Brody Kozlowski is slated to be a huge addition to the BYU basketball team, but his little brothers may surpass him someday.
That’s the assessment of a proud uncle, Glen Kozlowski, one of the most dominating receivers in BYU football history.
“Brody’s brothers may be better,” said Glen earlier this week.
Kozlowski should know how these brother things work. He had two older brothers, Mike and Richard, who made him a pretty good athlete.
As the youngest, Glen was the object of their fun and games. Competitively, they drilled Glen into the ground, so much so that they created a kind of monster. Their relentless picking on him made him strong as rebar. By the time he got to Carlsbad High, he was an intimidating athlete, a fearless warrior, who didn’t hesitate to take on challengers and beat them into submission. His college quarterback, Robbie Bosco, says Kozlowski is the toughest guy he’s ever known.
Nephew Brody, who signed with USC out of Corner Canyon this past fall before switching to BYU in April, is a two-time 6A Player of the Year. He is the son of Richard and Julie Kozlowski’s son Travis (another BYU football player). Brody’s mother Kristen is one of BYU’s all-time women’s basketball stars.
Glen often jokes that his nephew Travis did it right by marrying a 6-foot-2 Division I athlete like Kristen so they could produce athletes.
Travis and Kristen are just starting with Brody. The three younger brothers are following in the footsteps of their older sibling.
Kristen says she has witnessed the Richard/Mike Kozlowski forging going on with her oldest sons Brody and Jace pounding on Ty and Rosco. “They’ve made them as feisty and fiery as can be.”
She says her sons seem to have that Kozlowski switch. When its turned on, they get a look in their eyes and it’s full on.
Jace, who is 16, is 6-foot-6, 240 and is a junior at Corner Canyon. He loves football and plays defensive end and tackle.
Ty just turned 13, is in the eighth grade and is 6-2. He excels as a basketball player and some family members believe he might have more natural talent than Brody. They believe he is Brody 2.0. “We kind of tell how they grow by shoe size,” said Kristen. “Ty is size 14. Brody is size 17.”
Rosco, 11, plays quarterback and has turned heads playing that position. “He has a lot of Glen in him. He’s our fastest and quickest,” said Kristen.
Glen, a former Chicago Bear, has his eyes on Rosco and believes he has what it takes to develop into a QB talent. If so, Corner Canyon seems to grow them out of some kind of weed patch there in Draper.
On Friday, Kristen drove Ty and Rosco to the airport to play summer travel team ball. Rosco plays on the seven-on-seven circuit and recently won the Ute Raid competition. He plays for the Utah Drive hoops team that is 4-0.
Ty plays for the Stretch Hustle Under Armour team involved in a summer circuit, the top team in Utah that is ranked No. 1 in the West.
If any of them will catch up with big brother Brody, they’ve got some spadework to do. But they’re on track.
They are thrilled when Uncle Glen comes to their games, as he often does.
The brothers have a younger sister named Maya, who is in the first grade. Kristen’s glad to have a tall little girl to side with in the family.
Adam Finkelstein, director of scouting for 247Sports, says Brody has uncanny strength, which leads to his ability to hit the boards and dominate at the high school level. New BYU basketball coach Kevin Young is hoping that, plus his shooting acumen, will lead to a lot of production this coming season.
Wrote Finkelstein:
“Kozlowski isn’t going to overwhelm you with length or athleticism, but he’s extremely productive because of his skill level, physical strength and offensive versatility.
“He’s a true mismatch problem and scoring threat from multiple spots on the floor. He’s a consistent shooting threat from behind the arc who can space the court, play out of pick-and-pop action, or come off short screens.
“Kozlowski can also play inside with his back to the basket. He uses his body, absorbs contact and has terrific balance. He cuts well, is sound fundamentally, and knows how to operate within offensive structure. Defensively, he could be a little more limited, because he can be a bit upright and lacks great foot-speed, but can again utilize his strength and intelligence to be in the right spots.”
In four state playoff games for Corner Canyon’s 6A run, Brody averaged 23 points a game and made 28 of 43 shots with 12 of 19 makes from beyond the arc.
There’s been a lot said and written about the 6-8 guard, Egor Demin, an 18-year-old Russian who played for Real Madrid and is expected to sign with BYU. Demin is projected to be a 2025 NBA lottery pick.
But don’t sleep on Brody.
Or, in time, maybe his siblings.