Will Ryder Lyons Choose BYU? National Recruiting Analyst Weighs In.
All eyes on the recruiting trail are on five-star quarterback Ryder Lyons.
BYU football is preparing to host the talented signal-caller from Folsom, California, this weekend. The visit comes one week after Lyonsโ official visit to the University of Oregon and his comment to Rivals that โItโs decision timeโ
Brandon Huffman shares his thoughts on Ryder Lyons
The five-star prospect that the 247Sports Composite rates as the fifth quarterback in the country and the No. 19 overall prospect. However, 247Sports National Recruiting Editor Brandon Huffman believes Lyons is the best in the 2026 cycle.
Huffman hopped on with โDJ & PKโ on the KSL Sports Zone on Tuesday to discuss the recruitment of Lyons.
โIโve said for two years that I think heโs the best quarterback in the country. I know heโs a top-five quarterback nationally. Heโs the number one player in California. For my money, I will take him as the best quarterback in the country,โ Huffman said to the KSL Sports Zone.Last season at Folsom High School, Ryder Lyons put up huge numbers, earning him the Gatorade Player of the Year in California.
The 6-foot-2.5, 215-pound prospect passed for 3,011 yards, 46 touchdowns, and only six interceptions. Lyons completed 68% of his 310 pass attempts.
The dual-threat quarterback also rushed for another 14 touchdowns and totaled 585 yards on 118 carries last season.Will he end up in Provo?
โIt was down to BYU, USC, and Oregon,โ Huffman said. โHis brother (Walker Lyons) is at USC, and then he was supposed to take a visit there two weeks ago and canceled it. Thereโs talk that it may happen in the fall, because heโs not enrolling until 2027, thereโs a little bit of flexibility. But I have maintained for a while that this was a BYU/Oregon battle.
โI have said more than anybody in the media, do not sleep and do not discount BYUโs efforts with him. And now they get their shot. They get the last visit, and theyโve got all the big guns visiting this weekend as well.โ
Along with Lyons, BYU is expected to host uncommitted prospects such as interior offensive lineman Jax Tanner, edge rusher Prince Williams, Olympus linebacker Adam Bywater, Oremโs Lopeti Moala, and many BYU commits, including four-star tight end Brock Harris, whom Lyons was with during his spring visit to BYU in March.
Lyons, a star both on and off the field with his large social media following and aura, will have a tough decision to make.
BYU was the first program to offer Lyons in December 2021. Ever since, the Cougars have made him a top priority in their recruiting efforts for the 2026 cycle.
What would be the reasons for Ryder Lyons to pick BYU?
If Lyons does pick BYU, Huffman shared his thoughts on why the Cougars could be the landing spot for the blue-chip prospect.โI think there are a couple of reasons in play. He really likes Aaron Roderick. He really likes the direction that BYU is going,โ said Huffman, who has covered recruiting since 2003. โI think he has seen that after the 2024 season, where they got their feet under themselves and the way that they competed, not just in the Big 12, but as a nationally-ranked team throughout the year.
โKalani (Sitake) is a defensive guy, and thatโs always a concern when youโre a quarterback. If I go play for a defensive guy, is his focus going to be on winning the game with defense, or is he going to open up the offense? And I think that this last year with Jake Retzlaff at quarterback, they showed a penchant to be exciting on offense. I think that really answered a lot of questions.
โObviously, having a guy like Zach Wilson go number two in the NFL draft a few years ago, having a number of quarterbacks in recent years get drafted and get the opportunity in the NFL, that helps. But itโs also the direction of the program that itโs trending up on a national scale.โ
