Detmer receives NCAA Silver Anniversary Award

PROVO, Utah — Former BYU quarterback and current offensive coordinator Ty Detmer was one of six former student-athletes to receive the prestigious NCAA Silver Anniversary Award for their collegiate and professional achievements at the 2017 NCAA Honors Celebration on Wednesday in Nashville, Tennessee.

The Silver Anniversary Award annually recognizes distinguished individuals on the 25th anniversary of the conclusion of their college athletics careers. Representatives of NCAA member schools and conferences, along with a panel of former student-athletes, select each year’s recipients. 

Joining Detmer as a 2017 recipient of the award were Alonzo Mourning, Susan Robinson Fruchtl, Heather Taggart, Tommy Vardell and Troy Vincent. The NCAA recognized the honorees as part of the 2017 NCAA Convention. 

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Detmer led BYU to four straight bowl appearances and three conference titles from 1988-91 while earning the distinction of being named the nation’s top football player. During his college career he broke 59 NCAA football records, including completions, attempts, passing yards, touchdowns, pass efficiency and single-season passing yards. A two-time consensus All-American and two-time Davey O’Brien Award winner as the country's best quarterback, Detmer was awarded the Heisman Trophy and the Maxwell Trophy in 1990 as the nation’s top player.

Detmer graduated in 1992 with a bachelor’s degree in recreation management, and was selected by the Green Bay Packers in the 1992 NFL Draft. He went on to play 14 seasons in the NFL. In 2002, he was inducted into the National Football Foundation College Football Hall of Fame. 

After retiring from the NFL in 2005, the San Antonio, Texas, native began working as a high school football coach in his home state of Texas at St. Andrew’s Episcopal in southwest Austin. He returned to his alma mater in December of 2015 when he was named the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Brigham Young University under new head coach Kalani Sitake. As part of a new staff, Detmer helped the Cougars achieve a 9-4 record and Poinsettia Bowl victory against a challenging schedule in 2016, suffering all four losses by a combined eight points. 

In addition to coaching football, Detmer has volunteered with the Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals, helping to raise funds for children’s hospitals, medical research and community awareness of children’s health issues. He founded the Ty Detmer Charitable Foundation and the Ty Detmer Football League in New Mexico.

Detmer is the sixth former Cougar to receive the distinguished NCAA Silver Anniversary Award. The others are Larry Echohawk (football, 1995), Gifford Nielsen (football, 2003), Danny Ainge (basketball, 2006), Steve Young (football, 2009), and Dylann Duncan Ceriani (women’s volleyball, 2012).

Other 2017 NCAA Silver Anniversary Award recipients

Alonzo Mourning
Georgetown University
Men’s basketball
Sociology, minor in theology

Susan Robinson Fruchtl
Pennsylvania State University
Women’s basketball
Exercise and sports science

Heather Taggart
University of Wisconsin-Madison
Women’s soccer
Biochemistry and molecular biology

Tommy Vardell
Stanford University
Football
Industrial engineering 

Troy Vincent
University of Wisconsin-Madison
Football
Liberal arts