Jake Retzlaff’s decision to bolt from BYU just six weeks before fall camp sends an unmistakable ripple through the re-shaped, 16-team Big 12. The graduate senior accounted for 2,947 passing yards and 20 TDs while piloting the Cougars to an 11-2 debut season in the league last year—production that’s suddenly off the board as he faces a seven-game honor-code suspension and prepares to enter the transfer portal . In the short term, BYU must accelerate the development of McCae Hillstead, Treyson Bourguet or Bear Bachmeier; none has thrown a Big 12 pass . That quarterback uncertainty downgrades the Cougars from dark-horse challenger to high-variance spoiler and, by extension, slightly lightens the path for fellow title hopefuls such as Arizona State, Baylor and Texas Tech, each of whom draws BYU this season.
What it means for Arizona State
The Sun Devils don’t face BYU until Oct. 11 in Tempe, deep enough into the schedule that the Cougars’ new starter will have only a handful of league snaps under his belt. An undermanned BYU offense would spare ASU the kind of shoot-out that Retzlaff engineered last November, when he tossed four second-half touchdowns to stun Texas Tech. More subtly, a weakened Cougars squad could cost the league a quality-win opportunity for everyone chasing College Football Playoff résumés, pushing the Big 12’s margin for error toward razor thinness.
Where Retzlaff ultimately lands is the wild-card. Speculation has linked him to quarterback-needy brands such as Notre Dame or even UCLA, but no Big 12 destination has surfaced as “hot” in the rumor mill . Should he resurface inside the conference—say, at Houston or Iowa State—the competitive calculus flips again, pitting a proven veteran against ASU’s defense in November. Until a commitment is official, contenders must game-plan for both scenarios.
Sun Devils who should headline the 2025 Preseason All-Big 12 team
Arizona State already dominated the early watch lists, and Athlon’s first release confirms why:
Unit Player 2024 Honors/Notes
QB Sam Leavitt 2024 Big 12 Offensive Newcomer of the Year; now Athlon’s first-team QB
WR Jordyn Tyson Led league at 18.7 YPC; first-team WR alongside BYU’s Chase Roberts
OL Ben Coleman Transfer from Cal keyed ASU’s 2,200-yard rushing attack; first-team guard
S Xavion Alford League-best 6 INTs; first-team DB on both Athlon and CBS projections
Beyond the locks, two more Devils have strong second-team buzz:
Edge Isaiah Ward – 9.5 sacks in rotational duty last fall; with Ali Gaye gone, he’s the featured pass-rusher.
RB Tevin White – 5.8 yards per carry and 16 TDs as a junior; if workload expands, he could bump a more heralded back out of first-team status.
The bottom line
Losing Retzlaff subtracts one of the league’s proven playmakers and hands Arizona State a scheduling break, but it doesn’t eliminate BYU—or anyone else—from the chase. In a parity-driven Big 12, margins remain slim, and the Sun Devils’ best insurance is their own star power: Leavitt directing a Tyson-led receiving corps, Coleman anchoring the front five, and Alford patrolling the back end. If those pillars stay healthy, ASU should place at least four players on the official preseason All-Big 12 roster and remain the conference’s team to beat—even if Retzlaff re-emerges wearing another shade of blue and gold later this summer.
