BYU will be QB shopping this holiday season

[ad_1]
BYU quarterback Jake Retzlaff passes the ball against Oklahoma at LaVell Edwards Stadium in Provo on Saturday, Nov. 18, 2023. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News

When the college football transfer portal opens Monday, BYU coaches will be searching for a quarterback, and maybe more than one. They have no choice but to look around after a 5-7 season with another challenging schedule next fall.

This isn’t how offensive coordinator Aaron Roderick hoped it would go.

“Everybody has a plan until they get punched in the face.” — Mike Tyson

Grad-transfer Kedon Slovis was supposed to stay healthy and groom junior college transfer Jake Retzlaff for the next two seasons. During Retzlaff’s run, he was going to get redshirt freshman Ryder Burton ready to succeed him. This is how BYU’s quarterback factory functioned under LaVell Edwards and Roderick envisioned getting it back in business.

It was a noble plan, but as former heavyweight champion Mike Tyson likes to say, “Everybody has a plan until they get punched in the face.”

During BYU’s debut season in the Big 12 — the Cougars got punched in the face and Roderick’s dream scenario hit the canvas.

To his credit, Slovis marched BYU to a 5-2 record before a shoulder/arm injury knocked him out, leaving the Cougars one win short of bowl eligibility. The highly touted Retzlaff took over for the last four games and went 0-4.

Unlike many of his BYU predecessors, the former No. 1-ranked JC quarterback didn’t have a WAC, Mountain West or independent schedule to transition with. Instead, Retzlaff had West Virginia (8-4) on the road, Iowa State (7-5) and No. 14 Oklahoma (10-2) at home and a finale at No. 21 Oklahoma State (9-3) in the rain.

BYU coach Kalani Sitake is pictured here during a timeout during game against Iowa State at LaVell Edwards Stadium in Provo on Saturday,…

[ad_2]
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/byu-qb-shopping-holiday-season-193000553.html

Author : Deseret News

Publish date : 2023-11-28 19:30:00

Copyright for syndicated content belongs to the linked Source.