Detmer already drawing scrutiny


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PROVO — The shine quickly went off the legend, whose offense was booed on multiple occasions during his first home game.

Ty Detmer, who ruled Cougar Stadium 25 years ago like no other BYU quarterback has ever done, had an inauspicious debut as BYU’s offensive coordinator at the place now named after his coach, the legendary LaVell Edwards. The two away games haven’t exactly been stellar either.

Going straight from being a head coach at a small school in Texas, BYU’s only Heisman Trophy winner has endured growing pains in his first season as the coordinator. In three games, against Pac-12 members Arizona, Utah and UCLA, BYU’s offense has yet to score 20 points once. As a result, BYU is a frustrating 1-2, with the losses coming by a combined four points.

Last week’s loss to UCLA was particularly irritating to the home crowd, which voiced its displeasure over the offense’s inability to generate much of anything. Several players took to social media to fire back at BYU fans for the perceived negativity.

But the faithful is like any other rabid fan base that wants to win, something which hasn’t happened against Utah since 2009. Patience, naturally, is wearing thin.

Detmer, who admitted failing to provide a second option on an ill-advised missed two-point conversion with the game on the line against Utah, likely shares some of the heat with Taysom Hill. A feel-good story after returning from repeated season-ending injuries, the senior quarterback has failed to reproduce much of the stunning athletic ability he displayed earlier in his college career.

The knock against Hill long has been his inaccuracy as a passer. The fifth-year senior has completed only 58 percent of his throws, averaging a meager 5.4 yards per reception with four interceptions and two touchdowns.

Waiting in the wings is sophomore Tanner Mangum, who threw for 23 touchdown passes last season when he was pressed into action only three months removed from a church mission after Hill got injured in the first game at Nebraska. BYU’s struggles on offense have prompted many to call for a change at quarterback.

Forget about it – for now, anyway.

First-year head coach Kalani Sitake announced Hill will remain the starter for this week’s game against Big 12 member West Virginia. Sitake and Detmer both said Hill is not responsible for all of the team’s struggle to put the ball in the end zone.

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“It would be foolish to make (Hill) a scapegoat,” Sitake said.

“The worst thing that you can do is panic and make a change on stuff that you’re just seeing on the field when it’s not just exactly that one spot. There’s a lot of variables that go into it.”

He is right in pointing out BYU’s problems in all aspects of the offense. At various times, the struggles have included the offensive line, receiving corps and running game.

But none of those positions have a potential NFL player serving as a backup who has yet to play in any of the three games. By their own admissions, the coaches believe Mangum will be a great college quarterback when the time comes.

So why not now? The only thing to lose is another game.

“Whenever you’re looking at it as a whole, you can’t blame it on one person,” Sitake said.

The problem is, as an independent, BYU cannot afford to ease into its schedule, unlike most high-profile teams that rarely start the season with three tough non-conference opponents. To maintain any possible national relevance once conference play begins, the Cougars have to start fast.

As it is, BYU has essentially wasted great defensive efforts against Utah and UCLA. As Sitake said, time is running out for the offense to click.

“We know we can do it,” said receiver Garrett Juergens. “It hasn’t quite come together.”

It had better come soon.

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