Bachmeier named to Davey O’Brien Great 8

FORT WORTH, Texas — BYU quarterback Bear Bachmeier was today named to the Davey O'Brien Great 8 as one of the top quarterback performances from week two of the college football season. Bachmeier helped led No. 11 BYU to a 28-17 win over Arizona. 

The Davey O’Brien Quarterback Award honors candidates who exemplify O’Brien’s enduring character while exhibiting teamwork, sportsmanship and leadership in both academics and athletics. Thanks to his performance on Saturday, Bachmeier was also officially added to the Davey O'Brien Quarterback Award Midseason Watch List.

The 6-foot-2, 230-pound sophomore from Murrieta, California, completed 16 of 26 passes for 217 yards (13.6 yards per completion) and three touchdowns with no interceptions. Bachmeier also rushed for 37 yards and another score to account for all four touchdowns. 

With his performance against Arizona, Bachmeier became just the fourth player in Big 12 history to begin a season with two straight games of at least three passing touchdowns and one rushing touchdown, joining the elite company of Baker Mayfield (2015), Patrick Mahomes (2016) and Mason Rudolph (2017).

Through two games, Bachmeier is the Big 12 Conference co-leader with eight scores, including six touchdown passes and two rushing scores. 

Prior to the 2026 season, Bachmeier was named to the preseason watch list for the Maxwell Award, presented annually by the Maxwell Football Club to the most outstanding player in college football. He is also a preseason candidate for the Davey O’Brien Quarterback Award and the Manning Award. Bachmeier was also named Preseason All-Big 12 by Phil Steele and Pro Football Network. 

As a true freshman in 2025, Bachmeier completed 251 of 387 passes (64.9 percent) for 3,033 yards and 15 touchdowns. He averaged 216.6 yards per game passing and was second on the team in rushing, with 147 carries for 527 yards and 11 scores. 

Bachmeier was honored as conference freshman of the week seven times in 12 weeks during the 2025 regular season, on his way to earning the Big 12 Offensive Freshman of the Year Award and being named Big 12 Honorable Mention. As an offensive co-captain, Bachmeier helped lead No. 12 BYU to an 11-2 record in 2025, a trip to the Big 12 Championship and an invitation of the Pop-Tarts Bowl. 

BYU travels to Fort Collins, Colorado this week to take on Colorado State on Saturday, Sept. 19 at Canvas Stadium. The game will be broadcast live on CBS with kickoff scheduled for 5:30 p.m. MDT.