."

"In the past, we have had young girls and boys for ball boys that are interested in volleyball to help foster excitement," Carpenter said. "They like to do anything with the team."

There will be no youngsters on the court retrieving volleyballs this season.

The ball boys performed last Thursday when BYU took on the University of Southern California in the Mizuno Classic.

"We had to fight through a few pre-game jitters," Hunt said. "But the game went smoothly, and I know we added a little personal touch to the ball boy position."

Hunt admits the most important aspect of being an effective ball boy is the ability to communicate constantly.

During warm-ups and throughout the game, Hunt and Webb use hand signals, eye contact, and specific body movements to signal action that must be taken.

"Delivery of the ball, hustle, precision, hard work and connection are all key characteristics a successful ball boy must have," Webb said.

Hunt and Webb are known as "hustlers" out on the court.

"It is hysterical," Carpenter said. "Greg and Bracken will be standing on the end line and when a ball goes out of play they sprint as fast as they can to the ball and sprint back to the line."

"I find myself watching and laughing a little more than I probably should," she said. "A referee even came up to me the other day, commenting on how funny these guys were."

These ball boys have big plans for the future.

"We want to get a holster for the ball," Hunt said. "One side so we can hold the ball in it and the other side for a towel."

"I think we also want earphones so we can be in constant communication with each other to ensure a safe game free from obstruction," he said.

Carpenter said she hopes the ball boys stick around all season because they are such assets to the game.

"The fans love them," Carpenter said.

The ball boys' next performance is Thursday Sept. 19 when the Cougars take on Arkansas.