The BYU and Utah football programs kept pace with one another on the recruiting front in a unique way on Thursday, as both received commitments from pairs of twins.
Committing to the Cougars were Cameron and Nathan Latu of Olympus High School, while Tristin and Zyon McCollum of Ball High School in Galveston, Texas, pledged to the Utes.
BYU also received a commitment from Brandon Ale Kaho of Reno, Nevada, on Thursday. The Cougars have received nine commitments this week from players who will represent either the 2017, 2018 or 2019 classes.
Both the Latus and Kaho will be part of the 2018 class. The brothers were offered scholarships by the BYU staff on Monday, while Kaho was offered Thursday.
The Latus were not immediately available for comment, but Kaho shared how he felt as if he would get an offer after performing well at BYU's camp in Provo this week, and it came from new defensive coordinator Ilaisa Tuiaki.
Having consulted with his parents beforehand about the possibility of getting offered, he committed on the spot despite not having previous contact with the Cougar coaching staff.
His reasoning? Being a linebacker from Reno and a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Kaho grew up idolizing former BYU linebacker Kyle Van Noy, who also hails from Reno and is now a member of the NFL's Detroit Lions.
"The three days I came here, it just felt exactly like home except without my parents here," the 6-foot-2, 220-pounder said. "I fit in. I just like the atmosphere over here. It's different from other schools."
Kaho's commitment comes after receiving a scholarship offer from Utah on Wednesday.
As for the McCollum brothers, they announced via Twitter on Sunday that they had received scholarship offers from the Utes after a satellite camp last weekend.
Both standing 6-foot-1 and weighing about 175 pounds, the cornerbacks were also getting interest from Texas Tech, Sam Houston State and Texas-San Antonio.
They'll be part of the 2017 class.
"We've been playing football with each other for our whole lives," Tristin McCollum said. "That was our big dream, was to continue our football progression in the same place. It's just amazing that we get to achieve our dream."
The brothers did research about the academic and athletic programs at Utah, but it was the relationship they have built with new Utes defensive coordinator Morgan Scalley that ultimately sealed the deal.
"It really just got down to wanting to play for Coach Scalley," Zyon McCollum said. "Just wanted to be around that kind of environment that he put out."
Tristin McCollum echoed those sentiments.
"We really built a relationship, me and my brother, with him, and built a bond," he said. "Both of us loved him, and just loved the thought of playing football for his program in the Pac-12."
Playing in a Power 5 conference is something Zyon McCollum is certainly looking forward to.
"As a kid, I always dreamed of playing against schools like Oregon and USC," he said. "It's crazy that in a year, I will actually be on the field with those teams. It's awesome."
There are now three players committed to Utah for 2017. Snow College defensive lineman John Penisini committed in March.
Ryan McDonald is a sports reporter at DeseretNews.com. Follow him on Twitter @ryanwmcdonald.