BYU QB Battle: Gerry Bohanon, Jake Retzlaff Split First-Team Spring Ball Reps
Mar 1, 2024, 7:41 PM
PROVO, Utah – The BYU football quarterback competition is underway.
Entering spring practice, BYU has a busy quarterback unit with 10 signal-callers.
BYU QB Battle: “The cream will always rise to the top”
“The room is pretty full. And that’s by design,” BYU offensive coordinator Aaron Roderick said to Hans Olsen on the KSL Sports Zone. “When Kalani [Sitake] hired me, he told me to keep that room full and competitive and the cream will always rise to the top. So that’s what we’re doing. We’re trying to find the best quarterbacks we can get.”
The top two vying for the starting QB job are returning lettermen Jake Retzlaff and USF/Baylor transfer Gerry Bohanon.
Bohanon & Retzlaff split the first-team reps
Roderick told Olsen after the first day of spring practice that both players split the first and second-team reps equally.
“Jake and Gerry split the reps with the ones and twos evenly,” Roderick said. “Then we got Treyson Bourguet and Cade Fennegan in there with some reps for the threes. Then we’ll get Ryder Burton in there moving forward. It’ll change a little bit each day.”
BYU will hold spring practices throughout the month of March. The 15th and final practice is on March 30 and the quarterback competition is expected at the forefront of everyone’s minds over the next month.
I caught up with BYU offensive coordinator Aaron Roderick after the opening of Spring Ball for a 1 on 1.
He talks about his QB room and his strategy with reps through Spring.
Talks new coaches and early starts as well.
We’ll play that interview at 2pm today on @KSLSportsZone.— Hans Olsen (@975Hans) March 1, 2024
Two QBs vying for the starting job
“It’s mainly –right now– a competition between Jake and Gerry for the starting job,” Roderick said.
Retzlaff started the final four games of last season for BYU. He was 0-4 in those games, but showed flashes of playmaking ability that allowed him to be in a position to contend for the starting job to replace Kedon Slovis this season.
Gerry Bohanon has 19 career starts in his college football career at Baylor and South Florida. He’s appeared in 34 games.
Gerry Bohanon was asked if he considers himself a pocket-passer or dual-threat: “I see myself as a dual-threat.”#BYU #BYUFootball pic.twitter.com/725VFiF4zJ
— Mitch Harper (@Mitch_Harper) March 1, 2024
“Today was a good indication of that,” BYU head coach Kalani Sitake on February 29 on why Retzlaff and Bohanon are the top two QBs vying for the starting job. “Tons of talent. I thought those guys understand the scheme a lot more and they’ve been in a good position right now to make plays. I thought they made a lot of really big-time plays today. They made some excellent throws, some great decisions, and took care of the football. So that stuff matters the most.”
BYU will be back on the practice field on Monday. The media will have a window to observe practice.
Mitch Harper is a BYU Insider for sports.ksl.com and hosts the Cougar Tracks Podcast (SUBSCRIBE) and Cougar Sports Saturday (12–3 p.m.) on KSL Newsradio. Follow Mitch’s coverage of BYU in the Big 12 Conference on X: @Mitch_Harper.
