Driven to be QB: How Austyn Modrzewski's journey led him to USD
· Yahoo Sports
Oct. 29—VERMILLION, S.D. — Long before Austyn Modrzewski became the starting quarterback at the University of South Dakota, he was a first grader in Littleton, Colorado, who had already discovered something special about throwing a football.
He initially lined up at running back when he started playing tackle football. But it did not take long for those around him to recognize that the ball belonged in his hands, and preferably in the air. Even at that age, Modrzewski was doing something rare for a young player in his area: leading an offense that could throw the football.
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By second grade, he was training specifically to play quarterback. Sunday mornings and several days throughout the week became practices for his mechanics, improving his footwork and developing a position that had already become his passion. By third grade, he was learning to read defenses.
Football was never simply something Modrzewski played. It was something he worked to understand. He competed across state lines, trained year-round and developed an appreciation for the quarterback position long before most children his age had even thought about their athletic futures.
"I always wanted to be a running growing up back because they always get the ball," Austyn Modrzewski said earlier this season. "And in the first practice, we didn't have a quarterback so I kind of just stepped up and started throwing some balls. I had fun doing it, and I was like, 'I'm not half bad at throwing.'"
His father, Nathan Modrzewski, watched that commitment develop firsthand. But the football field was not the only place where he saw what made his son different.
"There's something about him. My wife always says that when he's not around, she misses his calming effect," Nathan Modrzewski said. "He knows how to give 100% of his attention to you, so you feel like you're pretty much the only one in the room when he's talking to you. He's really good at just being there in the moment when you're there with him."
That calmness has always been part of Austyn's personality. It would eventually become one of his most valuable qualities at quarterback. Before the touchdowns, the records and the college football spotlight, there was a young athlete learning how to compete. And there were people around him who recognized what he could become.
Football was not Modrzewski's only athletic pursuit growing up. He also played basketball, baseball and lacrosse, and wrestled. According to his father, wrestling was among his strongest sports, and he ranked among the top wrestlers in his age divisions growing up. But football always had a particular hold on him.
Garrett Looney, the head football coach at Mountain Vista High School in Highlands Ranch, Colorado, noticed Modrzewski early.
"He was doing things as an eighth-grade quarterback that a lot of high school quarterbacks couldn't do and still can't do," Looney said. "We knew he was a special talent. Obviously, it's not just about the arm talent but the intangibles that come along with it."
Mountain Vista, located nine miles from Modrzewski's hometown of Littleton, became the natural destination for his high school career. He could have gone a different route, potentially attending a bigger-name school with more of a football reputation. Instead, he chose to remain loyal to his friends and the community in which he had grown up in.
It was a decision that reflected something early on about him: Modrzewski valued the people around him, not just the opportunities that might look best on paper.
His father was there to support his development as he has been coaching high school football at Mountain Vista over the last seven years, while Looney became an important figure in shaping him as both a quarterback and a person.
Modrzewski played in a handful of games as a freshman before eventually taking over the starting job late in the season. Looney believed the young quarterback was ready for the opportunity, and Modrzewski wasted little time. In his first playoff game, he threw six touchdown passes, which is a Mountain Vista school record in a postseason contest.
It was an early indication of what would become a remarkable high school career. Modrzewski went on to become a two-time Colorado Gatorade football player of the year, finishing his career with nearly 12,000 passing yards and 147 touchdown passes. He still holds Colorado's all-time records for career passing yards and passing touchdowns.
"As a human being and just as a quarterback, he's the same person in the sense that he's never too high or too low. He's very steady and calm under pressure," Looney said. "He's very cool in all situations, whether that's when the bullets are flying at him in a game or in his personal life. He's been that way since he was a little kid, and now he's just a more mature version of it."
His senior season were video-game-type numbers. He threw for more than 3,400 yards and 57 touchdowns while completing 73.4% of his passes. Yet when it came time to find a college home, the interest did not match.
For a quarterback who had dreamed of playing college football at a young age, Modrzewski's recruitment became more of a frustrating experience than a smooth one.
His high school production was hard to ignore, but interest from FBS programs often seemed to come with a catch. According to his father and Looney, college coaches repeatedly suggested that Modrzewski was next in line if another recruit fell off their board. The promises kept coming, but nothing to show for it.
Looney said concerns about Modrzewski's throwing mechanics, particularly the length of his release and how quickly he could get the ball out, contributed to the hesitation.
"If the dude can play, the dude can play," Looney said. "They didn't want to hear that the kid was a baller, a winner and can complete any pass out there. But he's proving everyone wrong. He is a name that people are going to start knowing and recognizing a lot more."
Nathan described the process less subtly. "Trying to buy a car from a used car salesman. It was horrible."
One notable experience: Modrzewski attended a camp at Nebraska the day before committing to USD. According to Nathan, Nebraska head coach Matt Rhule had his son run the 40-yard dash multiple times because he could not believe how quickly the quarterback was running. The family toured the facilities and came away believing there was genuine interest. But after all the attention, the visit ended by showing them the door and thanking them for coming. That's it.
For a family that had invested years in helping a talented young quarterback reach this point, the uncertainty had become exhausting. Then Matt Vitzthum entered the picture.
At the time, Vitzthum was USD's quarterbacks coach and co-offensive coordinator. He had watched Modrzewski play in high school. More importantly, he saw a player who needed someone willing to make a commitment.
"I had the opportunity to watch him live in high school, and his arm talent really popped out to me," Vitzthum said. "But secondly, I think something that I really appreciate is that Austyn was really sick of the recruiting process and was tired of chasing something bigger or chasing somebody to really love him."
USD became the program that offered Modrzewski a genuine opportunity above the Division II level. Vitzthum had also encouraged a Kansas State coach to look at Modrzewski at a camp where they were all at in Manhattan, Kansas, but the interest never developed into the opportunity the family wanted. And Vitzthum offered Modrzewski that day in Manhattan.
Rather than continuing to chase the possibility of a bigger-name program, he chose the school that had shown it believed in him first.
"We ended up showing him a ton of love, and he reciprocated that," Vitzthum added. "And when you find a connection like that, that's when things typically go well. He found a place that believed in him, and we were there. He had the talent, and then obviously his mindset matched, and it's been a great marriage this far."
Nathan Modrzewski still remembers one of the moments that made the choice feel right. A few days after the Nebraska visit, the family traveled to Vermillion and stopped at Bunyan's Bar and Grill. Vitzthum happened to be the first person they encountered.
"He comes up to us and introduces himself and gives Austyn a big hug. That's when Austyn and I knew we made the right choice," Nathan Modrzewski said. "That was the very first time I ever met him, and I liked the guy from the start. He has so much personality. You couldn't write a better story for how everything's worked out for the both of them."
Modrzewski arrived at USD in 2025 with the opportunity to develop behind Aidan Bouman, the experienced quarterback who had led the Coyotes through multiple successful seasons.
For a young quarterback who had spent his high school career operating at the center of everything, the chance to observe from a different perspective was valuable. For Bouman, he noticed Modrzewski's personality immediately.
"He never once had a bad thing to say about anybody. He's always in everybody's corner," Bouman said. "That's one of the first things I ever noticed about him outside of all the special things he can do on the field.
"He's so easy to get along with, and ultimately, I think in this day and age, that's kind of what you need to be as a quarterback," he added. "You need to be able to connect with all the different personalities that you're going to have on a college football roster. And Austyn has the ability to do that super well, which is really fun to see."
When Bouman's college career ended, Modrzewski entered a three-way competition with Dartmouth transfer Jackson Proctor and Nevan Cremascoli for the starting job. He emerged from fall camp as the starter.
Modrzewski did not need long to make his case. In his first collegiate start against Central Connecticut State, the redshirt freshman threw for 304 yards and six touchdowns, tying a South Dakota single-game record. He also added a 68-yard touchdown run, accounting for seven total touchdowns in a dominant debut.
The performance earned him national freshman-of-the-week recognition and immediately placed him among the FCS quarterbacks worth watching.
On the season, Modrzewski has an FCS-leading 24 passing touchdowns, 1,893 passing yards and six interceptions, completing 66.7% of his attempts. USD is averaging 37.7 points per game and has built a 7-2 overall record, including a 4-1 mark in conference play.
Those numbers have placed him as a leading candidate for the Jerry Rice Award, given to the nation's top freshman in the subdivision. For a quarterback whose recruiting process was "horrible," the production has been a response.
Now, Modrzewski faces one of the biggest challenges of his young career.
South Dakota's Interstate Series rivalry with South Dakota State brings the kind of atmosphere and pressure that can define a season. With conference-title implications in the balance, the matchup represents an opportunity for the Coyotes to strengthen their position in the Missouri Valley race.
For a redshirt freshman making his first season as a college starter, it is a significant moment.
But Modrzewski has spent his life preparing for these opportunities.
His first season watching Bouman provided a foundation. His father and high school coach helped establish his character that has carried him through difficult moments. And Vitzthum, the coach who believed in him when his recruitment stalled, is now the person guiding him through the biggest games of his college career.
"I have seen him in some pretty tough moments this year and he has experienced a lot of things. It's not like this is Week 1 or 2," Vitzthum said. "I have seen him bounce back against some adversity. Saturday is not going to go perfect for Austyn. It's all about his response, and I've seen him respond all year to some things that haven't gone his way. I am confident he'll go up there with a great mindset and perform well for us."