Following weeks of speculation, the former BYU starting quarterback rested on joining the Green Wave where he’ll battle for a starting spot this season with at least three other transfer quarterbacks, all of whom joined the program this past offseason. Tulane had to hit the transfer portal hard when last year’s starting quarterback Darian Mensah announced his transfer to Duke this past December.

Retzlaff will battle with Brendan Sullivan, who transferred from Iowa, Donovan Leary from Illinois, and Kadin Semonza from Ball State for the starting spot. All four will have their work cut out in replacing Mensah’s 2,723 yards passing on top of 22 touchdowns a season ago while helping guide the Green Wave to a 9-5 overall record and second place finish in the American Athletic Conference.

According to Thamel, a big draw for Retzlaff in joining Tulane’s program was Coach Jon Sumrall, who recruited Retzlaff out of junior college when he was coaching at Troy. Sumrall was announced as the Green Wave’s head coach following the 2023 football season and began his career in Tulane in promising fashion, coming within just one game of a conference championship while earning a bid to the Gasparilla Bowl.

Retzlaff became BYU’s starting quarterback late in the 2023 season and started every game the Cougars played in 2024. The former Riverside College transfer threw for 2,947 yards and 20 touchdowns last season while adding 417 yards rushing and another six scores this past season.

Retzlaff was well-assumed to be BYU’s starter again this coming year prior to encountering a reported seven-game suspension due to violations of the school’s honor code, which prohibits premarital sex. The violation came to light during Retzlaff’s response to a civil suit filed back in May, accusing him of sexual assault during an encounter back in November of 2023. The case was ultimately dismissed a couple of months later with Retzlaff announcing his intention to transfer from BYU immediately after.

Sources tell Thamel that there was no guarantee of a starting spot for Retzlaff despite his credentials in leading the Cougars to an 11-2 record last season, including a 36-14 win over Colorado in the Alamo Bowl. Due to the late timing, among other factors, Retzlaff will enter the Tulane program as a walk-on.

BYU, like Tulane, will feature a fierce starting quarterback battle this coming fall practice session where Western Michigan transfer Treyson Bourguet will battle with Utah State transfer McCae Hillstead. Both players have more than a year within BYU’s program and battled it out for the assumed second-string position at quarterback throughout the spring practice session. True freshman Bear Bachmeier is also in the mix following his transfer from Stanford after that program’s own spring practice along with fellow true freshman Emerson Geilman, who led Bountiful High School to a state championship last season.