BYU has already lost its first player to the college football transfer portal just moments after its devastating loss to Texas Tech in the Big 12 Championship Game. The Cougars will proceed in the postseason without freshman receiver LaMason Waller, who confirmed his decision to leave the team on Saturday.
Waller will enter the transfer portal once it opens in January, On3 Sports Hayes Fawcett reported. The former three-star recruit will have four years of eligibility remaining after not seeing the field in 2025.
Waller received multiple offers before committing to BYU, including those from Alabama, Michigan, Arizona State, Oregon, Texas A&M and many others. He figures to have just as many options in the transfer portal, even if they do not come from the same programs.
Waller was a three-time high school All-American by MaxPreps throughout his 41-touchdown prep career. Some scouts had concerns about his route-running and 190-pound frame, but were equally as enticed by the 6-foot-1 Waller's height and contested catch ability.
Although he did not pan out, Waller displayed a connection with BYU freshman quarterback Bear Bachmeier in fall camp. Bachmeier eventually became the Cougars' Week 1 starter, an outcome few predicted at that point in the offseason.
BYU anxiously awaits College Football Playoff bracket
The loss of Waller is an issue Kalani Sitake can address in a few weeks. For now, the recently extended head coach can only wait and pray that the College Football Playoff selection committee still gives BYU an at-large bid, even after its 34-7 loss to Texas Tech in the Big 12 Championship Game.
BYU entered the game ranked No. 11 and on firmly on the College Football Playoff bubble. A win would have locked the Cougars into the championship bracket, but the loss keeps them on the edge of the 12-team tournament.
Sitake's team now falls into the same category as Miami and Notre Dame, which both remain in the conversation with BYU's loss. All three programs need to keep an eye on the SEC Championship Game and the ACC Championship Game, which could affect the current landscape.
BYU will likely remain a top-12-ranked team, but it could get ousted by Tulane, which all but locked up the Group of Five bid by dominating North Texas in the American Athletic Conference Championship Game. Either Virginia or Duke could further shake up the conversation with an impressive performance in the ACC title game.
