BYU seems a long way away from making a decision on embattled QB Jake Retzlaff’s future in the football program

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Hello everyone, I will be authoring our Cougar Insiders newsletter this week and next as Dick Harmon enjoys some rest and relaxation time abroad.

Obviously, the big topic on the minds of BYU fans everywhere is the situation regarding the Cougars’ projected starting quarterback in 2025, Jake Retzlaff.

It has been two weeks since the bombshell news dropped on Cougar Nation that a Salt Lake County woman has alleged in a civil lawsuit filed May 21 in Salt Lake City’s 3rd District Court that she was sexually assaulted by Retzlaff on Thanksgiving Eve in 2023.

That was a couple of days after Retzlaff and the Cougars lost a 31-24 heartbreaker to No. 12 Oklahoma in Provo and a couple days before they fell 40-34 in double overtime at No. 20 Oklahoma State.

Retzlaff quarterbacked the Cougars the entire way in both games as a disappointing season came to an end, but did flash some of the junior college transfer’s abilities that were on full display in last year’s 11-2 campaign.

Like any reporter who covers BYU athletics, I can’t go anywhere — church, the store, the golf course — without being asked about the situation, and what will happen next. Some guy even asked me about it when I was at Lagoon with my grandkids last weekend.

My reply is simple — I just don’t know for sure.

If the case does go to a jury trial, that won’t take place until 2026, at the soonest, and maybe not until 2027. Of course, Retzlaff has just one season of eligibility remaining, and already has his college degree — in exercise and wellness.

BYU officials immediately reacted to the filing of the lawsuit with a statement just before 5 p.m. on May 21, but since then has declined further comment on the matter, aside from what new athletic director Brian Santiago told KSL Sports in an interview at the Big 12 meetings in Orlando last week.

Santiago’s biggest revelation to Mitch Harper was that the lawsuit caught BYU by surprise and officials learned about the allegations at the same time everyone else did.

President C. Shane Reese and head football coach Kalani Sitake declined comment.

I caught up with Santiago and Sitake at the annual Rivalry for Charity golf scramble on Monday at Hidden Valley Country Club in Sandy and both men were gracious with their time for interviews, but did not want to talk about the Retzlaff situation, for obvious reasons.

I was able to ask Santiago what his life has been like the past three weeks — he replaced Tom Holmoe on May 13 — and he said coaches such as Sitake, Kevin Young, Jennifer Rockwood, Heather Olmstead, Diljeet Taylor and Lee Cummard have made the transition enjoyable.

“I am just super grateful to have good people around me, especially our coaches. Right? When you launch into a job like this, it is a privilege to lead BYU athletics. But when you are going to bat with guys like Kalani Sitake and Kevin Young — I could go down the list — it makes it really good,” he said. “We will have challenges like everybody has challenges. But we are going to hit it head on. We are going to do it together and stay united and do it the BYU way. So I am super grateful for the opportunity.”

Question of the week

If Jake Retzlaff is not in the picture, which quarterback is best equipped to lead BYU’s offense in 2025, and why?

Dave McCann: Among the preseason strengths of this football team was going to be Retzlaff’s game experience. Leading the Cougars to an 11-2 record and No. 13 national ranking was as unexpected as his pending civil case that has his senior season in jeopardy.

Due to the uncertainty, McCae Hillstead, Treyson Bourguet and even Bear Bachmeier are no longer waiting in the wings. They are front and center, especially Hillstead and Bourguet, who both have Division I starting experience, and each have been in Aaron Roderick’s offense for over a year.

In a two-way race, Hillstead, a redshirt sophomore, is faster and tougher to catch, but Bourguet, a redshirt junior, is bigger and better built to withstand the punishment that comes with the job. Bourguet’s height advantage plays to his pocket presence. Hillstead offsets his shorter frame with mobility. Both have capable arms.

Bachmeier enrolled early at Stanford and split reps with the first team during spring practice. However, in the wake of coach Troy Taylor’s departure, the 6-foot-2, 225-pound true freshman transferred to BYU last month. Bachmeier’s dual-threat skill set figures heavily into the Cougars’ future. Whether that future is now will be determined during fall camp.

Aaron Roderick’s choice among the three options could very well come down to whichever player has the best practice on the last day before his decision. Roderick has time and a strong supporting cast.

Unlike in years past, when the BYU quarterback had to be good enough to offset other deficiencies in the lineup, whoever is calling the shots against Portland State will inherit a roster that is built for success.

He can hand the ball off to a healthy LJ Martin, who will run behind a big, deep offensive line. Or, he can throw to veteran Chase Roberts and speedsters JoJo Phillips and Parker Kingston. If he needs a field goal, Will Ferrin is arguably the best kicker in the country, and when it comes to defense, BYU returns the top unit in the Big 12.

If Retzlaff isn’t in the picture, whether it’s Hillstead, Bourguet or Bachmeier, the assignment will be the same — take care of the ball and run the offense. None of them needs to be Ty Detmer and go throw for 400 yards or Taysom Hill who could run for just as many (ask Texas). They just need to manage the game and put the ball in the hands of their playmakers.

No one in the quarterback room can match Retzlaff’s game experience, but as BYU showed in the Alamo Bowl, it is no longer a program that is dependent on one guy — even if he’s the quarterback. Against the Buffaloes, Retzlaff completed just 12 passes for 151 yards, no touchdowns and threw two interceptions — yet the Cougars dominated 36-14.

There is no question BYU is better with Retzlaff, but if it has to play without him, whether for a few games or the entire season, it is built to contend no matter who is taking the snaps.

Jay Drew: I wrote about this last week in this article, positing that the competition will be between Utah State transfer Hillstead and Western Michigan transfer Bourguet. Both guys entered the program in 2023, but Bourguet went through spring practices that year and Hillstead was still at USU, not arriving until the early summer.

Bachmeier is also in the picture after going through spring practices with Stanford before transferring, but I can’t imagine the former four-star recruit being familiar enough with the BYU offense to move past the other two, although he may have more physical tools.

My hunch is that if the season started today, Hillstead would get the nod. The former Skyridge star just seemed to have a better grip on the offense in the parts of spring camp that media members were allowed to watch.

This is going out on a limb a bit, but I wouldn’t be surprised if coaches give Hillstead or Bourguet a chance in the first six games. If that is not working out, they could turn to Bachmeier, much like they did in 2018 when then-freshman Zach Wilson came in midseason for a struggling Tanner Mangum.

Cougar tales

McCann details a 2-point conversion catch in BYU’s 1979 win over Texas A&M by Mike Lacey as one of the most significant, but likely forgotten, plays in program history in this interesting piece.

Former BYU star Kalin Hall, father of recent BYU quarterback Jaren Hall, had some interesting things to say about the state of high school and junior college recruiting in the wake of the transfer portal era and NIL in college sports in this piece penned by Dick Harmon.

One of the best reads in the summer months is the Athlon College Football Preseason Preview feature in which opposing coaches are given the opportunity to speak anonymously about BYU football. Here’s my piece on what a Big 12 assistant said about the Cougars’ prospects in 2025.

Deseret News track and field expert Doug Robinson wraps up how BYU’s track and field teams fared in the NCAA Regionals last week in College Station, Texas.

From the archives

From the X-verse

Extra points

• Former BYU golfer Zac Blair will play in U.S. Open (Deseret News)
• Kidney patients are big winners at BYU, Utah charity golf event (Deseret News)
• Former BYU basketball player Austin Ainge joins Utah Jazz front office (Deseret News)

Fanalysts

Comments from Deseret News readers:

I really like this new scheduling philosophy from Kevin Young. I anticipate the team will start the season stronger than they did last year and, although they will almost surely end up with some losses, they will know more clearly where their deficiencies lie heading into Big 12 play.

On paper, this is looking like a really balanced team. They could probably use another good big, and maybe they’ll pick up an international prospect before the season starts, but this team has a good mix of ball-handling, shooting, rim protection and (hopefully) better perimeter defense.

Playing good, tough opponents in November and December will pay dividends in March and maybe even April.

— cheezit

They were a couple of plays from being in the football conference title game, but were also literally two miracle plays from two more losses. Hey, I loved the way last year played out, but let’s at least be honest. They yanked victory from the jaws of defeat twice, so we can’t say they didn’t get any breaks.

— Swan Ronson

Up next

• June 11-14 | TBA | Track & Field | NCAA Championships, Hayward Field, Eugene, Oregon