Record Chasing: Cody Hoffman set to haul in BYU receiving marks

In a yearly tradition that has hopefully tampered itself with the roller coaster ride of the last two seasons, the BYU football offseason prior to the 2010 season was filled with hype and high hopes.

Jake Heaps, five-star recruit and #1 quarterback of the 2010 class according to Scout.com, was preparing to continue the line of BYU quarterbacking heritage. With his arrival came that of four-star receiver Ross Apo, stolen away from a Texas commitment to play with the touted signal caller.

But after observing open scrimmages and practices, DJ Beckett, a good friend of VTF, came away talking about a different freshman: Cody Hoffman. "He's impressive, I think he'll be really good," is to my memory what he reported about Hoffman.

Now, entering his senior season, the two-star recruit with offers from only BYU and do-nothing Big Sky stagnant Sacramento State is set to make school history. BYU all-time receiving records could begin falling as early as the season opener (if the offense really gets cooking early), and should all be vanquished before October is over.

First, free of historical context, here are Hoffman's three seasons at BYU -- with the most inconsistent QB play in a decade working against him:

Hoffman's best games are an impressive list, but everything else reads like I should seek him out to sign a copy of Keyshawn Johnson's Just Give Me The Damn Ball. The Hoff had only three touchdown catches last season through nine games. He touched the ball only three times in the excruciating loss at Boise State. He had three receptions for 20 yards through the first two games of 2011. I have a suspicion that Hoffman would have already blown away the records if he had a Max Hall to his Austin Collie.

So while it is true that Collie accomplished his marks in three seasons, Hoffman was perhaps climbing up a steeper hill. So both receivers should be regarded highly.

The all-time marks for touchdowns and receptions could fall within the first three games:

I feel fairly confident this can happen very early, since the home opener against Texas is likely to see one million plays run before the final gun (you see, Texas is doing GOFASTGOHARD down in Austin, too).

A fun exercise is to consider Hoffman having already tied the touchdown mark with game winners against Utah and Notre Dame had the man under center been something other than a wiffle-balling midget. (That's a troll for all of us. It still stings.)

Hoffman sits 537 yards behind Collie for the all-time yardage mark.

I wouldn't entirely object, however, if it took Hoffman deeper into the season to break some of these marks because a finally-emergent Ross Apo gave Taysom Hill the most powerful one-two punch in the country. A man can dream.

As it stands, Hoffman is the clear stud of BYU's offense and it will be a pleasure to watch him break these school records.

Tip of the hat, as always, to CougarStats.