ESPN\u2019s brash personality gave his thoughts and experiences with the LDS church. <\/p>\n
(Chris Samuels | The Salt Lake Tribune) ESPN\u2019s College GameDay personalities Pat McAfee, left, and Kirk Herbstreit at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City, Saturday, Oct. 28, 2023.<\/p>\n
BYU\u2019s best recruit in the Kalani Sitake era<\/a> pulled a page from the AJ Dybantsa<\/a> playbook and announced his commitment on ESPN.<\/p>\n Ryder Lyons, the Cougars\u2019 first five-star quarterback in decades, shared his news on \u201cThe Pat McAfee Show.\u201d So one of ESPN\u2019s most eccentric personalities shared his thoughts on Lyons, BYU, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and LDS Church missions. <\/p>\n Here are some snippets of what he said. <\/p>\n On Lyons and NIL<\/p>\n McAfee was complimentary of BYU\u2019s future leader. The last five-star recruit BYU had was Jake Heaps in 2009. <\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019re a beast. You\u2019re an absolute monster. It was fun to watch you,\u201d McAfee said to Lyons. \u201cThe way you spin it, the way you run and the way you lead your team, I think, is a beautiful thing. And why every college in the country wants you to be their quarterback.\u201d<\/p>\n Lyons was rated the fifth-best quarterback in the country and was the Gatorade Player of the Year in California as a junior. He threw for almost 3,000 yards, 44 touchdowns and added 12 rushing touchdowns.<\/p>\n Lyons received his first offer in eighth grade from BYU. McAfee was stunned. \u201cHow does that even happen?\u201d he said. <\/p>\n But he also worried about the Name, Image and Likeness aspect of a 14-year-old getting that offer. Lyons already has an agent and admitted it can be hard. <\/p>\n \u201cI do have someone who handles it for me. I have an agent; I have a whole team,\u201d Lyons said. \u201cBut it\u2019s confusing. You\u2019re thrown a lot of money from a lot of different places. You\u2019ve got to obviously stay humble. Money\u2019s not the biggest part. The biggest part is making it to the NFL. That\u2019s where the serious money is, where the long-term money is.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cHe\u2019s like a 45-year-old,\u201d McAfee said of Lyons. \u201cI did appreciate [Lyons] addressing the money being tossed at you. How it\u2019s confusing. I can see it being very difficult. He gets his first scholarship offer in eighth grade. … So the amount of attention that he\u2019s had in his hometown, obviously, in the state, I think you\u2019ve got to be a certain level of mature to be able to handle all that. Feels like he\u2019s got his head on straight.\u201d<\/p>\n (Richard W. Rodriguez | AP) Cold Hearts quarterback Ryder Lyons (3) throws a pass against the City Reapers in an OT7 Football game Saturday, March 15, 2025 in Dallas.<\/p>\n On Missions and the LDS Church<\/p>\n McAfee drifted into a discussion about The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints after Lyons committed to BYU. <\/p>\n McAfee was a punter on the Indianapolis Colts, where he was teammates with former BYU great Austin Collie. As McAfee tried to explain Lyons\u2019 decision to go on a church mission next year, the ESPN host referenced his conversations with Collie. <\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t know if it\u2019s every person, forgive me if I don\u2019t get all the facts right,\u201d McAfee said. \u201cAustin Collie was my teammate, and he ran through the entire Mormon religion with me on numerous [occasions]. Because I think Mitt Romney was going to be president at the time. So I was like, \u2018I would like to learn about this religion.\u2019 … The mission, I believe, is like a huge honor, because it is a calling from God, basically, to go serve the Mormon religion, right?\u201c<\/p>\n Lyons responded, \u201cThat is it.\u201d <\/p>\n McAfee continued, \u201cSo this is considered a massive ordeal, I believe, for probably you, your family and everybody in the morning in the LDS religion, right?\u201d<\/p>\n Lyons said he will submit his paperwork for his mission in August. McAfee thought leaving for a mission before college was more beneficial than leaving after a year of playing. <\/p>\n Collie, for example, played his freshman year at BYU and then left for a mission before returning. <\/p>\n \u201cHe\u2019ll be able to bounce back into it,\u201d McAfee said. \u201cBut that year, I think the amount of growth that he\u2019s going to have as a human is insane. Maybe comes back as an even better football player, or maybe it takes a little bit to get back into it.\u201d<\/p>\n He mentioned he didn\u2019t know any members of the church before Collie. <\/p>\n \u201cEverybody knows I\u2019ve not met a Mormon or hung around Mormon,\u201d McAfee said. \u201cSo I got out here with Austin [and] they all have this good vibes. Real bro vibes, laid back. Great athletes.\u201d<\/p>\n On Kalani Sitake<\/p>\n McAfee, also a member of ESPN\u2019s College GameDay, knows Sitake. He mentioned his thoughts on the program that Lyons is set to lead. <\/p>\n \u201cBeautiful Utah and the Cougars were 11-2 last year,\u201d McAfee said. \u201cCoach Kalani Sitake, obviously been a staple for BYU football for a long time.\u201d<\/p>\n Sitake is going into his 10th season as the head coach and just received a contract extension after last year.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"ESPN\u2019s brash personality gave his thoughts and experiences with the LDS church. 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