5-Star Quarterback Ryder Lyons Commits to BYU

BYU has landed arguably its biggest recruit in program history as 5-star quarterback Ryder Lyons announced his commitment to BYU Tuesday on the Pat McAfee Show.

247 Sports rates Ryder Lyons as the best recruit in the state of California in the 2026 class and the #4 overall QB in the 2026 class. Ryder had offers from virtually all of the top programs in the nation — Oregon, USC, Alabama, Georgia, Ole Miss, Ohio State, LSU, Michigan, Texas A&M, and just about every other school you can think of. Oregon and BYU were widely reported as Ryder’s two finalists. The Ducks went all in on Ryder and hosted him on an official visit the week before he visited BYU, but the Cougs won out in the end.

Ryder is the son of former BYU defensive back Tim Lyons. His older brother is USC tight end Walker Lyons. Ryder has said he plans to serve a mission for one year before enrolling in school, meaning he is a de facto 2027 recruit.

A dual-threat QB, Ryder is resembles the modern QB with his ability to make plays with both his arm and leg. Lyons is adept in the pocket and elite at improvising and making plays with his legs. Below is the scouting report from 247 Sports recruiting analyst Greg Biggins.

“Lyons is an exceptional talent and has been one of the top quarterbacks in the region since his sophomore year. Has rare combination of arm talent and movement ability and can shred a defense with his arm and his legs. A pure thrower with a live arm and understands how to change speeds and throw with anticipation. Accurate to all three levels of the field and throws the deep ball with touch and can rip fastballs in to tight windows. Equally dangerous when a play breaks down and has to improvise off-script. Elite in his ability to make multiple defenders miss and is creative in how he can buy time and make a throw down the field or take off and run for plus yards. He’s a tough kid who doesn’t shy away from contact and will take a shot but hang in the pocket to deliver the football. A highly competitive player with a strong off the field work ethic and draws raves from his coaches and teammates for his leadership skill. Has one of the highest ceilings among the quarterback group in his class and assuming he continues to develop, should be playing on Sunday’s for a very long time.”

Ryder has said he plans to serve a mission for one year following high school and enroll in college for spring ball prior to the 2027 season, meaning he would miss just 2026. He will be expected to immediately compete for the starting QB job once he returns.

Ryder Lyons is the third 5-star commit in program history, according to 247 Composite rankings. Ben Olson (2002) and Ofa Mohetau (2003) were the other two. Tanner Mangum and Jake Heaps were 4-star prospects, according to 247 composite. Nothing is guaranteed and BYU fans will be cautious after getting burned by other high profile QB commits, but Lyons is a program-changing talent who has NFL potential and the ability to be BYU’s starting QB for multiple years.

You can watch highlights of Ryder below.

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