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Question: which player on the current BYU football roster has the most starts as a college quarterback?
Answer: it's not Riley Nelson.
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Okay, it's a bit of a trick question, but the answer is... Dalin Tollestrup.
As a true freshman at the University of Calgary in 2006, Tollestrup started all eight games at quarterback for the Dinos during their 2-6 season (winning the last two games after opening 0-6). The same season, Nelson started seven games for the Utah State Aggies, going 1-6 in his starts.
In his eight games, Tollestrup threw for a U of C freshman record 1,941 yards on 147/280 passing (53%), with six touchdowns and 11 interceptions. He also ran 52 times for 258 yards.
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Granted, Canadian college football is not comparable to the FBS; it's more like NCAA Division II in caliber, but Tollestrup was good enough as a rookie to be named the winner of the Peter Gorman Trophy as Canada's top collegiate football freshman in 2006.
Following that season, Tollstrup went on a two-year LDS mission to El Salvador, and upon his return, the Raymond (Alberta) High School product chose to leave Calgary and his starting QB post to walk on at BYU, as a defensive back.
He told the Calgary Herald: "Right out of high school, I really wanted to come down here (to BYU). When I had shoulder surgery, the door closed a little; they weren't so interested. Part of it was from growing up in the church, and I have a lot of family down here. I just always wanted to have this experience."
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Tollestrup redshirted the 2009 season while serving on the scout team, and during the recently-completed 2010 spring session found himself in the two-deep at corner. Whether or not he hangs onto a spot in the depth chart once BYU's full complement of DBs is available in the summer, the word out of the BYU camp is that Tollestrup is raw but very bright, and is a great athlete with legitimate speed.
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Tollestrup has bloodlines tying him to BYU. His uncle Phil played for the BYU Basketball team from 1970-1972; in fact, rumor has it that Phil scored the first points in the Marriott Center after its completion.
Phil Tollestrup's brother Tim played at Utah State while Phil was at BYU, and the two played against each other on multiple occasions. Phil and Tim played for the Canadian National Team and competed for their country in the Olympics. During his international career, Phil Tollestrup actually faced off against his BYU teammate Kresimir Cosic, who of course played for Yugoslavia at the time.
As a post-script, Phil Tollestrup later went on to coach Magrath (Alberta) High School and future BYU guard Jimmy Balderson.
Dalin Tollestrup's father Wally (Phil and Tim's brother) was a hoops star at the University of Alberta, and my Canadian contact tells me that he may have been the best hoopster of all the brothers, but was hampered by knee issues.
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So, with that background, keep an eye on #21, Dalin Tollestrup when Cougar camp opens in August!
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