Ryder Lyons commits to BYU on "The Pat McAfee Show." Photo credit: ‘The Pat McAfee Show’
By Sam Neumann on

Some of the nation’s top prospects still go the classic route — a row of hats on a high school auditorium table, a few nervous laughs, and a moment of suspense. Others make their decision live on ESPN, maybe even while chatting with Pat McAfee.

This isn’t new. Recruits have long used 247Sports, Instagram Lives, or even an appearance on The Paul Finebaum Show to make their moment feel bigger. It’s become a competition to see who can make the biggest splash. And honestly, it should be. These are the moments they’ve earned. And even if a surprise gets spoiled here and there, they deserve to announce it on their own terms.

Ryder Lyons did just that Tuesday.

The five-star quarterback out of Folsom (Calif.) became the second top prospect to announce his commitment on The Pat McAfee Show, following Julian Lewis’s flip to Deion Sanders and Colorado last November. And while Lyons didn’t flip, he made waves of his own by choosing the BYU Cougars over just about every Power Four program you can name.

BYU’s connection to Lyons started long before his commitment became a national moment on The Pat McAfee Show.

They were the first program to take a chance on him, offering a scholarship back when he was just an eighth grader.

“They pulled the trigger on me. They believed in me early,” he said. “And it’s just crazy how it all comes full circle, you know?”

NIL money wasn’t the deciding factor for Lyons, though it likely didn’t hurt. His focus is on making it to the NFL, where, as he put it, the real and long-term money is. But before he ever suits up in Provo, Lyons will step away from football to serve a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, as is customary for many Latter-day Saint athletes. He doesn’t yet know where he’s going, but that journey comes first.

Lyons is a consensus five-star prospect, ranked No. 19 nationally and the No. 5 quarterback in the country by 247Sports Composite rankings.

And given McAfee’s growing footprint in college football — especially through College GameDay — it probably won’t be the last time a top recruit announces their commitment during his ESPN hour.

About Sam Neumann

Since the beginning of 2023, Sam has been a staff writer for Awful Announcing and The Comeback. A 2021 graduate of Temple University, Sam is a Charlotte native, who currently calls Greenville, South Carolina his home. He also has a love/hate relationship with the New York Mets and Jets.

View all posts by Sam Neumann