Editor’s note: Fifteenth in a series previewing each team in the Big 12 in 2025.
A few months ago, the big question facing the BYU football program prior to the 2025 season was simple.
What would the Cougars do for an encore, after the 2024 campaign in which they went 11-2 and almost made the Big 12 championship game surprised nearly everyone?
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Well, that question has obviously changed, with the departure of projected starting quarterback Jake Retzlaff. Facing a seven-game suspension for violating BYU’s honor code, the 17-game starter left the program and announced that he was walking on at Tulane.
Now everyone wants to know how the program will respond to the bombshell development, which of the three candidates will get the start Aug. 30 against Portland State (6 p.m., ESPN+), and how far expectations will drop for a team once considered to be a possible Big 12 title contender in 2025.
The candidates to replace Retzlaff in the starting lineup are Utah State transfer McCae Hillstead, Western Michigan transfer Treyson Bourguet and incoming freshman Bear Bachmeier. Hillstead seemed to have a slight edge to be QB2 coming out of spring camp last March, but several people who have observed summer workouts and player-run practices say writing off Bachmeier just because he is less familiar with Aaron Roderick’s playbook might be a mistake.
The 6-foot-2, 225-pounder from Murrieta, California, who enrolled early and went through Stanford’s spring practices before hitting the transfer portal has a higher ceiling than the others, it would appear.
“We feel awesome about all of them,” receiver Chase Roberts said at Big 12 media days earlier this month. “We are confident going into…
Source link : https://www.deseret.com/sports/2025/08/02/big-12-preview-byu-cougars-expectations-2025-season-quarterback-hillstead/
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Publish date : 2025-08-02 22:07:00
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