PROVO, Utah — The Brigham Young University Cougars have been in the spotlight through the first two weeks of the college football season, as a pair of last-minute long bombs from Tanner Mangum have delivered wins despite improbable odds and propelled the Cougars to a spot in the Top 25.
Now, ESPN is offering up praise for the backup quarterback, who recently returned from serving an LDS mission in Chile, “out of shape and out of the starting job for quarterback.” The video “Hail Tanner Mangum” takes a look at Mangum’s journey into the spotlight.
Mangum first stepped up against Nebraska after BYU starter Taysom Hill injured his foot, and with one second left to play he executed a Hail Mary to give BYU the win.
Then, a week later at home against Boise State, Mangum again found the endzone on a long pass, this time with less than a minute to play and on 4th-and-7. See below for footage of that play as well as the reaction from Mangum and others.
