The starting quarterback on the nation’s leading Mormon university is Jewish.
Jake Retzlaff, fondly known at Brigham Young University as “BYJew,” is one of only three Jewish students in the school enrollment of 35,000 that is 98.5 percent Mormon. He has used his newfound stardom to teach others about his own faith while taking steps to learn more about Judaism for himself.
“I came here thinking I might not fit in with the culture, so this will be a place where I can just focus on school and football,” Retzlaff said, according to Religion News Service. “But I found that, in a way, I do fit. People are curious. And when everybody around you is so faith-oriented, it makes you want to explore your faith more.”
BYU undergraduates must take classes about the Book of Mormon. Retzlaff said he was surprised to find many references to the Jewish people. Some classmates and fans have even called him “the chosen one,” referring to both his success on the field and the accepted Evangelical doctrine, that Mormons also believe, that Jews remain God’s chosen people.
“It’s a lot of respect, honestly,” he said. “They’re putting me on a mantel sometimes, and I’m like, ‘Whoa guys, I don’t know about that.’”
Retzlaff has embraced becoming an ambassador for his faith in college football and in a state where only 0.2 percent of residents are Jewish. He wears a silver Star of David necklace on campus and attends dinners on Shabbat, the Jewish day of rest, at his rabbi’s house during the offseason.
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Retzlaff is affiliated with the Reform tradition of Judaism, which melds Jewish tradition with a more secular interpretation, often prioritizing personal choice over a strict interpretation of Torah law. He plays football on Friday nights and Saturdays during Shabbat and says sports have become a way to connect with his faith and to inspire young Jewish athletes.
His influence has been meaningful for alumnus Malka Moya, who had struggled to navigate her intersecting identities on the campus as someone who is both Jewish and a Mormon. “Jake feels very comfortable wearing his Star of David all the time,” she said. “I haven’t always been very comfortable with expressing my Jewish identity. But, more recently, I feel like if he can do it, I can do it.”
–Alan Goforth and RNS