The Jake Retzlaff off-season drama is reaching its climax, as his violation of BYU's honor code has delivered himself a 7-game suspension. As it would turn out, the majority of the season is too harsh a penalty to hang around, because the Cougars' starting quarterback immediately entered the transfer portal.
BYU QB Jake Retzlaff is planning to transfer from the school, sources confirmed to ESPN on Sunday.
— ESPN College Football (@ESPNCFB) June 30, 2025
He is facing a suspension after admitting to premarital sex, a violation of BYU's honor code that surfaced during his response to a civil lawsuit alleging he raped a woman in… pic.twitter.com/IyuXzG0Zhb
Though still denying any accusations of sexual assault -- a civil suit accusing him of such being the impetus of this off-season saga -- Retzlaff admitted the story wasn't entirely baseless. He admitted to a premarital sexual encounter, and the university punished him appropriately.
A strict set of rules for an individual not of the LDS faith, the honor code is a mandatory undertaking for any student enrolled at Brigham Young Universtiy. This isn't the first time that a student athlete -- church member or otherwise -- has received a suspension, as memories of the Brandon Davies incident come to mind during Jimmer Fredette's senior stint with the basketball team.
Davies, only a freshman at the time, remained with the program following his suspension. Retzlaff, now entering his senior season, isn't willing to wait this one out.
Per Jay Drew at Deseret News, the gunslinging quarterback may already have a new home lined up, and could announce his final collegiate destination as soon as Wednesday. He states:
"Retzlaff has cleaned out his locker at the Student Athlete Building on the Provo campus and is expected to announce early this week that he will play for another school, a school one source noted that is “in desperate need of an experienced college quarterback."
A few interesting tidbits here, including a source telling me that Jake already has a destination school mostly lined up and could announce as soon as Wednesday. Suffice to say It's a big-time school. https://t.co/XnmpEIuciK
— Jay Drew (@drewjay) June 29, 2025
A major college football program with a desperate need for a starting quarterback? A fascinating dilemma, and an absolute mystery thus far into the off-season, with the opening week of football now only two months away.
BYU football will miss Retzlaff, whose impact on last season's team both as a leader and an athlete led Kalani Sitake's roster to its best year since the Covid-asterisked 2020 campaign. Now out the door at BYU, he leaves a flood of questions in his wake.