Meet the Freshmen: BYU’s Ryan Andrus

With the BYU Cougars having 17 available players for the upcoming season, playing time will be ultra-competitive. However, it might be a little easier in the frontcourt, where there are less proven players then on the wing or in the backcourt on the BYU roster.

Due to this, Ryan Andrus, a 6-foot-10 big man out of American Fork, Utah, emerges as an interesting player on the Cougars depth chart.

At American Fork High School

Andrus, while not nationally known, was a popular name around the state for many seasons before he committed to the Cougars in the summer before his senior season.

Despite holding offers from Utah State and Utah, the Andrus ended his recruitment by committing to BYU directly following an offer after a breakout junior season where he averaged 19.4 points and 6.5 rebounds. Andrus also rattled in 19 3-pointers his junior year, showing he is capable of stepping back and making a jumper when open.

Impact at BYU

At the start of the season, BYU will only have Nate Austin and possibly Corbin Kaufusi at the center position; a backup to Nate Austin will be necessary for the Cougars to succeed during a rigorous non-conference schedule and during the WCC slate of games.

While Andrus projects to be more a project type player, it might be necessary for the Utah native to play a decent amount of minutes his freshman year. Even though redshirting might be the best option for his overall development, BYU will need him to succeed down the road, unless an unknown player – like Luke Worthington or Corbin Kaufusi – proves they can compete with the centers in Division I basketball.

He might not turn any heads during his freshmen season, but his combination of size and ability will be nice assets to the BYU frontcourt moving forward.