KSL.com’s PROVO It appears as though Jake Retzlaff’s time at BYU is coming to an end.
According to ESPN on Sunday, the rising fifth-year senior quarterback started telling coaches and teammates about his intention to move.
After transferring from two years in the California junior college system, Retzlaff played two seasons in Provo, including a four-game redshirt campaign. However, a Salt Lake woman filed a civil lawsuit against the quarterback, alleging that he sexually assaulted her after inviting her to his apartment to play video games.
The Corona, California native, who was widely hailed as BYU’s first-ever Jewish quarterback, responded to the accusations Friday in Utah’s 3rd District Court, denying all of the claims made in the original lawsuit and claiming the sexual contact was consensual.
However, Retzlaff was living under the school’s honor code, which forbids premarital sex for all of its students, among other things. Athletes had previously been suspended for multiple games for violations of the school’s honor code.
The most well-known suspension occurred in 2011, when the university suspended former standout power player Brandon Davies for having consensual sex with his then-girlfriend. The enforcement of the honor code has since undergone several changes, one of which prevented the institution from discussing the violations in public.
BYU responded to the initial lawsuit by stating that it was informed of the civil case the morning before it was filed and made public. Since May 21, the institution has refrained from commenting on the case.
According to the statement, the university takes all allegations seriously and complies with all procedures and rules set forth under Title IX. The university will not be allowed to speak further due to student privacy policies and federal and university privacy regulations.
With an 11-2 record at the end of the season and a No. 13 rating in the final Associated Press Top 25, BYU was expected to have several important returners, including Retzlaff, who graduated in April with a degree in fitness and wellness.
A year ago, as a redshirt junior, the 6-foot-1 dual-threat signal caller ran for 417 yards and six touchdowns and passed for 2,947 yards and 20 touchdowns with 12 interceptions.
Redshirt junior Treyson Bourguet, a Tucson native who transferred from Western Michigan, former Utah State starter McCae Hillstead, a redshirt sophomore who prepped at Skyridge High, and former four-star recruit Bear Bachmeier from Murrieta, California, who threw 6,810 yards and 59 touchdowns in a high-profile career at Murrieta Valley High before signing with Stanford, are backup quarterbacks behind Retzlaff.
After spring workouts, the 6-foot-2 incoming freshman and his older brother, Tiger, a talented wide receiver, transferred to BYU.
