New BYU basketball coach Kevin Young has been making headlines around the country over the past two months for his successful recruiting efforts, including the acquisition of three four-star prospects and Russian forward Egor Demin, a projected first-round pick in next summer's NBA draft.
Meanwhile, BYU's football coaching staff has also been hard at work, albeit in less high-profile ways. In that regard, June has been a key month for the Cougars, and all college football programs, as the members of the 2025 recruiting class are the primary focus.
That's right: Instead of focusing on picking up the last few pieces for its 2024 roster through the transfer portal, BYU's coaching staff has spent the past three weeks running camps and hosting official and unofficial campus visits from some of the top prospects in the country.
Head coach Kalani Sitake told the Deseret News about three weeks ago that BYU is “continuing to cast a wide net to recruit freshmen” heading into its second season in the Big 12 Conference. He said the 2024 team might only add one or two more players via the portal.
The Cougars would like another top-tier defender, such as a cornerback to replace Eddie Heckard or a nose tackle to fill in for the last-minute departure of junior college transfer Danny Seiri, now with Arkansas.
“The amount of interest we receive and the number of applicants we have has changed a lot compared to a few years ago,” Sitake said. “As I've said before, joining the Big 12 has increased our visibility, especially among kids who are not members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints,” he said. The church sponsors and operates BYU.
As of midday Friday, BYU had seven commitments from members of the 2025 freshman class, but it's worth noting that it was a major recruiting weekend for the Cougars, with more than a dozen BYU-enrolled prospects on campus over the course of several days starting last Monday.
Typically, Sitake will have a group of prospects in town from Tuesday through Thursday, then another group that arrives on Thursday and is scheduled to depart on Sunday. Of course, BYU would like to have as many players commit as possible before the calendar turns to July, but Sitake said that's not the point.
“Getting the right people who really want to come to BYU and can thrive there is a top priority,” he said.
Seven top prospects committed for the 2025 class
We'll go into more detail on the top candidates in a moment, but first, let's take a look at the seven freshmen who have already declared they will be members of the Cougars in the future: All seven are three-star recruits, according to 247sports.com.
- Will Walker, a kicker who stands 6 feet 5 inches tall and weighs 210 pounds The Riverton (Utah) High School product had already committed in July of 2022 before his sophomore year of high school, making him the first of the 2025 prospects to commit.
- Tyler Payne, a 6-foot-2, 210-pound linebacker/tight end Payne, who committed in January from Weber High School in northern Utah, is the son of former BYU kicker and punter Matt Payne and recorded 115 tackles for the Warriors last season.
- Blake Bryce, a 6-foot-5, 228-pound tight end The Newbury Park High School graduate, who committed to the school in mid-March, is also the son of a former Cougars player: His father, Gary Brice, played tight end for the Cougars in the early 2000s.
- Cale Breslin, a 5-foot-11, 190-pound running back The Las Vegas (Faith Lutheran High School) product became the fourth player to commit on May 10. According to 247Sports.com, Breslin also received offers from Wisconsin, Syracuse and Indiana.
- Kelepi Bete, a 6-foot-5, 250-pound offensive lineman Vete, a native of Oakland, California, committed to BYU just days after Breslin. Vete's twin brother, Siosiua, committed to Stanford University.
- Edge rusher Sale Fano He is a product of Westlake High School in Saratoga Springs and will enroll May 23. He is the cousin of former BYU player Logan Fano, now at the University of Utah.
- Nolan Keaney, a 6-foot-4, 215-pound quarterback Keeney, a native of Tualatin, Oregon, became the seventh player to commit to Sitake University on June 6. Brandon Huffman of 247sports.com called Keeney the highest-rated quarterback in the Pacific Northwest in the class of 2025. He holds offers from the University of Houston, Boise State and San Diego State.
Here are BYU's top targets for the 2025 entering class.
According to the 247sports.com Network's Cougar Sports Insider and the SI.com Network's Cougs Daily, the four aforementioned players – Breslin, Payne, Brice and Kelepi Vete – visited BYU's campus last week, along with more than a dozen other prospects who have received offers from the school.
Silas Pol, a three-star linebacker from St. George's Desert Hills High School; I visited BYU last week.Pol visited UCLA on Tuesday and Wednesday and received an offer from the Big Ten Conference Bruins. He also holds offers from Utah, Stanford and Michigan State, among others, and is considered a high priority by all of those schools.
The Cougars are also open to recruiting Spanish Fork offensive lineman Aaron Dunn, a four-star prospect who stands 6-foot-7 and weighs about 300 pounds. Dunn visited Oregon this weekend and also holds offers from schools including Utah, USC, UCLA and Texas, according to 247sports.com.
Another potential target for BYU is Lone Peak OL Austin Pay. He is the younger brother of current BYU center Connor Pay and is 6-foot-6, 295 pounds. Austin Pay has offers from Oregon, Baylor, Texas A&M and Arkansas, among others.
Other top BYU targets who were in town earlier this week
- Nushi Taumoepoe, linebacker/edge rusher A graduate of Westlake High School in Saratoga Springs, Taumoepoe said he will announce where he will attend college on August 1, his birthday. His top five choices are: It is made up of BYU, Utah, Stanford, California and Oklahoma State.
- Tight end Stevie Ammer Amar is a three-star prospect from Oaks Christian High School in Southern California. He received offers from Boston University, Baylor University, University of California, Arizona State University, among others.
- Edge rusher Cole Cogshell The 6-foot-3, 240-pound Pasadena, California native is also attracting attention from San Diego State, Boston College and Colorado State.
- running back/safety Shelton Manny Fuller The El Paso, Texas (Del Valle High School) native also holds offers from the University of Utah, Texas Tech University, Oregon State University and Baylor University.
Here are some of BYU's high-profile visitors this weekend.
- Linebacker/tight end Jackson Doman A native of Canby, Oregon, he is the nephew of former BYU player Sam Dorman.
- Lamason Waller, a 6-foot-2, 170-pound receiver Hesperia, Calif. (Sultana High School) product. 247sports.com scouting expert Greg Biggins predicts Waller will attend BYU despite having offers from dozens of Power Four programs.
- Andrew Williams, a 6-foot-7, 275-pound offensive lineman From Kirksville, Missouri Offers from BYU's Big 12 rivals Williams is a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints but told reporters he has no plans to serve a mission.
- Sam Turner, a 6-foot-1, 195-pound receiver Turner, a native of DeKalb, Georgia, committed to Georgia Tech on June 9 but is apparently planning to visit BYU as scheduled this weekend. Turner was high school teammates with BYU defensive back Therrian “Tre” Alexander III.
- Siosiua Bete, a 6-foot-5, 250-pound defensive lineman He is the twin brother of Kelepi Bete, who plans to attend BYU, and Bete is also in Provo this weekend.
- Mackay Madsen, a 6'2″ 220 lb athlete A native of Clovis, California (Clovis North High School), Madsen played running back and linebacker in high school and excelled in the shot put and shot put. Madsen also holds offers from UCLA, Washington, Arizona and Air Force.
