Riley Nelson - Football | byucougars.com

Riley Nelson

Quarterback #13

Ht/Wt

199 lbs.

Class

Senior

Hometown

Logan,

Utah

Last School

Utah State

Roster Years

2009-2012

Career Summary

Riley Nelson transferred to BYU after a standout freshman season as team captain at Utah State. As a three-time letterman at BYU, he saw action in 32 games and had 19 starts. He completed 324 of 560 passes for 4,032 yards and rushed for 858 yards on 226 attempts. Nelson also threw 35 touchdowns and ran for six scores during his BYU career. As a junior, Nelson's quarterback rating of 153.93 was ranked No. 14 in BYU single-season history. He was named to several all-independent teams and award watch lists as a Cougar. See the recognition, yearly profile and stats tabs for more details.

Personal

Parents are Keith and Joni Nelson
Father played football at USU
Speaks Spanish
Grandson of Rod Tueller, former Utah State men's basketball coach (1980-88) and athletic director (1985-92)
Has two brothers and one sister
Served an LDS Mission to Barcelona, Spain
Majored in Spanish

Before BYU

Accounted for 84 touchdowns and more than 4,000 yards passing as a senior at Logan HS
Parade All-American and Deseret News Mr. Football for the state of Utah in 2005
Held nine state records including career total touchdowns (130), career passing touchdowns (79), season completions (277), season passing yards (4,041), season passing touchdowns (53), season total touchdowns (84), season total yards (5,815), single game completions (38) and single game touchdown passes (seven)

At Utah State

Elected a team captain for the 2006 season at Utah State University as a true freshman
Competed in eight games and started seven, completing 55-percent of his passes for 925 yards and six touchdowns while rushing for 290 yards

BYU Hall of Fame

Freshman Year

Sophmore Year 2009

Earned letterman honors as a sophomore
Saw action in seven games
MWC Scholar-Athlete and Academic All-MWC
Totaled 99 yards passing on 7-of-10 attempts
Threw for his first career touchdown against Florida State
Threw a season-long pass of 31-yards against the Seminoles
Rushed for 122 yards on 21 attempts, averaging 5.8 yards per carry
Recorded rushing touchdowns against Tulane, UNLV and Wyoming.

Junior Year 2011

Earned lettermn honors as a junior
Played in 12 games and started seven
Yahoo! Sports All-Independent Team, Phil Steele All-Independent First Team, FBS All-Independent Team
Took over starting quarterback duties after five games and led BYU to a 6-1 record as a starter
Completed 116 of 202 passes for 1,717 yards, 19 touchdowns and 7 interceptions
Quarterback rating of 153.93 is 14th in BYU single-season history
Added 392 rushing yards and one touchdown on 88 carries, averaging 4.5 yards per carry
Came in with 5:06 left in third quarter vs. Utah State, trailing 24-13 and led BYU back for a 27-24 win with a 13-yard touchdown pass with :11 seconds remaining and completed 10 of 14 passes for 144 yards, two touchdowns and had 11 rushes for 62 yards vs. Utah State
In first four starts led BYU to 3-1 record and had at least 215 passing yards and 60 rushing yards each game
Threw three touchdown passes each of his first three starts
Suffered rib and lung injuries vs. Idaho but managed to complete 4 of 7 passes for 56 yards and one touchdown before leaving game
Had a career-best passing game at Hawai'i, completing 25 of 37 passes for 363 yards and three touchdowns
Led BYU to comeback victory over Tulsa in Armed Forces Bowl with a game-winning drive feautring a fourth-and-nine rush for 14 yards to set up a game-winning touchdown pass from two yards out on a fake spike play with :11 seconds remaining

Senior Year 2012

Team captain
Earned letterman honors
Played in 10 games, starting nine
Completed 181 of 308 passes for 2,011 yards, 13 touchdowns and 13 interceptions and rushed for 196 yards on 86 attempts with one touchdown
Went 25 of 36 for 285 yards and two touchdowns in season opener vs. Washington State
Topped 300 yards twice
Completed 67.9 percent (19 of 28) at Georgia Tech with one touchdown and rushed for another
Threw three touchdown passes vs. Idaho
Named to the Davey O'Brien Award and Maxwell Award watch lists
FBS Independent Offensive Player of the Week, week of Sept. 3
Named to NFF Hampshire Honor Society

Graduate Year

Redshirt Year 2010

Medical Redshirt Year 2010

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\r\n Started the first three games of the season before undergoing season-ending surgery to repair a shoulder injury
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\r\n One of 11 players in the country named to the Allstate AFCA Good Works Team, recognizing service, academics and on-field performance
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