There is a chance AJ Dybantsa, Bear Bachmeier and Ryder Lyons will never be in the same room together again, but Wednesday at the Marriott Center, the current and future Cougars were front and center, and each received thunderous applause.
For Dybantsa, his cheers came throughout his 25-point effort, albeit while fighting off an illness, to defeat TCU 76-70. The No. 11 Cougars improved to 16-1 and extended their winning streak to 13 games.
Bachmeier, who has kept a low profile since earning MVP honors at the Pop-Tarts Bowl, received his roar after an in-house camera spotted him in the crowd. The Big 12’s Offensive Freshman of the Year quarterbacked BYU to its most wins (12-2) in a single season in 24 years.
Sporting his missionary name tag and taking “Home MTC” to a new level, Lyons popped up on the video board to an enthusiastic response. After throwing for 10,074 career yards and 120 touchdowns while rushing for 1,943 yards and 53 touchdowns at Folsom High, the MaxPreps All-American and two-time California Gatorade Player of the Year represents BYU’s future.
Combined, fans celebrated three special teenagers — Dybantsa, the potential No. 1 pick in June’s NBA draft and Bachmeier and Lyons, who represent the potential for seven years of high-level, future NFL quarterback play.
Time will tell how it all works out, but the possibilities are enticing.
Each talent has challenges ahead. There isn’t much time between now and Saturday’s tip at No. 15 Texas Tech (6 p.m. MST, ESPN) for Dybantsa to get healthy. Reminiscent of Michael Jordan’s infamous “flu game” to beat the Jazz in the 1997 NBA Finals, Dybantsa mustered all his strength to score 17 points in the second half to rally the Cougars past the Horned Frogs.
Bachmeier is nursing the lingering ailments from his first season of Division I football, including a sprained ankle that muted his mobility in the Big 12 championship game and the Pop-Tarts Bowl. In a debut season with a lot more ups than downs, the 6-foot-3, 230-plus-pound surprise threw for 3,033 yards and 15 touchdowns while rushing for 527 yards and a program quarterback record 11 touchdowns.
As a healthier, stronger, more experienced and possibly slimmer sophomore, Bachmeier and his impressive cast of teammates are expected to have the Cougars back as contenders in the Big 12 and beyond.
After his last blast of home cooking at the Marriott Center, Lyons reported to the Mexico City Missionary Training Center on Thursday to begin the process of learning Spanish. From there, he will report to Orlando, Florida, to serve as a missionary for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
As fate would have it, BYU will play in Orlando this fall when Lyons’ older brother, Walker, a transfer tight end from USC, will be catching Bachmeier’s passes against UCF.
The hours, days, weeks, months and even years quickly blend together, but a night like Wednesday, when Dybantsa, Bachmeier and Lyons were all under the same roof — that’s something to pause and think about.
It might not happen again.
Dave McCann is a sportswriter and columnist for the Deseret News and is a play-by-play announcer and show host for BYUtv/ESPN+. He co-hosts “Y’s Guys” at ysguys.com and is the author of the children’s book “C is for Cougar,” available at deseretbook.com.