{"id":2842,"date":"2026-06-25T21:40:27","date_gmt":"2026-06-25T21:40:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/americanmovershub.com\/?p=2842"},"modified":"2026-06-25T21:40:27","modified_gmt":"2026-06-25T21:40:27","slug":"byu-recruiting-getting-a-boost-from-walking-the-walk","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/americanmovershub.com\/?p=2842","title":{"rendered":"BYU recruiting getting a boost from \u2018walking the walk\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

In a college recruiting game where talk is cheap and actions get commitments, Kalani Sitake and the Cougars are striking the right chords in the eyes of former BYU star Bronson Kaufusi.<\/p>\n

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\u201cIt\u2019s a really unique mixture that is going on. When you can win and compete at the highest level and have fun doing it, and you can also be in a program that helps you get to the NFL, all of that together makes it a unique recipe,\u201d Kaufusi told the \u201cY\u2019s Guys\u201d livestream show this week. \u201cI think a lot of players are seeing, \u2018Oh my gosh, I can do all of that, I can be a great player, I can be great off the field, and I love what the coaches are sharing with us around, hey, this is family.\u2019 Saying and doing it are two different things.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sitake\u2019s Cougars are a combined 23-4 over the last two seasons and are expected to contend for the Big 12 championship again this fall. In recent recruiting gains, Sitake has beaten a handful of traditional powers for athletes that historically have looked elsewhere.<\/p>\n

On the heels of BYU\u2019s best-rated class in program history, Sitake is building his 2027 group that already includes Jaxon Rex (athlete), who picked BYU over UCLA. Kamoni Adams (DB) chose the Cougars over Tennessee, Ole Miss and Auburn. Ryan Wooten (DB) sided with BYU over Florida State and Florida. Jeremiah Williams (DL) tabbed the Cougars over Georgia. Moa Havili (DL) had offers from Alabama and Michigan \u2014 and chose BYU.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think players are seeing, \u2018Oh, Kalani is not just saying it. He\u2019s doing it. This is a family and I do want to play for my brothers, my coaches, and that is such a unique culture, and what\u2019s cool is, the players that are there are the ones who are sharing that with these recruits and that\u2019s almost stronger than anything the coaches say,\u201d Kaufusi said. <\/p>\n

\u201cWhen the current players are able to say, \u2018This is what it is,\u2019 and those conversations happen when they are on their recruiting visits, but they are just walking down the hallway and around BYU and they start talking to the kids and the parents. It\u2019s those little conversations that really change it for kids.\u201d<\/p>\n

Familiar fire<\/h3>\n

Kaufusi finished his BYU career with 26.5 sacks and 44 tackles-for-loss before a short-lived career in the NFL with the Ravens, Jets and Packers. The former Timpview High star spent his Cougar career on the defensive line except for his junior season when he shifted to linebacker and Kelly Poppinga was his position coach.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s fun playing for him and when it\u2019s fun to play for a coach, there is a lot of buy-in,\u201d Kaufusi said. \u201cI\u2019m excited to see all the buy-in and the excitement on the sideline when there is a third-down stop or a turnover. There is going to be a lot of fun on the sideline. I expect to see that because that\u2019s who Kelly Poppinga is.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Poppinga will make his debut as BYU\u2019s defensive coordinator on Sept. 5 against Utah Tech.<\/p>\n

Charity of champions<\/h3>\n

For the second year, Kaufusi is rolling out the \u201cCharity of Champions\u201d flag football tournament Saturday morning at 10 a.m. at Corner Canyon High. <\/p>\n

\u201cThis is the biggest gathering of NFL players in Utah,\u201d Kaufusi said. \u201cTo have over 40 current or former NFL guys out there, and they are playing something, it\u2019s pretty unique. It\u2019s fun because they are all over the field.\u201d<\/p>\n

The likes of league youngsters Tyler Allgeier, Chase Roberts and Tanner Wall mixed with veterans Max Hall, Daniel Sorensen and Bryan Kehl will join others playing multiple games simultaneously on 35-yard field configurations. The event helped raise $50,000 last year for charity.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are trying to build something really big and share it with everyone else,\u201d said Kaufusi, who has additional information available at charityofchampionsutah.com. \u201cThe goal is to help over 20 charities through one big event.\u201d<\/p>\n

Dave McCann is a sportswriter and columnist for the Deseret News and is a play-by-play announcer and show host for BYUtv\/ESPN+. He co-hosts \u201cY\u2019s Guys\u201d at ysguys.com and is the author of the children\u2019s book \u201cC is for Cougar,\u201d available at deseretbook.com<\/i><\/p>\n

Read more Supreme Court sides with Trump in 2 high-profile immigration cases<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Former Cougars star Bronson Kaufusi talks BYU football recruiting \u2014 and a flag football game for a good cause <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2841,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2842","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sports"],"yoast_head":"\nBYU recruiting getting a boost from \u2018walking the walk\u2019 - American Movers Hub<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/americanmovershub.com\/?p=2842\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"BYU recruiting getting a boost from \u2018walking the walk\u2019 - American Movers Hub\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Former Cougars star Bronson Kaufusi talks BYU football recruiting \u2014 and a flag football game for a good cause\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/americanmovershub.com\/?p=2842\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"American Movers Hub\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-06-25T21:40:27+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanmovershub.com\\\/?p=2842#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanmovershub.com\\\/?p=2842\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanmovershub.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/b68c8483906c0d2987f271455f0177af\"},\"headline\":\"BYU recruiting getting a boost from \u2018walking the walk\u2019\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-06-25T21:40:27+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanmovershub.com\\\/?p=2842\"},\"wordCount\":770,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanmovershub.com\\\/?p=2842#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanmovershub.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/ba80bb3b00dcee631ffeefb9406f88a6.avif\",\"articleSection\":[\"Sports\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/americanmovershub.com\\\/?p=2842#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanmovershub.com\\\/?p=2842\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanmovershub.com\\\/?p=2842\",\"name\":\"BYU recruiting getting a boost from \u2018walking the walk\u2019 - 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