{"id":2993,"date":"2026-06-28T08:07:17","date_gmt":"2026-06-28T08:07:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/americanmovershub.com\/?p=2993"},"modified":"2026-06-28T08:07:17","modified_gmt":"2026-06-28T08:07:17","slug":"collin-chandler-played-at-kentucky-but-never-stopped-pulling-for-byu","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/americanmovershub.com\/?p=2993","title":{"rendered":"Collin Chandler played at Kentucky, but never stopped pulling for BYU"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

There is a sting that hits at the end of a season, especially when it ends earlier than expected. <\/p>\n

Read more Utah ranked second-best road-tripping state<\/a><\/p>\n

Moments after Kentucky\u2019s 82-63 loss to Iowa State in the second round of the NCAA Tournament in March, a disappointed and pained Collin Chandler sat at his locker in the Enterprise Center in St. Louis and did something he hadn\u2019t allowed himself to do before \u2013 consider his future.<\/p>\n

\u201cI tried to shut down all the talk (of transferring) whenever somebody tried to bring it up or when the idea came up, all talk of any portal stuff before the season was over,\u201d Chandler told the \u201cY\u2019s Guys\u201d livestream show this week. <\/p>\n

\u201cI felt I owed it to the guys, to (head) coach (Mark) Pope, to all the coaches, to focus and lock in to the very end, until the buzzer sounded and it was over.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sitting there in St. Louis, it was over and the time had arrived for a game changing conversation. <\/p>\n

Chandler signed with BYU out of Farmington High, and then followed Pope, the former Cougars coach, to Kentucky after his church mission to Sierra Leone, West Africa and London, England. <\/p>\n

Two years later, and facilitated by the freedom of the transfer portal, the idea of moving back home grew more attractive by the day.<\/p>\n

\u201cI kinda knew,\u201d Hannah Chandler told the \u201cY\u2019s Guys\u201d of her husband\u2019s desire to play for BYU. <\/p>\n

The pair of lifelong friends were married 13 months ago. <\/p>\n

\u201cJust with family and everybody talking about it and (Collin) not wanting to talk about it, so they would come talk to me about it, and they would say, \u2018Don\u2019t tell Collin!\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

Even as Kentucky marched through their up and down 2025-26 season, wherein Collin posted a season-high 23 points against Vanderbilt, the sharpshooter kept his eyes on what the Cougars were up to.<\/p>\n

\u201cI watched pretty much every game and was cheering for them. What a fun group to watch,\u201d he said. \u201cI don\u2019t know if the thought (of playing at BYU) actually came into my mind, but since I watched them so much, I\u2019m excited for how I am going to play with them.\u201d<\/p>\n

Decision day arrived in early April.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe put a lot of prayer and thought into it and just wanted it to feel right,\u201d Hannah said. \u201cI just kind of let him decide on his own. I didn\u2019t want to put in too much or not enough, just kind of being there as a listener.\u201d<\/p>\n

Collin entered the transfer portal on April 9.<\/p>\n

\u201cHannah has gotten a lot of flack for my transfer \u2014 more than I have,\u201d he said. \u201cI think people thought she swayed me to come home. It was a lot of conversations and prayer together.\u201d<\/p>\n

And a temple visit.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe went to the temple with my parents and that was the night that we wanted to figure it out,\u201d Collin said. \u201cWe told my parents on the ride home. <\/p>\n

\u201cI think being home brings another aspect to the game that we are excited for.\u201d<\/p>\n

Collin announced his commitment to BYU on April 11. When he helps lead the Cougars against Ohio State in the Nov. 2 season opener at the Delta Center, his BYU debut will come nearly five years and a lot of miles from the day he made his original commitment on Nov. 10, 2021 in the Farmington High gymnasium.<\/p>\n

Kevin Young and the Cougars get a 6-foot-5 guard who shot 41% from the field and 39% from the three-point line while averaging 9.7 points in 31 starts last season. <\/p>\n

BYU also gets a guy whose mettle has already faced the refiner\u2019s fire of the SEC.<\/p>\n

\u201cI watched the Big 12 all year. The similar physicality that is required to play is something I had to learn, something I had to fight for,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n

Read more Darryn Peterson gets his first Jazz assist from Kyle Filipowski, who gave up jersey No. 22<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cIn the SEC, you are playing the Florida Gators, and it feels like they are playing three huge centers the whole game and making things difficult. Coming into the Big 12, where Arizona, Kansas and others are big, I\u2019ve gotten a feel for that a little bit.\u201d<\/p>\n

Doing hard things<\/h3>\n

Not long after finishing his decorated career at Farmington High, Chandler left on a two-year church mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints that started in Africa and ended in England. <\/p>\n

It is there where he learned he could do hard things. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not always easy and great and awesome and sunshine. Literally in London, not much sunshine,\u201d he said as he battled human nature that adds weight to the daily grind with \u201cI don\u2019t want to get up and serve. I want to think about myself. That was so hard for a while.\u201d<\/p>\n

In time, as with his jump shot, Chandler figured it out.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think that was a huge growing moment for me as a person, learning consistency when I don\u2019t want to do things,\u201d he said. \u201cI had to learn to love it and have fun in things that I didn\u2019t have the desire to do at that moment.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s come with basketball. Even though it\u2019s a game and you love it, some days you don\u2019t feel as motivated to go put in the extra work and have a good attitude, especially when you are leading, to bring energy and be vocal. That\u2019s something I\u2019ve learned as a person that\u2019s helped me a ton.\u201d<\/p>\n

Chandler was a celebrity around Lexington, with autograph seekers and picture takers at every turn. There will be plenty of that at BYU \u2014 and something much more meaningful.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s different here because you get to have a platform with people who have the same beliefs as you,\u201d he said. \u201cAt the (BYU) fathers and sons (camp), I got to speak to all the kids and share my experience about my mission and hopefully let the Spirit touch them and inspire them to go serve the Lord. <\/p>\n

\u201cI think it\u2019s just a cool opportunity and a special platform.\u201d<\/p>\n

Tying the knot<\/h3>\n

The Chandlers didn\u2019t get married until May 8, 2025, but they tied the knot way back in the third grade.<\/p>\n

\u201cI saw her one time (and) she was tying her shoes,\u201d Collin said. \u201cShe was doing, like, two bunny ears and it was taking two minutes.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe were touching knees,\u201d Hannah remembered.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was like, \u2018You know, there is a faster way you can do that, so I taught her how to tie her shoes,\u201d Collin said.<\/p>\n

The two have been tied to each other ever since.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m glad that we started it as a friendship,\u201d Collin said, \u201cbecause I think that built a huge foundation for us to continue our relationship.\u201d<\/p>\n

A relationship that has come to Provo where the pressure of the SEC has been swapped out for the Big 12 \u2014 arguably an even better basketball conference, which poses challenges for both Collin and Hannah.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen I watch it\u2019s a struggle for me and his mom (Jennifer),\u201d Hannah said. \u201cHis mom can\u2019t even watch. I\u2019m telling her what\u2019s going on. <\/p>\n

\u201cYou do feel the pressure because I love him, I care about him and I want him to succeed.\u201d<\/p>\n

The sting from March\u2019s defeat against Iowa State and his two-year run at Kentucky is long gone for Collin Chandler \u2014 replaced with renewed hope, optimism and a lot of home cooking at BYU. <\/p>\n

Even better, the former Deseret News Mr. Basketball honoree will get another shot at the Cyclones when Iowa State comes to Provo this winter and possibly another one in the Big 12 Tournament.<\/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 Sports on the air: Here\u2019s what games are on TV and radio for the week of June 28-July 4<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Collin Chandler transferred from the Kentucky Wildcats to the BYU Cougars basketball program this offseason.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2992,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2993","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sports"],"yoast_head":"\nCollin Chandler played at Kentucky, but never stopped pulling for BYU - 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=2993\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Collin Chandler played at Kentucky, but never stopped pulling for BYU - American Movers Hub\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Collin Chandler transferred from the Kentucky Wildcats to the BYU Cougars basketball program this offseason.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/americanmovershub.com\/?p=2993\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"American Movers Hub\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-06-28T08:07:17+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=\"7 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanmovershub.com\\\/?p=2993#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanmovershub.com\\\/?p=2993\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanmovershub.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/b68c8483906c0d2987f271455f0177af\"},\"headline\":\"Collin Chandler played at Kentucky, but never stopped pulling for BYU\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-06-28T08:07:17+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanmovershub.com\\\/?p=2993\"},\"wordCount\":1371,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanmovershub.com\\\/?p=2993#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanmovershub.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/fe4e83e5ff9fb7e995669958619fc8b4.avif\",\"articleSection\":[\"Sports\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/americanmovershub.com\\\/?p=2993#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanmovershub.com\\\/?p=2993\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanmovershub.com\\\/?p=2993\",\"name\":\"Collin Chandler played at Kentucky, but never stopped pulling for BYU - 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