Remembering Ty Detmer on the Cover of Sports Illustrated
On this day 30 years ago, December 10, 1990, Ty Detmer appeared on the cover of Sports Illustrated after winning the Heisman trophy. The story was called, "A Ty Vote For The Heisman - BYU's Ty Detmer Beat Out a Much Flashier Rival For The Coveted Prize." You can read the full original story here, below is the cover from 1990:
Ty Detmer threw for 5,188 yards in 1990 on 562 attempts, including 41 touchdowns and 28 interceptions. Detmer's "Heisman moment" came against #1 Miami where Detmer threw for 406 yards and 3 touchdowns in a 28-21 victory at home. Detmer was the first Heisman Trophy winner out of BYU and the first to win the award from the WAC conference - he remains the sole Heisman trophy winner from BYU 30 years later.
So much has changed for BYU and college football over the last 30 years. BYU would eventually move on from the WAC conference to join the Mountain West conference before going independent in 2011. College football invented the BCS before pivoting to the College Football Playoff that we know today.
Despite all the changes in college football, some things feel the same in 2020, like this quote in the story:
"The critics who insisted that he didn't deserve the Heisman Trophy, that his gaudy numbers were accumulated in a second-rate conference, may have been smirking after the Hawaii game. But one game does not a season make."
After winning the Heisman trophy, Detmer went on to throw four interceptions in a losing effort against Hawaii. It's easy to draw parallels between that quote and some of the things national pundits have said about BYU in 2020. In fact, swap out a few words and the quote applies to this season:
The critics who insisted that [BYU did not deserve a top 10 ranking], that [their] gaudy numbers were accumulated [against] a second-rate [schedule], may have been smirking after the [Coastal Carolina] game. But one game does not a season make.
The Cougars have always been an underdog and they likely always will be an underdog unless a P5 conference extends BYU their long-awaited invitation. Throughout history, BYU has done well in that role. They disrupted the college football system in 1984 when they won the national championship, Ty Detmer disrupted the Heisman tradition in 1990 by winning the award in a "second-rate conference." BYU was denied entry by the BCS in 2001. Perhaps being a disruptor and an underdog is just part of BYU's character, but that hasn't kept the Cougars from making national noise in the past.