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How Jake Heaps went from 5-star recruit, to freshman starter at BYU, to 2-time transfer, to QB mentor

Stuart Johnson, Deseret News

Editor's note: Second in an occasional series exploring the pros and cons of starting a true freshman at quarterback, and the experiences of the six freshmen who started for BYU.

PROVO — Perhaps no BYU athlete has ever had a bigger target on his back than former five-star prospect Jake Heaps.

Touted as one of the top high school quarterbacks in the nation in 2009, the Issaquah, Washington, native became the third true freshman — and one of only two teenagers (he was 19) — to start at quarterback at BYU nearly a decade ago.