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Deseret News
Here’s who College Football 25 thinks should start at QB for BYU
By Jackson Payne,
7 hours ago
Brigham Young Cougars quarterback Jake Retzlaff (12) gets off the pass ahead of the hit by Oklahoma Sooners defensive lineman Jacob Lacey (54) and Oklahoma Sooners defensive lineman Trace Ford (30) as BYU and Oklahoma play at LaVell Edwards stadium in Provo on Saturday, Nov. 18, 2023. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News
Stop me if you’ve heard this one before: BYU will have a quarterback competition during fall camp this year.
Jake Retzlaff and Gerry Bohanon will continue battling for the starting job, and new transfers McCae Hillstead and Treyson Bourguet could make things interesting on the depth chart.
The Cougars’ chances of achieving bowl eligibility — and Big 12 respectability — are largely tied to who they tab as QB1, so Kalani Sitake’s crew can’t afford to get it wrong.
Luckily for the coaching staff, there’s a brand-new, foolproof instrument available to project how each quarterback candidate will perform: the EA Sports College Football 25 video game.
In the name of science, I used the game’s early access launch to dive into solving BYU’s QB conundrum. In dynasty mode, I ran three separate simulations of the Cougars’ 2024 campaign with a different quarterback in the starting spot each time (Hillstead is not featured in the game, and thus could not be part of this experiment. He will be missed).
I used BYU’s default roster and didn’t make any changes to the depth chart aside from quarterback. Injuries were turned off for this exercise in order to keep the simulations fair and consistent.
Most importantly, I didn’t play a single snap in any of these games, allowing everything to be completely simulated with no outside manipulation whatsoever.
Listed below are the results from all three simulations, detailing what the game believes BYU’s chances will be with each of Bohanon, Retzlaff and Bourguet under center.
College Football Playoff final: Oregon over Arizona.
Recap: Bohanon was brilliant for the Cougars, breaking the program’s single season completion percentage mark and earning Second Team All-Big 12 honors. His 39 touchdowns were the third-most in school history, behind only Ty Detmer and Jim McMahon.
BYU’s offense emerged as one of the most efficient units in the nation, averaging 32.1 points per game and topping 40 points on five separate occasions.
LJ Martin led a solid Cougars running game, averaging more than five yards per carry and making 10 end zone trips.
Receivers Parker Kingston and Chase Roberts became the first BYU pass-catching pair since Austin Collie and Dennis Pitta to each surpass 1,000 receiving yards, with Roberts grabbing 13 touchdowns as well.
While the defense struggled to the tune of 32.6 points allowed per week, Tyler Batty was a First Team Big 12 honoree with 6.5 sacks and Micah Harper snatched three interceptions.
Recap: Following an encouraging 3-0 start, BYU collapsed for six straight losses in Big 12 play before finally righting the ship to win its final three games and clinch bowl eligibility.
Retzlaff showed significant improvement from his 2023 campaign, throwing the second-fewest interceptions of all Big 12 quarterbacks and ranking fifth in conference passing yards to solidify his future in Provo.
The inconsistent Cougars were plagued by a mediocre run game, failing to gain more than 1,000 collective yards on the ground and averaging just 3.6 yards per attempt as a team.
EA Sports College Football 25
Kody Epps led BYU’s offensive attack with 983 receiving yards and six touchdowns, while tight end Jackson Bowers became a freshman All-American by posting 726 yards with eight scores.
Though the defense allowed nearly 32 points per game, the Cougars’ pass rush trio of Tyler Batty, John Nelson and Blake Mangelson combined for 20 sacks and five forced fumbles.
College Football Playoff final: Ohio State over Michigan.
Recap: Five straight wins to open the season and a 6-2 start had BYU in the thick of the conference race, but the team stumbled down the stretch. However, they still became bowl eligible with plenty of room to spare.
Bourguet was impressive in his first taste of starting action, becoming the first Cougar to pass for 4,000 yards since 1996 and throwing the fewest interceptions of any Big 12 QB. He led BYU to a 5-1 road mark — including a win over eventual conference champion UCF — and came within a score of toppling rival Utah.
Jay Hill’s defense was terrific, allowing just 25.1 points per game and ranking only behind Utah for the most sacks in the league. Tyler Batty, John Nelson, Jack Kelly and Isaiah Bagnah all combined for 30 sacks, while Ben Bywater picked off seven passes and made three defensive scores.
Aside from LJ Martin’s 547 yards and 10 touchdowns on the ground, the Cougars managed just 2.6 yards per carry and three rushing touchdowns. Chase Roberts, however, racked up 1,204 yards and nine touchdowns through the air, earning First Team All-Big 12 honors along with Batty and Bywater.
Is College Football 25 worth the hype?
One last note: College Football 25 is incredible. It more than lives up to the 11 years of hype.
Everything about it is spectacular. If you haven’t already, I would exhort you to order it as soon as possible.
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