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Over an eight-month period beginning at the moment he won the Heisman Trophy, Ty Detmer bounced from lofty heights to steep depths, back to the heights again, back to the depths. And those undulations not only tested and steeled the quarterback who a quarter of a century later, on Thursday, became BYU's offensive coordinator, they demonstrated his ability to weather the adversity, the criticism that is bound to come now.

That's always a question when a legend returns to the home of his former exploits, to the place where he is revered, where his legend was built: Can he handle the heat of a major new role?

Well. Even back then, the legend wasn't fragile, at least not mentally or psychologically.

The soaring and plumbing started with his winning the Heisman on December 1, 1990, after a record-setting season for the Cougars. As C. Peter Lambos of New York's Downtown Athletic Club declared him "this year's greatest football player," the junior quarterback's teammates celebrated by chucking him in the swimming pool at the Princess Kaiulani Hotel, where BYU was staying before it played Hawaii to close out the regular season.

That celebrating lasted all of four hours. Thereafter, the Cougars got crushed by the Rainbow Warriors by the count of 59-28, a result that Detmer subsequently described thusly: "It was a disaster, we got our butts kicked."

A few weeks later, Detmer was punished again, this time in the Holiday Bowl by the Texas A&M Aggies, who separated one of the quarterback's shoulders in the first half — an injury treated by an injection of painkiller — and then, after he ran back on the field, separated the other, requiring a screw in his collarbone and surgery on his throwing shoulder.

As for that first injury, George Curtis, the longtime BYU trainer, told me for a story published in the Los Angeles Times that he had never before seen a player respond like Detmer: "It was incredible," he said. "There we were, discussing options, and he's already back in the game. The doctor wasn't adamantly opposed, but we didn't think he could do it because of the pain. I'd never seen anything like it. That kid is tough."

He'd have to be, fighting through the physical trauma, but also battling more significant hardships.

That same offseason, while recuperating and rehabbing, trying to gain weight and strength, the diminutive Detmer carried other burdens — his sister, Dee, lost a baby in the ninth month of pregnancy. His grandfather, Hubert, to whom he was extraordinarily close, upon whose coffee table at his home in San Antonio the grandson's Heisman Trophy directly landed, died of cancer and his mom, Betty, was diagnosed with breast cancer.

Over that span, Detmer traveled — a lot, visiting seven different states, from New York to Hawaii. He also was pulled into a legal battle between BYU and a sports-memorabilia company over his likeness being issued on a card. And he converted from being Methodist to being Mormon, plus, he got married in Salt Lake City.

All in the run-up to his senior season.

Two of his more infamous stunts at BYU, where he had previously established a reputation for pranks and practical jokes prior to that time, were notables — the occasion when Detmer stole a barbecued pig's head from a team luau and put it in teammate Matt Bellini's bed, and the time he exited the sideline during a game and walked straight into a public bathroom under the stands, fully dressed out in uniform, to relieve himself. Imagine the response of fans standing at the urinal around him when the quarterback pulled that one off.

Detmer's response, when asked about such shenanigans, was that he had toned down those escapades in the name of "leadership." And so, he did.

After his time playing at BYU, Detmer spent 14 seasons in the NFL, largely as a backup. He was often kept on teams for his knowledge of offenses and his capacity for reading defenses, and as much for his ability for passing that understanding along to other quarterbacks as his ability to pass the ball to wide receivers.

On the Friday Bronco Mendenhall announced he was leaving as BYU's head coach, Detmer said he would be "under qualified" to take that position, but he was familiar enough with the Cougar program to discuss its challenges and realistic expectations:

"You've got a limited pool of recruits," he said. "And, man, you look at the schedule next year and I don't know if anybody wants to jump into that. You've got the independence factor, you've got the recruiting factor, you've got the expectations factor from the fans. A nine-, 10-win season is pretty dang good wherever you are, but our fans are over the top with expectations. Trying to go undefeated every year, with the quality of teams we're playing now, it's going to be tough to see that happen. We've got to be a little more realistic."

He called BYU's independent situation "unique."

"To advance the program, you got to get in a conference," he said. "… If you can be a Top 20 team every year, that's the goal."

His advice for Tanner Mangum?

"He's probably ready to take a deep breath and get his feet underneath him, physically, to get stronger, train his body, recover from this season. That's the biggest thing — get your feet underneath you, get your body right. Mentally, he's got it. He can run the offense and lead the team."

A few days before Detmer was officially announced as BYU's offensive leader, LaVell Edwards endorsed him, saying his former quarterback had a great "feel" for the game: "He would make a tremendous offensive coordinator."

As it became clear Detmer would be named by Kalani Sitake, and questions arose about his willingness to subject himself to the constant swirl of being the Cougar OC, I thought about that rugged span all those years ago, immediately after he experienced his finest achievement, being named "this year's greatest football player," and was handed one of the most famous pieces of hardware in all of sports.

His response back then was simple and classic: "Eat more, lift harder."

If Detmer fails as BYU's offensive coordinator, it won't be because he doesn't have the strength to deal with the scrutiny of that high-profile position or the fortitude to carry his own legend. The old quarterback will handle the heat just fine.

He's always been a tough competitor.

Now, we'll see if he can coach.

GORDON MONSON hosts "The Big Show" with Spence Checketts weekdays from 3-7 p.m. on 97.5 FM and 1280 AM The Zone. Twitter: @GordonMonson. —

Southern Utah's Lamb joins BYU coaching staff

BYU coach Kalani Sitake announced Saturday that Southern Utah coach Ed Lamb will join his staff as an assistant head coach and special teams coordinator.

Lamb played defensive end for the Cougars in 1995 and 1996. He was a graduate assistant at BYU in 2001. He leaves SUU after eight seasons.

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