BYU Cougars head coach Kalani Sitake named Jake Retzlaff his starting quarterback for Saturday’s game with Southern Illinois, per the Deseret News.
Gerry Bohanon, the former Baylor and USF quarterback who transferred to BYU for his final season of college football, will serve as the backup.
The quarterback competition between the pair was fierce during fall camp and Sitake resisted the temptation to name a starter until hours before kickoff in Provo.
The redshirt junior from Corona, Calif., was with the Cougars last season after he transferred in from Riverside City College and was ranked the No. 1 juco quarterback in the country by ESPN.
While with Riverside, he completed 312 of 493 passes for 4,596 yards and 44 touchdowns with an efficiency rating of 165.4.
He moved into the quarterback role in the final four games of the season, facing West Virginia, Iowa State, Oklahoma and Oklahoma State. He threw for 648 yards with three touchdowns and three interceptions. He only completed 50.4% of his passes.
Because he only played in four games for the Cougars, he was able to use his redshirt and remain a junior. He has two years of eligibility left.
It’s not clear if this means the quarterback competition is over, but Bohanon certainly offers the Cougars more experience.
He helped Baylor win the Big 12 in 2021 and finish 12-2, with a victory in the Sugar Bowl. With the Bears he finished with 2,523 yards (2,200 passing and 323 rushing) and 27 touchdowns (18 passing and 9 rushing).
Last year with USF he finished with 1,070 yards, six touchdowns and six interceptions while running for 386 yards and three touchdowns before his season was cut short by an injury.
