BYU head coach Kalani Sitake ushered the bulk of his 2024 signing class Wednesday — and drew a line on where he stands on how much Name, Image and Likeness money should play a role in recruiting in his program.
When asked if BYU could win recruiting battles with other Power Five schools down the road — and presumably compete with their NIL war chests — Sitake said NIL is not something he will emphasize on the recruiting trail like other schools.
“Everyone is going to the one thing they can try to sell the most, and that’s the money,” Sitake said. “We have way more than that. There [are] way more layers than that here. And that is not the focus. We are never going to be a program focused on the money as the attraction.”
As it stands currently, BYU’s class ranks 56th in the country in high school recruiting. That is a slight bump up from 66th last year, but the average recruit’s rating is still last in the Big 12.
Sitake knows that bumping that up would mean continuing to compete in recruiting battles with other Power Five schools. But he said he won’t resort to NIL as a selling point to do it.
“What the attraction is [at BYU] ... is about people. And that is our currency,” Sitake said. “We have enough to take care of our players here. We also know there are way more valuable things than just cash. The value of mentoring. The value of leadership and camaraderie, fellowship. To build yourself spiritually, physically and mentally. We have all those things. When you look at it, we are able to highlight it and not just be about one thing. "
While Sitake said he had “enough to take care” of players, he wouldn’t be the first coach at BYU to raise NIL concerns. Last April, BYU head basketball coach Mark Pope indicated NIL was a roadblock to recruiting at the school and said the program lost one of its better transfers, Ques Glover, because of NIL.
Sitake did not go that far — only saying he didn’t want money to be the main part of his recruiting pitch.
“That is the challenge. When you talk about money, that is all it becomes about,” he said. “And that is not what we are ever going to do. We will focus on the spirit first, go from there and build a program the right way. You do things the right way, the outcome and the product will be the wins. And that is where we need to be.”
BYU finished 5-7 in its first Big 12 season and missed a bowl game for the first time since 2017. The Cougars retained most of their players in the transfer portal this cycle.
“Obviously we have some really cool things going,” Sitake said. “We still have some work to do. We know that. But we are going to do it with a positive outlook... We are going to be the best versions of ourselves so we get the program out there when we take the field in 2024.”
BYU signees
Therrian “Tre” Alexander III — CB — Southwest DeKalb HS
Ephraim Asiata — DE — Herriman HS
Joe Brown — OL — Lone Peak HS
Siosefa Brown — DE — Highland HS
Dallin Johnson — DT — Springville HS
Jonathan Kabeya — CB — Byron Nelson HS
Jack Kelly — LB — Weber State
Brody Laga — K — Mountain Ridge HS
Matthias Leach — S — Chilsolm Trail HS
Blake Lowe — LB — Chaparral HS
Noah Lugo — QB — Eaton HS
Jett Nelson — WR — American Fork HS
Viliami Po’uha — DE — Bingham HS
Tommy Prassas — S — Basha HS
Adney Reid — DE — The King’s School (AUS)
Danny Saili — DT — Hutchinson Community College
Cannon Skidmore — LS — Red Mountain HS
Carson Su’esu’e — ATH — Granger HS
Ryner Swanson — TE — Laguna Beach HS
Luke To’omalatai — DE — Citrus College
Devoux Tuataga — DE — Cedar Valley HS
Ikinasio Tupou — OL — Palo Alto HS
Sam Vander Haar — P — Pittsburgh University
Enoch Watson — QB — American Leadership Academy
