PROVO — When quarterback Cade Cooper transferred to BYU from Snow Junior College last winter, he was thrilled. He had long dreamed of playing for the Cougars.

But after sustaining a severe, season-ending foot injury during the spring game in April, things changed. On Friday, coach Bronco Mendenhall announced that Cooper will transfer from BYU.

"The decision was tough," Cooper told the Deseret Morning News. "It's tough to leave such a great program with great coaches. It was always my dream to play at BYU. But my bigger dream was to actually play. With this injury, I lost all opportunity to play at BYU."

Had the injury not occurred, the 6-foot-3, 205-pound junior from Lehi said he would have remained in Provo.

"There's no doubt I'd still be at BYU. The injury has been a difficult situation," Cooper said. "My time at BYU was everything I thought it would be and more. I never thought an injury like this would happen to me. It's unfortunate."

Once Cooper receives his official release from BYU on Monday, he'll start shopping for a new school. Cooper wants to transfer to another Division I program. Utah State, he said, is a possibility.

"It's a matter of finding a program with a need at quarterback," Cooper said.

"I understand and respect Cade's willingness and desire to compete. He's an outstanding young man," Mendenhall said. "We hope he can find a program where he will be able to make a valuable contribution and lead a team."

Cooper was named the NJCAA offensive player of the year last season at Snow JC, where he passed for 3,013 yards and led the Badgers to an 11-1 record and No. 2 national ranking.

After arriving at BYU as a walk-on with a promise of a scholarship in the fall, Cooper was given a scholarship in February.

During spring drills, Cooper battled with sophomore Max Hall for the starting job, with the pair splitting almost all the meaningful reps. Then came the spring game, where Cooper injured a foot on his third play from scrimmage. He took a snap out of the shotgun formation, fumbled the ball, stepped awkwardly and fell to the ground. He did not return to action.

In his place, sophomore transfer Brenden Gaskins, who had few reps in the spring, completed 19 of 22 passes for 174 yards and led the offense to 10 points, including a methodical 12-play, 97-yard drive that culminated with a 5-yard touchdown pass.

A couple of days later, Mendenhall announced that Hall had earned the starting job and that Cooper would miss the entire 2007 season due to the injury.

Gaskins is expected to start fall camp as Hall's backup. A 6-foot-5 native of New Mexico, Gaskins signed with Nevada out of high school but played at Glendale Community College following an LDS mission. Incoming freshman Jason Munns could also challenge for the job in August.

Mendenhall said that the battle between Hall and Cooper was "very close" prior to Cooper's injury, and he praised Cooper's performance in the spring.

The Cougars are in good hands with Hall at the controls of the offense, Cooper said Friday. "Max will be a great quarterback. He has a bright future ahead of him."

Cooper underwent foot surgery in the spring and had the boot removed from his foot Thursday. The screws that were inserted in his foot will be taken out in two months. Doctors anticipate that he'll make a full recovery, and Cooper plans to be ready to play again by next spring.

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E-mail: jeffc@desnews.com