Don’t discount BYU QB traditions when it comes to Ryder Lyons – Deseret News

What does top-rated five-star Folsom High quarterback Ryder Lyons have to do with former Cougar quarterback Christian Stewart?

Well, very little, if they are never joined at the hip by a BYU quarterback tradition.

Lyons visited BYU last week, cancelling a trip to USC. He is at Oregon this weekend and is ranked among the top three QBs in the class of 2026.

Before Brian Santiago became BYU’s athletic director, he told Lyons if he came to BYU and succeeded, he would become a legend in Provo. Whereas if he followed in the footsteps of other athletes who are members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Duke basketball players Jabari Parker and Frank Jackson, for example), his ability to conjure up historic mention would likely never materialize, as with those guys at Duke.

Lyons could announce his college choice this month.

But, what does Stewart have to do with any of this?

Well, part of BYU’s recruiting pitch these days is to enlighten prospects of the power of BYU connections in the business world and ties to famous QB alumni like NFL Hall of Famer Steve Young.

Ryder and his family are very close to Young. So is Stewart.

In fact, the Wall Street Journal recently did a feature on Stewart, praising his work in leading Sundance Growth, a software-focused investment firm, to a $125 million upper limit debut fund “in one of the more difficult private-equity fundraising markets in recent memory.”

Stewart was a former dealmaker for Accel-KKR. He raised that $125 million in 35 days.

He has been involved in financial trench warfare for the past decade for Raymond James Investment Banking in San Francisco then Accel-KKR in Menlo Park. He became vice president at Accel-KKR as a rising star and sat on the board of directors of 11 firms on four continents. His job was to discover the next Apple or Microsoft.

As a former BYU quarterback, one may argue he isn’t depicted in Cougar lore as one of the faces on the Mount Rushmore of the school’s quarterbacks. But that’s the point.

He is a member of that elite group by participation and is treated as such by Steve Young.

Stewart’s career was brief, but he saved the bacon of then-offensive coordinator Robert Anae when starter Taysom Hill suffered a broken leg in Game 5 at home against Utah State. Stewart helped lead the Cougars to eight wins and the Miami Bowl in 2014 with the No. 14-ranked offense in the country. He remains the last BYU quarterback to throw for five touchdowns against a Division I opponent in a game. He out-dueled Cal’s Jared Goff in a 42-35 win.

He is the only BYU quarterback to average 39 points per game in his starts this century, including a combined 120 points against No. 16 Boise State, No. 25 Memphis and Cal of the Pac-12, with 30, 48, and 42-point outings.

Stewart was an all-conference player from Snow College. He played in 12 games, one as a junior and 11 as a senior, and was the starting quarterback in eight games. BYU’s website profile notes he is ranked 11th all-time among BYU quarterbacks for consecutive pass attempts without an interception. “As a senior, Stewart recorded a total of 25 touchdowns through the air on 2,621 passing yards with a 57.2% completion rate.”

He drew the attention of NFL scouts during his brief BYU starting role, but an impending marriage and commitment to Raymond James Financial changed his focus from football to business.

In many respects, Stewart embodies the very essence of a BYU student-athlete and Cougar quarterback. He was a team player. He waited for his chance. He made the most of his opportunities. He listened, supported and worked hard.

It all paid off.

Stewart graduated from BYU in 2015 with a degree in accounting and a 3.80 grade point average. Steve Young mentored him when he took in Stewart and his new bride Ashlee and had them live in his guest house when they first moved to Palo Alto eight years ago.

Young didn’t hire Stewart, but mentored him, and Christian saw Steve as an example, as both a husband and a father, according to Christian’s father Nick Stewart. Ashlee has worked as an administrative assistant to Steve Young’s wife Barb.

The thing with Lyons is, he already has connections with Steve Young. He has known him all of his life. Young stayed with Lyons’ grandparents (movie maker Keith Merrill) for a while when he first played for the San Francisco 49ers.

Former BYU quarterback Royce Bybee, who backed up Jim McMahon, first brought Stewart’s QB skills to my attention at Timpanogos High in Orem. He had the arm. He was smart. He never gave up, was a quiet leader who exuded confidence and was humble enough to know where he fit.

If Stewart hadn’t been ready when Hill broke his leg against Utah State, BYU’s 2014 season could have been a disaster.

It’s interesting, this BYU QB thing and how they stick together. Bybee, Stewart, Young. It’s a thing that has endured through time.

There is great value in having a Stewart on your football team.

If you quiz Holmoe and Santiago on what is a key building block of any of their athletic teams on campus through all this NIL and transfer portal anarchy, it is signing athletes like Stewart.

This Stewart role has to be one of the pillars of what the school demands of its coaches in recruiting; guys who are, well, for the sake of simplicity: Just BYU guys.