The first half of this season and the past two seasons for BYU quarterback Tanner Mangum have been anything but predictable. He had been back from his mission to Chile for two months when he was called on to take over for injured Heisman-candidate quarterback Taysom Hill. His first touchdown pass was on a Hail Mary with one second left to beat Nebraska on the road. He was dubbed “Miracle Mangum,” and the miracles didn’t stop in Lincoln.
The very next week in his first career start, he notched another go-ahead touchdown in the final minute on a prayer heaved up to Mitchell Juergens to beat Boise State in front of a sellout crowd in Lavelle Edwards Stadium. Mangum continued from his hot start to finish an excellent season, throwing 3,377 yards – a BYU freshman best – and 24 touchdowns. Mangum called it “a dream come true” and looked to be on track to become one of the BYU greats.
However, things got shaken up the following season. Coming into the 2016-17 season, Mangum found himself with a new coach, a new offense and a healthy Hill. After a stellar freshman year and national attention, Mangum took on the role of backup quarterback.
To the surprise of many, there was no drama or bad blood between teammates.
Mangum focused on the big picture and and responded by saying, “This is not about me; this is about the team. Whatever helps the team win and be successful, I am happy with that.” He again came off the bench to replace an injured Hill against Utah state and started in the Cougars’ victory against Wyoming in the Poinsettia Bowl.
For the first time, the 6-foot-3, 220-pound quarterback had a full offseason to prepare as the starter and leader of the team for the 2017-2018 season. Unfortunately, some offensive challenges and an ankle injury has hindered Mangum from reaching the high expectations he holds for himself. However, Mangum remains optimistic for the remainder of the season and is determined to keep getting better and stronger.
“There is not other option but to keep your head up,” Mangum said. “I just need to keep grinding and comeback swinging.”
His optimism and confidence in himself is nothing new. The fourth of five children, Mangum was never the quiet middle child. His great big smile, that as a child would charm the women at the grocery store, has always been contagious to everyone around him. Karen Mangum, Tanner’s mother, remarked that his smile could even be seen on his face during competitive swim meets as a kid. Mid stroke, through the water you could still that he was still smiling. Mangum is a competitor and grew up very active playing football, swimming, baseball, basketball, skiing and tennis.
When Mangum started his first year of flag football, his older brother Parker was the star quarterback at their local high school and Mangum wanted to be just like him. Parker would take his little brother and throw with him in the backyard, becoming Mangum’s first quarterback coach. Parker has always been one of Mangum’s biggest fans and supporters.
When Mangum was in eighth grade, he came to BYU to participate in one of the junior high summer football camps. He soon realized that the camp was for beginners and he had been hoping for something more on his skill level. Parker, who was playing for BYU at the time, talked to the coaches to pull some strings and get Mangum into the high school level camp, in which he was named camp MVP for the ninth and 10th graders as an eighth grader.
“That’s when I started to realize I wanted to really pursue this,” Mangum said. “I decided I wanted to come here and play for BYU.”
Parker continues to be a big supporter of his younger brother. He loves to talk to Mangum about how practices are going and about the games. Mangum even sends him clips of his practices to seek Parker’s critiques and to keep him involved in his development as an elite quarterback.
“He has always believed in me and pulled for me, so that has been great to have in an older brother,” Mangum said.
Mangum grew up watching the likes of Luke Staley, Brandon Doman and Reno Mahe excel on the football field for the Cougars and aspired to do the same one day. That dream seemed more attainable as Mangum excelled as the quarterback at Eagle High School, becoming the top college prospect in Idaho, and Rivals.com’s No. 3 quarterback in the nation. Multiple big-name schools from the Pac-12 and SEC looked to recruit Mangum, especially his hometown team Boise State. Mangum grew up going to Bronco games and considered playing on the Blue Turf, but nothing felt as right as BYU.
“I felt it was somewhere I could be comfortable,” Mangum said. “I love the social aspect of it all, the spiritual standards, the academic experience and just the overall feel of the program. Being able to play for the team I grew up cheering for, to have the Y on my helmet, is very special to me.”
Following in the footsteps of his big brother Parker, Mangum committed to BYU and has never regretted that decision.
This past April, during BYU’s Mental Health Awareness Week, Mangum surprised many with an Instagram post reveling his struggles with mild depression and anxiety.
“I’m not ashamed,” Mangum declared in the post. “On the contrary, I am proud to embrace my own personal journey, accept and love myself -- flaws and all. I am grateful to be able to raise my voice, and stand up for those who experience similar struggles.”
After receiving help and learning how to cope with his personal challenges, Mangum began to feel the need to do more to help those battling the same obstacles.
“I wanted to use my platform for good,” Mangum said. “I wanted to do something meaningful in order to be able to help people.”
Karen Mangum, Mangum’s mother, began to notice the possibility of these challenges when Mangum was a junior and senior in high school. She noted that he has always been optimistic and positive throughout his life, but as Mangum got older and more pressure and stress entered his life, he began to have anxiety and depression. Like many, concerns of what others thought and their expectations often weighed heavily on Mangum’s mind. He didn’t want anyone to be disappointed or disenchanted with him
“Tanner is a people pleaser,” Karen said. “He wants other people to be happy and because of that people pleasers can get themselves into trouble.”
Despite these concerns, Mangum excelled on his mission in Chile
“I’ve always loved helping people,” Mangum said. “On my mission that’s when I was happiest because I was able to serve people and forget about everything else.”
Recalling the feelings of peace and fulfillment from his service as a missionary, inspired Mangum to become an advocate for mental health.
The response to Mangum’s original post has been very rewarding for him. Countless individuals have reached out to him on social media to thank him for his post and to share their own personal experiences. Mangum has been able to invite people to eliminate the taboo surrounding mental health and generate public discussion without the fear of judgment and criticism.
“Little by little we can erase the stigma about mental health and encourage people to talk about it, to get help and to not be afraid to accept the fact that mental health challenges arise and that’s ok.” Mangum said.
Mangum calls serving and helping others calls it “one of the best medications.”
Assistant Head Coach, Ed Lamb, recently shared an experience he had with Mangum that exemplifies this point. This past May, some members of the team went to Los Angeles with the Kalani Sitake Foundation to provide mentoring, academic and athletic opportunities for kids in need. In addition to the camps, the volunteers and players had assembled activity bags for hospitalized children. After completed they completed the project the players were allowed to enjoy the rest of the day with their teammates and go sight seeing throughout the city.
Coach Lamb’s wife, Sarah, was in charge of coordinating with the local hospitals on where these gifts would be delivered. Mangum approached Sarah and asked her where these bags would be taken. When she informed him of their various destinations, Mangum asked if he could go with her to help deliver them to the kids. He sacrificed his afternoon as a tourist with his teammates to continue to serve.
“That speaks humility to me,”Coach Lamb said of the experience. “That’s something that all of our players can get behind and respect, and I think that is why he will continue to be a tremendous leader for us.”
BYU’s quarterback has his eyes set on a great career in football, but he also understands what is most important. Mangum didn’t want his post to be a one-time event to advocate mental health awareness. He continues to seek for opportunities to help people become educated and feel open to discuss mental health without feeling embarrassed. Mangum is set on sharing his message.
“If I can help one person, then it’s worth it,” Mangum said. “It’s something I want to continue to do because I have seen the positive influence that it has had. Don’t be afraid to get help. And don’t be afraid to go and talk to your loved ones about it. It’s better to go through it with other people, its hard to go through it alone. Don’t be afraid to address it, because once you address then it you can understand it and know how to cope with it and how to master it. You feel better. You feel stronger. And you feel happier.”
(See CBS Sports' story on Mangum "Tackling Mental Health" here)