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BYU secured its highest-ranked quarterback pledge since 2002 when four-star recruit Ryder Lyons, No. 49 in the 2026 ESPN 300, announced his commitment to the Cougars over Oregon on “The Pat McAfee Show” on Tuesday.

Lyons, a 6-foot-2, 205-pound prospect from Folsom, California, is ESPN’s No. 5 pocket passer in the 2026 class and entered Tuesday as the nation’s top-ranked uncommitted quarterback. While Lyons will sign as part of BYU’s 2026 class later this year, he intends to serve a Latter-day Saints mission after graduation next year and will not formally join the Cougars until the spring of 2027.

Following a string of unofficial visits this spring that included stops at Michigan, Ohio State and Ole Miss, Lyons trimmed his finalists to BYU, Oregon and USC in May and scheduled official visits with each program for June.

Lyons later canceled his trip to USC, ultimately closing his recruitment with visits to the Ducks and Cougars on consecutive weekends from June 13-22.

With BYU, Lyons lands as a potential quarterback of the future with the program that offered him his very first scholarship offer in December 2021. He is the second-ranked of three ESPN 300 commits in coach Kalani Sitake’s 2026 class.

“They’ve poured a lot into me and made me feel very needed,” Lyons told ESPN. “The love they’ve shown — not just the coaching staff, but everyone there — they’ve shown me just how much they want me more than any other program.”

Lyons, the 2024 California Gatorade Football Player of the Year, would also arrive on campus in 2027 as BYU’s highest-rated quarterback signee since Ben Olson joined the program in the 2002 class.

A skilled improviser who can extend plays with his feet, Lyons exploded in his sophomore season at Folsom High School. He completed 67.9% of his throws for 3,578 yards with 38 passing touchdowns and eight interceptions as a first-year starter in 2023, then followed with another 3,011 yards and 46 touchdowns through the air as a junior last fall. Lyons has also proved dangerous on the ground in the high school ranks, combining for 1,514 rushing yards and 37 rushing scores across two seasons as a starter.

The Cougars have significantly stepped up their NIL efforts across the athletic department in the past year, sources told ESPN. In December, BYU’s men’s basketball program secured the addition of No. 1 overall prospect A.J. Dybantsa, a coveted 6-foot-9 wing who reportedly commanded a high seven-figure NIL deal.

The football program now has its latest cornerstone in a potentially historic 2026 class that includes in-state tight end Brock Harris (No. 32), the program’s highest-ranked pledge since at least 2006, and in-state defensive tackle pledge Bott Mulitalo (No. 105), who flipped from Oregon.

With signatures from Harris, Mulitalo and Lyons later this year, the Cougars would have their first-ever recruiting class with at least three top 300 prospects in the ESPN recruiting era (since 2006).

For coach Dan Lanning and Oregon, Lyons’ pledge to BYU marks the program’s latest high-profile miss in the 2026 cycle. The Ducks were finalists for five-star offensive tackle Jackson Cantwell (Miami) and No. 1 overall quarterback Jared Curtis (Georgia) last month. On June 19, Oregon lost out to Texas A&M in the recruitment of five-star athlete Brandon Arrington (No. 14).

The Ducks are now expected to turn their attention to three-star passer Matt Ponatoski, a two-sport star who visited the program this past weekend, sources told ESPN. Boise State decommit Bryson Beaver is another recent visitor on Oregon’s radar, with Alabama, Auburn and LSU also among those registering significant interest in the late-rising three-star quarterback from Murrieta, California.

Upon Lyons’ pledge, only two of the 18 quarterbacks within the 2026 ESPN 300 remain uncommitted. No. 1 dual-threat passer Landon Duckworth (No. 104) is expected to commit in the coming weeks following official visits to South Carolina and Auburn. Four-star quarterback Oscar Rios (No. 192) is set to choose between Arizona and UCLA on Friday.

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Kiffin’s ‘little, short’ QB leads Rebels past LSU

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Kiffin's 'little, short' QB leads Rebels past LSU

OXFORD, Miss. — Listed at 6-foot-even, Ole Miss quarterback Trinidad Chambliss didn’t receive any Division I scholarships out of Forest Hills Northern High School in Grand Rapids, Michigan. He transferred to Ole Miss in May from Division II Ferris State, where he typically played in front of about 5,000 people.

On Saturday, in front of 67,737 people — the fourth-largest crowd in Vaught-Hemingway Stadium — Chambliss led the Rebels to a 24-19 win against No. 4 LSU, pushing undefeated Ole Miss (5-0) into the College Football Playoff race and making a case to be the Rebels’ full-time starter.

Playing in place of injured starter Austin Simmons, Chambliss outplayed LSU senior quarterback Garrett Nussmeier, who entered the season as a projected first-round NFL draft pick. He completed 23-of-39 passing yards for 314 yards and one touchdown, and he ran 14 times for 71 yards.

“This is a really cool story,” Ole Miss coach Lane Kiffin said. “I like good stories. Here’s a little, short kid from Division II going against Nussmeier and the mighty Tigers with Ole Miss. It was really cool.”

Chambliss became the first SEC player with 300 pass yards and 50 rush yards in three consecutive games over the past 30 years. He has played so well during that span that Kiffin didn’t rule out the possibility of Chambliss earning the starting job.

“We’ve got a bye week coming up,” Kiffin said “It’s a good problem to have. I don’t have that answer right now, and I don’t need to have it right now. We have two really good quarterbacks. That’s a really good thing to have. You see around the country, people usually when they lose their quarterback, their team changes a lot. And Austin got hurt, and we’re still able to play the way that we played.”

It wasn’t a flawless performance for Ole Miss, which had 14 penalties for 109 yards — 10 of which came in the first half, the most in the Kiffin era. The Rebels, though, exposed LSU’s inept offense, which was held to just 57 rushing yards and was 2-of-11 on third-down conversions.

“We wanted it more,” safety Wydett Williams Jr. said of the defense. “Simple as that.”

Nussmeier was held to 197 passing yards, a career low as the Tigers’ starter. He was often off target and made several bad decisions, including in the second quarter, when he threw a pass into traffic that Williams snagged for an interception.

Chambliss, though, was playing behind an offensive line that didn’t allow one sack and gave him ample time to throw. He led a group that racked up 480 total yards against a defense that was one of the best in the SEC.

“It’s like a dream come true,” Chambliss said. “… It’s an amazing accomplishment. Got to thank God for that one, he’s been with me the whole time. I’ve got to thank Coach Kiffin, the whole staff here at Ole Miss for giving me the opportunity to come here and showcase my skill set, showcase what I can do. Great athletes, just an amazing support staff. It’s a dream come true.”

At Ferris, Chambliss led the Bulldogs to their third national title in four years last season, but the difference in resources was stark. He said he was used to practicing in the snow because there was no indoor facility. There have been a few upgrades with his move, including players around him like receiver Cayden Lee, who led the Rebels with four catches for 70 yards, and running back Kewan Lacy, who had 87 yards and a touchdown on 23 carries.

“I feel like Trinidad has just done a really amazing job,” Lee said, “the way he’s handled the offense, the meetings he’s had with us personally, just getting us ready for the defense, having us dialed in the film studies, and that’s really showing on the field.”

Chambliss and Simmons hugged after the game, and those within the program said Simmons has handled his injury recovery and the situation well.

“Austin’s been a stud, battling his way back from injury,” Kiffin said. “That’s not easy. You’ve been waiting to be the starter for a couple of years, waiting for Jaxson [Dart] to leave, and so really proud of him as he’s handled that.”

The Rebels head into a bye week with three SEC wins, including Kentucky and Arkansas. Their win against the Tigers was the first this season against a ranked opponent, and it should catapult them into the top 12.

With about a minute left in the game, Ole Miss athletic director Keith Carter told a staff member, “I think we need as many uniforms down here as we can,” to help prevent fans from storming the field.

It turned out that wasn’t necessary — a moment Kiffin said was an even more telling reaction about the state of the program.

“To me, that’s really cool that you get to a place as a program that you do beat the [No. 4] team in the country and you don’t rush the field because you’re doing what you’re supposed to do, and that’s win the game,” he said. “That makes me happy this program has gotten to that place.”

That doesn’t mean there wasn’t room to celebrate. As Kiffin went into the tunnel, he pumped his fist and flung his visor into the air.

Lee said the only expectations the Rebels have to meet are their own.

“I remember last year, everybody had all these expectations for us to go super, super far, and we didn’t end up doing that,” he said. “And this year I feel like almost nobody is talking us. All of the talk and stuff preseason doesn’t matter. It just matters the team’s mindset and what you guys are going to do every single game. So far we have a 1-0 mindset, and that’s worked out for us.”

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ACC: Officials missed key offsides call in GT-Wake

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ACC: Officials missed key offsides call in GT-Wake

The ACC said Saturday night that officials missed a pivotal offsides call that allowed No. 16 Georgia Tech to eventually overcome Wake Forest 30-29 in overtime in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.

With the Yellow Jackets holding no timeouts and the Demon Deacons with the lead and working on the clock late in regulation, Wake Forest quarterback Robby Ashford threw a free-play deep ball on third-and-5 after a Georgia Tech player appeared to leap well offsides.

But officials didn’t throw a flag, sparking an irate reaction from the entire Wake Forest sideline and boos cascading from the stands.

The penalty would’ve been a 5-yarder and likely moved the chains, putting Wake Forest in position to potentially kneel out the clock. Instead, the Yellow Jackets got the ball back with 1:41 left, marched down the field and saw kicker Aidan Birr convert a 33-yard field goal with 2 seconds left in regulation to send the game to OT.

“I’m not putting that on Robby,” first-year Demon Deacons coach Jake Dickert told reporters. “There’s no way he can see the flag. We wanted to see the defensive look, we clapped, we’ll see what it ends up. And then Robby does what he’s trained to do, and that’s take a shot because he doesn’t know if that’s offsides or not.”

In overtime, Georgia Tech intercepted Wake Forest’s 2-point play to close out the win. The Yellow Jackets rallied from 17 down in the third quarter to stay unbeaten (5-0, 2-0 ACC).

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.

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OSU opens post-Gundy era, falls by 18 to Baylor

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OSU opens post-Gundy era, falls by 18 to Baylor

STILLWATER, Okla. — Sawyer Robertson passed for 393 yards and four touchdowns, and Baylor ruined Oklahoma State’s first game without Mike Gundy as head coach in more than 20 years with a 45-27 victory on Saturday.

Robertson threw each of his touchdown passes to a different player and also ran for a score. Josh Cameron caught six passes for 98 yards for the Bears (3-2, 1-1 Big 12), who gained 612 total yards.

Zane Flores passed for 232 yards for Oklahoma State, which lost its first game under interim coach Doug Meacham. Trent Howland had career highs of 84 yards and two touchdowns rushing for the Cowboys (1-3, 0-1).

Despite the loss, it was a significant improvement for the Cowboys, whose previous losses were 69-3 to Oregon and 19-12 to Tulsa. The Cowboys posted a season-high 448 yards.

Oklahoma State showed early that it planned to open things up. The Cowboys scored their first points of Meacham’s tenure on a double pass. Receiver Sam Jackson V completed a 26-yard touchdown pass to Josh Ford that tied the score at 7 in the first quarter.

Robertson threw three touchdown passes in the first half to help Baylor take a 28-20 lead at the break, despite Oklahoma State outgaining the Bears 349 yards to 285.

Howland added to his career day by throwing a 13-yard completion, then running in from a yard out on the next play to cut Baylor’s lead to 35-27 in the third. That was the closest Oklahoma State would get.

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