FRISCO, Texas (AP) — BYU coach Kalani Sitake declined to address the status of Jake Retzlaff on Tuesday amid reports that the quarterback is transferring after being accused of sexual assault in a civil lawsuit that was dismissed.
Retzlaff reportedly plans to enter the transfer portal rather than face a suspension for violating the honor code at the university, which is run by the Mormon church. Retzlaff acknowledged a consensual sexual relationship in his defense against the lawsuit.
“I think it’ll be inappropriate for me to make a statement on his situation first,” Sitake said at Big 12 football media days. “I think that’s his right. I think it’s a private matter that he can speak for himself, and I’m going to give him the opportunity to do that.”
Asked about how the team was reacting to losing the quarterback who started 13 games last season, Sitake spoke generally about competition among quarterbacks without acknowledging whether Retzlaff was still on the roster.
Assuming Retzlaff is moving on, the Cougars will have a quarterback competition in preseason workouts. Stanford transfer Bear Bachmeier and McCae Hillstead, who previously was at Utah State, are considered the frontrunners.
“I think for me it’s just allowing the guys to compete in the quarterback room we have,” Sitake said. “The fortunate part for me is I have a coaching staff that was able to keep intact. And so there’s always a knowledge of the offense for the guys that are there and then we have incoming talent that I think it’d be really special for us. So let’s settle it on the field, let them compete and then I only know one way and I just play the best guys. That’s how it works.”
Retzlaff threw for 2,947 yards and 20 touchdowns with 12 interceptions as the Cougars contended for a spot in the Big 12 championship game before settling for an 11-2 finish that included an over Shedeur Sanders, Travis Hunter and Colorado.
LJ Martin was the Alamo Bowl MVP after rushing for 88 yards and two touchdowns with another 33 yards receiving. Now he’s waiting to see how the offense will unfold with what appears to be a sudden, and late, change at quarterback.
“I don’t want to say it’s really rallying around anything,” said Martin, who also declined to address specifically whether Retzlaff was returning. “No matter what, coach Kalani sets the standard, and everyone is up to that standard. If everyone is up to it, nothing should change, right? No matter who’s back there, if the o-line’s doing their job, running backs doing their job, receivers, tight ends, it shouldn’t change anything.”
Sitake compared the potentially sudden departure of Retzlaff to an injury.
“It’s part of football,” the coach said. “That’s why we try to get our team as deep as possible. We can’t rely on one player to make it work for us.”
The Cougars had a losing record (5-7) in their Big 12 debut two years ago before starting 9-0 last season. Consecutive losses to Kansas and eventual Big 12 champion Arizona State blocked BYU’s path to the title game at the home of the Dallas Cowboys in Arlington, Texas, about 35 miles from the team’s headquarters where Big 12 media days are being held.
The expected departure of Retzlaff isn’t likely to change BYU’s expectations of contending again.
“We’ll figure it out,” Sitake said. “My job as a head coach is to make sure that we’re playing at our best. Did we do that last year? Not consistently enough for me. And so, I’ve got a lot of things to work on and a lot of things that I’ve learned from quite a bit.”
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