Editor’s note: Second in a two-part series on former BYU quarterback Zach Wilson.
When quarterback Isaac Wilson entered the transfer portal last December after two tumultuous seasons at Utah, which included him barely getting off the bench in 2025, he checked in with his older brother, who also knows a little about quarterbacking, to get some advice.
Did former BYU quarterback Zach Wilson recommend his old school, or direct Isaac on a path away from BYU for the second time in three years? In May 2023, the four-star recruit out of Corner Canyon picked Utah over BYU, partly because Zach believed he would be a better fit in Utah’s offense than BYU’s.
Last January, Isaac Wilson signed with the Colorado Buffaloes and head coach Deion “Coach Prime” Sanders, confounding some insiders who believed he would reunite with his high school coach, Eric Kjar, at Weber State.
“My advice to him when he went into the portal was just get to a place where you can play right away,” Zach told the Deseret News last week in a lengthy interview before the six-year NFL quarterback headed off for training camp in New Orleans. BYU was “not really an option” for Isaac last December, Zach said, and left it at that.
Obviously, BYU has a set starter when training camp begins next week in Provo — sophomore Bear Bachmeier — and another four-star QB, Ryder Lyons, will join the program next year when he returns from a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
“That is the hardest part about college ball is it is musical chairs nowadays, with money, and NIL stuff, and all that,” Zach said. “So for him, I was like, ‘Find somewhere you feel like you can go and compete for the starting job.’ And I feel like Colorado is doing that with him. Even though they are paying someone else (redshirt freshman Julian ‘JuJu’ Lewis), who is kind of the big name coming up.”
Other quarterbacks on Colorado’s spring roster included Georgia Tech transfer Dominiq Ponder and freshman Kaneal Sweetwyne from Lehi’s Skyridge High. Sweetwyne committed to BYU in February 2025, then backed off that pledge and landed in Boulder.
“They are giving him a chance, which is really cool to see,” Zach said. “He is taking advantage of it and playing well, and he’s enjoying playing football again. I told him to just give it everything you got, and if it doesn’t work out, we’ll figure it out the next day for the next stage of life, and take it from there.”
Sunday night, the Deseret News ran an article about Wilson’s thoughts on signing with the Saints, his three years with the New York Jets, and the early birth of his daughter, Francesca. Here’s more from our chat with Wilson during his appearance at Overtime Cards in Sandy.
On BYU football going 23-4 the past 2 seasons
Since he’s been in the Eastern time zone four of the past five seasons, Wilson said it is difficult to follow his former team, but he does his best. He paid really close attention in 2021 and 2022 because many of his former teammates were still on the team.
When he’s in Utah, he trains at BYU “every single day” and loves living close to the facilities.
“I love BYU football, man,” he said. “Those guys are the best. … We love all BYU sports, and try to follow them as much as we can.”
Because BYU plays in a lot of games with 8:15 p.m. MDT kickoffs, Wilson has to record those and catch them later.
“We will always go back and be a part of the place, hopefully,” he said. “I see the coaches almost every day in the summer when I am training there, and the culture in general is great. Everybody loves what Kalani and the staff is doing.”
Wilson impressed by BYU’s facility upgrades
Shortly after he was drafted by the Jets, BYU completed a massive football locker room overhaul inside the Student Athlete Building. The school also renovated and expanded its football weight room in the spring of 2025.
Back in 2023 as it was preparing to join the Big 12, Wilson said the program was behind most Power Four schools in terms of facilities and resources.
“Honestly, that was the hardest thing for my little brother (Isaac) as to why he didn’t go to BYU,” Wilson said. “It is really hard to go into a new conference, with the recruiting, and all the pieces you need to compete, when you don’t have what everyone else has.”
Wilson said it is “amazing” to see what has happened at BYU the past few years.
“BYU did it so quickly,” he said. “My biggest worry with Isaac was that I loved BYU, and wanted him to go there (younger brothers Micah and Josh also played for BYU, but both retired due to injuries), but I knew they would be in an adjustment mode for a few years.
“But they were not,” Wilson continued. “They have done a great job, and it has been good to see how well they’ve done with the resources they have with the weight room and the facilities, and all of that. It is so much better than when I was there.”
Wilson has been back in Provo for a couple of games since he left and has also been impressed by the game day atmosphere.
“Even that has completely transitioned into an incredible experience for the fans,” he said. “They do a great job with that. They make it really fun to go to the games.”
Josh Wilson is currently in the construction business, while Micah Wilson also recently got married and has started an apparel company called Blank Slate that makes vintage baseball caps. Isaac inherited the Jeep that Zach and Josh “tricked out” when Zach was at BYU, but has since sold it.
Zach Wilson on his time with Denver Broncos
Of course, Zach Wilson knows a little about competing for a starting job in Colorado, having spent the 2024 NFL season with the Broncos and backing up rookie starter Bo Nix and primary backup Jarrett Stidham. After spending three years with the New York Jets as the No. 2 pick in the 2021 NFL draft, Wilson was traded to the Broncos for a sixth-round draft pick. New York also agreed to pay a portion of Wilson’s $5.5 million salary in 2024.
“Well, I wish (New York) would have traded me sooner, honestly,” Wilson said. “But it is what it is. I loved Denver. It was awesome. Denver had pushed really hard to get me. That trade took almost a month and a half, which is crazy. That trade was supposed to happen in March and it ended up happening just before the draft. It is crazy how long it took.”
Wilson said he enjoyed playing for Broncos coach Sean Payton and quarterbacks coach Davis Webb.
“Just the way that that organization is run was very eye-opening, as far as being able to see a rookie quarterback (Bo Nix) get in there, and maybe struggle a little bit in his first couple games, and getting his feet wet, but then just seeing how he just continued to get better and better each week, and how the team progressed around him, and rallied with him, and how they called games for him, and all that stuff.
“To see what Bo has turned into has been really cool to see,” Wilson continued. “I am obviously a little bit envious of how it worked out for him. It has been super cool to watch. I’m super happy for him. He’s one of my good friends. But I loved it there, even if I wasn’t playing. It was a great place to be.”
Making lifelong friends in Miami, returning to Utah
Wilson figured he would see the field more in Miami when he signed a one-year, $6 million deal with the Dolphins in 2025, especially considering projected starter Tua Tagovailoa’s health situation and history of concussions. Instead, fellow backup Quinn Ewers got the nod after Tagovailoa was benched, and Wilson was on the move again.
Days before heading out to New Orleans, he expressed gratitude to the Miami organization. He became good friends with Tagovailoa, who also has Hawaiian roots.
“I didn’t get on the field, but I love those guys. I thought the culture was great. I thought the team was great. Me and Tua are really close. We spend a lot of time together.”
Tagovailoa, who will play for the Atlanta Falcons in 2026, and his wife visited Wilson and his wife, Nicolette, last month after OTAs ended. The Tagovailoas were among the first people the Wilsons called after their baby daughter was born last week.
“I love Quinn (Ewers) too,” Wilson said. “We had a great relationship out there. I just felt for me, personally, the offense was just maybe not what fit my skill set. So there were some things that led to why I made the decision to go to New Orleans.”
Back in Utah, Wilson still keeps in touch with former BYU teammates such as Drew Jensen, Lopini Katoa, Aleva Hifo, Isaiah Kaufusi, Jackson Kaufusi and Gunner Romney, when the former receiver is not off working in California.
He’s got his eye on a country club membership if he can get his handicap down “from something like 30 or so,” he says, having recently become more serious about his golf game.
“I feel like I have lifetime relationships with those guys, and with BYU in general,” Wilson said. “I always know I will have a place within my heart for BYU football. It is the best. No matter where football takes me, I know I can go back to the state of Utah, and to BYU, and it is family there.”
