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BYU Football: Joe Critchlow isn’t as bad as you may think

By Adam Gibby

PROVO, UT - OCTOBER 6: Quarterback Joe Critchlow #11 of the Brigham Young Cougars looks to pass the ball during their game against the Boise State Broncos at LaVell Edwards Stadium on October 6, 2017 in Provo, Utah. (Photo by Gene Sweeney Jr./Getty Images)
PROVO, UT - OCTOBER 6: Quarterback Joe Critchlow #11 of the Brigham Young Cougars looks to pass the ball during their game against the Boise State Broncos at LaVell Edwards Stadium on October 6, 2017 in Provo, Utah. (Photo by Gene Sweeney Jr./Getty Images) /
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While most BYU Football fans want to forget everything about last season, especially on offense, there is one player who is not receiving enough credit.

Throughout all of spring football, the quarterback talk seemed to be between Beau Hoge, Zach Wilson and an injured Tanner Mangum. Every once in a while, another name would be thrown into the mix such as Stacy Connor or Baylor Romney, but for the most part the talk has been about Wilson, Hoge and Mangum.

And then the spring scrimmage happened.

Joe Critchlow was given the start. Now let’s not over-analyze what that may or may not mean, but a look at his stats from last season explains why he should be higher on most people’s radar.

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Raw comparison

Take a look at these four BYU quarterback stats. Rank them.-

  • 57.2% completion,192 yards per game, 6 yards per attempt, 8 TD, 9 INT
  • 54.5% completion, 194 yards per game (in starts), 6.4 yards per attempt, 3 TD, 4 INT
  • 53.9% completion, 226 yards per game, 6.7 yards per attempt, 19 TD, 14 INT
  • 58.8% completion, 201 yards per game, 6.5 yards per attempt, 13 TD 13 INT

Just looking at the numbers, one could easily believe that all of them probably led teams that didn’t do very well. However, what if I told you that three of them had winning records?

The first quarterback is Tanner Mangum from last season. The second quarterback is Joe Critchlow from last season. The third quarterback is Taysom Hill in 2013 (the year with the big win over Texas, beating Houston in a shootout etc…). The final quarterback is Riley Nelson’s senior season in 2012 (including a win over Tulsa with less than 15 seconds left in the Military Bowl).

That’s not to say that any of those four quarterbacks were John Beck, Max Hall or Ty Detmer, but the 2012 and 2013 seasons were pretty successful years. In both years, the Cougars finished with 8-5 records.

The point is, Joe Critchlow compares well with quarterbacks who have had success. And before you throw out the “well Critchlow isn’t a runner” argument, Riley Nelson averaged 2.2 rushing yards per attempt in his senior season.

Give him a chance

Some fans have claimed that if Mangum starts next season then they won’t buy tickets or follow BYU. Some probably feel the same way about Critchlow.

I’m not suggesting that I’m all in on Critchlow, or that Beau Hoge shouldn’t be the starter. What I am saying is that people need to give Critchlow a chance.

Critchlow got thrown into a tough situation. The Cougars were 2-8 when he took over as a starter. He has a lot of potential and can be developed into a good quarterback. With Mangum or Hoge, they only have one or two seasons left. Not much time for further development.

Unless something drastic happens, it may be time to develop one of the younger quarterbacks, like Critchlow, into the next BYU great.

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