Back to the BYU Cougars Newsfeed

Why times have changed for BYU and its freshman quarterbacks

BYU has had six quarterbacks start as true freshmen. They include, clockwise from top left, Drew Miller, John Beck, Jake Heaps, Taysom Hill, Tanner Mangum and Joe Critchlow.

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

PROVO — Since BYU officially started playing football in 1922, nearly 100 years ago — keeping in mind it wasn’t until 1972 that the NCAA allowed freshmen to be eligible to play — only six quarterbacks have ever started a game as a true freshman, including Joe Critchlow last season.