Ty Detmer - College Career

College Career

Detmer attended Brigham Young University, where he played for the BYU Cougars football team from 1987 to 1991. In deciding which college to attend, he was in part attracted by BYU's alcohol-free environment. He redshirted for the Cougars during the 1987 season, and shared quarterback duties with Sean Covey as a redshirt freshman in 1988. Detmer started only one game that year, but he made the most of the opportunity, passing for 333 yards and five touchdowns in a 65-0 victory over New Mexico. Later, he was named Most Valuable Player of the 1988 Freedom Bowl, after entering the game as a substitute and leading BYU to a come-from-behind 20–17 victory over the Colorado Buffaloes.

Detmer became the full-time starter in 1989. He emerged as one of the top quarterbacks in the nation, passing for 4,560 yards and 32 touchdowns during the regular season. His passer rating of 175.6 led the NCAA, and he finished second to Houston's Andre Ware in total offense. He led BYU to a Western Athletic Conference (WAC) Championship, the team's first since 1985. Detmer finished the season with a strong performance against Penn State in the 1989 Holiday Bowl, setting NCAA records for most passing yards (576) and most yards of total offense (594) in a single bowl game. He finished ninth in the Heisman Trophy voting.

Detmer's 1990 junior season ranks as one of the greatest seasons for a quarterback in college football history. He passed for 5,188 yards and 41 touchdowns in 12 regular season games, and finished the year with 42 NCAA records (and tied for five others). The highpoint of the season was BYU's 28-21 upset victory over the top-ranked Miami Hurricanes; Detmer led the Cougars by passing for 406 yards and three touchdowns against the defending national champions. For his efforts, he was awarded the Heisman Trophy, and received many other honors including the Maxwell Award and the Davey O'Brien Award. He was recognized as a consensus first-team All-American, having been named to the first teams of the Associated Press, UPI, Newspaper Enterprise Association, Football Writers Association of America, Walter Camp Foundation, Football News, Scripps Howard, and the Sporting News. Unfortunately for Detmer and BYU, the season ended in disastrous fashion: the Cougars lost 59-28 in their final regular season game against Hawaii, then lost 65-14 to Texas A&M in the 1990 Holiday Bowl. Detmer was knocked out of the game against Texas A&M, suffering two separated shoulders that required off-season surgery.

The 1991 season started poorly for BYU. With inexperienced teammates, Detmer could not get BYU's offense going, and the Cougars lost their first three games (road contests against Florida State, UCLA, and Penn State). After an 0–3 start, Detmer and BYU turned things around. The Cougars won eight straight games, and clinched their third consecutive WAC championship with a spectacular 52–52 tie against San Diego State in their final regular season game. In that contest, BYU fell behind 45–17 before Detmer led a comeback. He finished the game with 599 passing yards and six touchdowns, both career highs. In his final game as a Cougar, Detmer passed for 350 yards to lead BYU to a 13–13 tie against heavily-favored Iowa in the 1991 Holiday Bowl. He totaled 4,031 passing yards and 35 touchdowns in regular season play during his senior year. He finished third in the Heisman Trophy voting, but won the Davey O'Brien Award again and also earned the Sammy Baugh Trophy and Today's Top VI Award. Additionally, he was again recognized as a consensus first-team All-American.

Detmer finished his college career with the following totals: 1,530 pass attempts; 958 completions; 15,031 passing yards; 121 touchdown passes; 14,665 yards of total offense; 135 touchdowns responsible for; and 162.7 passer rating—all NCAA records at the time. In total, he finished his college career with 59 NCAA records and tied for three others. Including statistics from bowl games, Detmer amassed 16,206 passing yards and 127 touchdown passes at BYU. He graduated with a bachelor's degree in recreation administration.