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Provo • Quarterback Taysom Hill will be unable to finish a season due to injury for the fourth time in his five years at BYU.
The school announced Monday that an MRI and further evaluation performed on the fifth-year senior's left elbow revealed a strain that will keep him out of the Poinsettia Bowl on Dec. 21 in San Diego. Hill suffered his fourth season-ending injury in the fourth quarter of BYU's 28-10 win over Utah State when he landed awkwardly on his arm after attempting to dive over USU defender Gaje Ferguson on a 12-yard run near the goal line.
The Cougars improved to 8-4 with the win and will face an opponent from the Mountain West in their 12th straight bowl appearance. Sophomore Tanner Mangum, who started 12 games in 2015 after Hill suffered a season-ending foot injury in the opener at Nebraska, will get the start at Qualcomm Stadium.
Hill suffered three of the four season-ending injuries against USU, having injured a knee in the 2012 6-3 win over the Aggies and having injured an ankle and various ligaments in the 35-20 loss in 2014.
The 26-year-old team captain won 23 games as BYU's starting quarterback after originally committing to play for Stanford out of high school. He transferred to BYU after a church mission to Australia and became the top rushing quarterback in school history.
A native of Pocatello, Idaho, Hill wore No. 7 this season, switching from No. 4, to honor his older brother, Dexter, who died last March. Hill had announced the previous month that he would return to BYU for a fifth year, despite having already earned a degree in finance from the school and the long and difficult journey back from the lisfranc injury suffered against Nebraska.
He finished with 9,744 yards of offense, ranking him No. 4 in school history in that category, just ahead of Jim McMahon. Hill passed for 6,929 yards and rushed for 2,815, the most rushing yards by any QB ever at BYU and fifth-most among all players.
He totaled 75 touchdowns, 43 passing and 32 rushing, ranking him No. 5 all-time at BYU in touchdowns accounted for. He passed NFL Hall of Famer Steve Young in that category with a touchdown pass to Mitchell Juergens in Saturday's win.
"I would share with others how courageous Taysom has been in overcoming obstacles and facing challenges," BYU athletic director Tom Holmoe wrote on Twitter. "Toughest Coug I've ever seen!"
Former BYU great Chad Lewis noted: "My heart goes out to one of the greatest dudes to ever wear a BYU uniform."
Mangum, who replaced Hill and threw a 5-yard touchdown pass to Colby Pearson for the final score in the USU game, said Saturday that the entire team was saddened by Hill's season-ending injury.
"It is super sad to see a friend go down," Mangum said. "We obviously feel badly. After the game, we were talking with him. We all feel badly. I don't know what's going to happen, but we are hoping for the best."
Twitter: @drewjay —
Cougar QB comparisons
Win-loss records for BYU starting quarterbacks since the school's modern passing era began in 1973 (minimum 10 starts):
Player Years W-L Pct.
Robbie Bosco 1984-85 24-3 .889
Brandon Doman 2000-01 14-2 .889
Jim McMahon 1978-81 26-4 .867
Marc Wilson 1977-79 22-4 .846
Max Hall 2007-09 32-7 .820
Steve Sarkisian 1995-96 21-5 .808
Steve Young 1981-83 20-6 .769
Ty Detmer 1988-91 29-9-2 .750
Gifford Nielsen 1975-77 17-6 .739
Taysom Hill 2012-16 23-10 .697
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By wins
Max Hall 32
Ty Detmer 29
Jim McMahon 26
Robbie Bosco 24
Taysom Hill 23 •