Baylor Romney’s football career is officially over.
The former BYU quarterback, who entered the NCAA Transfer Portal in December, announced he would not find another school to finish his remaining college eligibility. Instead, he is leaving the sport to take a business job at Adobe.
“The last couple of months have been filled with a lot of change,” Romney said late Monday night. “[I] decided it was time for me to move on from football, and [begin] the search for the career path that is right for me.”
Romney graduated from BYU in December but had two years of eligibility remaining. He made six starts in 16 appearances at BYU. During his four years in the program, he tallied 14 touchdowns and 1,787 yards.
Despite his 5-1 record as a starter, Romney never made the jump to a consistent starter.
He was Zach Wilson’s backup in 2019-20. When Wilson was drafted to the New York Jets last offseason, Romney was beat out again for the starting role by Jaren Hall. Romney made three starts in Hall’s absence, including BYU’s bowl game, but never took control of the starting job.
With Hall returning in 2022, the El Paso native opted for the transfer portal.
“I’m unsure what’s next,” Romney said in December. “But it’s time for me to move on and I’m excited for the next challenge.”
There were some within the program who thought Romney would pull his name out of the portal and return to BYU. He would anchor the backup role, serving as an emergency option if Hall was injured again.
Now BYU will have to rely on a younger core of quarterbacks to add depth behind Hall. Jacob Conover is the likely backup, but has 45 career passing yards and has played in just two games.
Cade Fennegan is another option but has never played at BYU. He transferred from Boise State last summer. And Sol-Jay Maiava-Peters is in a similar position at Fennegan, with no snaps in his college career.
Notably, BYU did not have a quarterback in its recruiting class this year.
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