Thanks to some early games outside of the state — and a full slate of high school football action in Utah — 13 of the combined 36 commits to either BYU or Utah in the Class of 2026 kicked off their senior seasons last week.
By this weekend, 18 of the 36 will have started their respective seasons and all but one will have kicked off the 2025 campaign by the end of August, giving fans of the Utes and Cougars something to follow outside of of the college game. It’s a chance to see what the future could look like for their favorite college team.
Several recruits from both BYU and Utah had standout games last weekend, and this week, the top-rated commit for both schools will kick off their seasons.
Here’s a rundown of how last week went and what to look forward to this week and beyond.
Tracking 2026 BYU commits in the 2025 season
Ryder Lyons, QB
Folsom High (Folsom, California)
247 Sports composite: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (0.9862 composite rating)
- Last week: Season hadn’t started
- This week: Saturday at Grant Union
Lyons, who committed to BYU in June, will open his season this weekend with a Saturday night game against a Grant squad that MaxPreps ranks second in California’s San-Joaquin Section, behind only Folsom. Grant Union is the defending CIF Division 2-AA state champions.
Brock Harris, TE
Pine View High (St. George)
247 Sports composite: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (0.9620 composite ranking)
- Last week: W, 51-45 over Manti
- 5 receptions, 159 yards, 3 touchdowns; 1 carry, 6 yards
- This week: Friday at Cedar City
What a statement to start the season.
Harris had a phenomenal first quarter, scoring three times in the opening period of a game delayed nearly two hours by weather.
He took the opening play of the game for a 76-yard touchdown on a screen pass and also scored on touchdown catches of 15 and 44 yards later in the quarter.
Bott Mulitalo, IOL
Lone Peak High (Highland)
247 Sports composite: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (0.9405 composite ranking)
- Last week: W, 49-14 over Crimson Cliffs
- This week: Friday vs. Orem
Mulitalo, the No. 1 offensive line recruit from the state of Utah, helped the Knights roll up 210 rushing yards and three rushing touchdowns on the ground in the blowout victory over Crimson Cliffs. Lone Peak averaged 8.1 yards on 26 carries.
Jax Tanner, IOL
Rocky Mountain High (Meridian, Idaho)
247 Sports composite: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (0.8967 composite ranking)
- Last week: Season hadn’t started
- This week: No game
Tanner and Rocky Mountain will kick off their season at home against Orem next Friday, Aug. 29.
Ty Goettsche, TE
Cherry Creek High (Englewood, Colorado)
247 Sports composite: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ (0.8889 composite ranking)
- Last week: Season hadn’t started
- This week: W, 45-10 over Regis Jesuit
As a junior last season, Goettsche played in nine games and had 13 catches for 165 yards and four touchdowns.
His Cherry Creek team won in a blowout in its season opener Thursday night. In the clip below, at the 0:37 mark, Goettsche can be seen making a 45-yard catch-and-run touchdown. Final statistics are not yet available.
Legend Glasker, WR
Lehi High (Lehi)
247 Sports composite: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ (0.8878 composite ranking)
- Last week: W, 55-0 over Maple Mountain
- 4 receptions, 90 yards, 2 touchdowns
- This week: Friday at Mountain Ridge
Glasker caught back-to-back touchdowns three minutes apart in the second quarter. First, there was a 34-yard score from quarterback Cash Hollingshead, followed by a 12-yard touchdown.
All four of Glasker’s receptions came in the first half of the blowout win.
Braxton Lindsey, LB
Rogers High (Rogers, Arkansas)
247 Sports composite: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ (0.8867 composite ranking)
- Last week: Season hadn’t started
- This week: No game
Lindsey and Rogers will open their 2025 campaign with a game at North Little Rock on Aug. 29. He is rated the No. 35 linebacker nationally in 247 Sports’ composite rankings and also plays wide receiver.
Kaue Akana, WR
Orem High (Orem)
247 Sports composite: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ (0.8856 composite ranking)
- Last week: W, 42-12 over Granger
- This week: Friday at Lone Peak
Akana missed the season opener due to injury, according to social media reports. He is coming off a season where he caught 76 passes for 1,227 yards and 14 touchdowns.
Jaxson Gates, CB
Damien High (La Verne, California)
247 Sports composite: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ (0.8789 composite ranking)
- Last week: Season hadn’t started
- This week: Friday at Aquinas
Gates, who flipped his commitment to BYU from Syracuse, had 30 tackles and six pass deflections a year ago, according to MaxPreps.
Matthew Mason, S
Faith Lutheran High (Las Vegas)
247 Sports composite: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ (0.8700 composite ranking)
- Last week: L, 24-21 to Desert Hills
- 13 tackles, 1 pass breakup, 1 blocked field goal, 1 blocked punt
- This week: Friday vs. Bakersfield Christian
Mason came up big both on defense and special teams — he blocked both a field-goal attempt and a punt and had nine solo tackles among his team-high 13 tackles, according to MaxPreps, in the close loss at Utah’s Desert Hills.
Adam Bywater, LB
Olympus High (Holladay)
247 Sports composite: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ (0.8700 composite ranking)
- Last week: W, 14-7 over Cedar Valley
- 9 tackles, 1 blocked field goal
- This week: Friday at East
Bywater’s nine tackles tied for second on the team in the seven-point, low-scoring victory. He also blocked a field-goal attempt, according to Total Blue Sports.
Lopeti Moala, Edge
Orem High (Orem)
247 Sports composite: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ (0.8678 composite ranking)
- Last week: W, 42-12 over Granger
- 8 tackles, 6 sacks
- This week: Friday at Lone Peak
Moala had a dominant night in the Tigers’ season opener, finishing with six sacks and was second on the team in tackles.
PJ Takitaki, Edge
Lehi High (Lehi)
247 Sports composite: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ (0.8678 composite ranking)
- Last week: W, 55-0 over Maple Mountain
- 4 tackles
- This week: Friday at Mountain Ridge
Takitaki was fourth on the team with four tackles in Lehi’s dominant season-opening win. Takitaki has had nine sacks each of the past two seasons.
Nehemiah Kolone, DL
Stillwater High (Stillwater, Oklahoma)
247 Sports composite: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ (0.8650 composite ranking)
- Last week: Season hadn’t started
- This week: No game
Kolone and Stillwater will open the season Aug. 27 at Norman North in a rare Wednesday game.
Sefanaia Alatini, ATH
Saint Francis High (Mountain View, California)
247 Sports composite: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ (0.8650 composite ranking)
- Last week: Season hadn’t started
- This week: No game
It will be another week before Alatini and Saint Francis open their 2025 season at Cathedral Catholic on Aug. 29. Alatini, who plays cornerback and wide receiver, had 72 tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss and two interceptions last season, according to MaxPreps.
Antonio Johnson, CB
Arlington Heights High (Fort Worth, Texas)
247 Sports composite: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ (0.8633 composite ranking)
- Last week: Season hadn’t started
- This week: No game
Johnson and Arlington Heights start the year next week with a game at Everman on Aug. 29.
Terrance Saryon, WR
Evergreen High (Vancouver, Washington)
247 Sports composite: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ (0.8622 composite ranking)
- Last week: Season hadn’t started
- This week: No game
Saryon and Evergreen won’t begin their season until Sept. 5 with a road game at Union. Saryon, a former Washington commit, had 39 receptions for 818 yards and eight touchdowns in eight games played last season, according to MaxPreps, while adding eight carries for 36 yards.
Parker Ord, TE
Panther Creek High (Frisco, Texas)
247 Sports composite: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ (0.8600 composite ranking)
- Last week: Season hadn’t started
- This week: No game
Ord and Panther Creek will open the season next week on Aug. 28 vs Lake View. Ord had 28 receptions for 460 yards and six touchdowns in 2024, according to MaxPreps.
Justice Brathwaite, CB
Higley High (Gilbert, Arizona)
247 Sports composite: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ (0.8556 composite ranking)
- Last week: Season hadn’t started
- This week: No game
Brathwaite and Higley will open the 2025 season next week on Aug. 28 vs. Highland. Brathwaite is the son of former BYU running back Reynaldo Brathwaite. He had 39 tackles, two tackles for loss and a team-high three interceptions last season, according to MaxPreps.
Graham Livingston, WR
Ridgeline High (Millville)
247 Sports composite: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ (0.8300 composite ranking)
- Last week: W, 34-14 over Morgan
- 16 receptions, 176 yards, 3 touchdowns
- This week: Friday at Park City
Livingston, who had nearly 3,000 receiving yards over the past two years, set a career high with 16 receptions in the win over Morgan.
It was the fifth three-touchdown game of Livingston’s career, according to MaxPreps.
His two second-half touchdowns helped Ridgeline pull away from the Trojans.
Tracking 2026 Utah commits in the 2025 season
Kelvin Obot, OT
Fruitland High (Fruitland, Idaho)
247 Sports composite: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (0.9587 composite ranking)
- Last week: Season hadn’t started
- This week: Saturday at Kimberly
Obot is ranked a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️-star recruit and the No. 7 overall player in the 2026 class by Rivals. He is the top-rated Idaho prospect and the latest in a long line of high-end tackles to commit to Utah.
Jaron Pula, WR
Lone Peak High (Highland)
247 Sports composite: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ (0.8894 composite ranking)
- Last week: W, 49-14 over Crimson Cliffs
- 5 receptions, 64 yards, 1 touchdown
- This week: Friday vs. Orem
Pula, who along with his twin brother Kennan flipped from UCLA to Utah, teamed with his brother to help the Knights blow out the defending 4A champions.
Jaron Pula had a team-high five receptions in the win and scored on a 5-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter.
Kennan Pula, WR
Lone Peak High (Highland)
247 Sports composite: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ (0.8856 composite ranking)
- Last week: W, 49-14 over Crimson Cliffs
- 3 receptions, 87 yards, 2 touchdowns
- This week: Friday vs. Orem
Kennan Pula outscored his brother, hauling in two long touchdown grabs in the win.
The first came in the second quarter, as he caught a 61-yarder to give Lone Peak a 21-7 lead one minute after Crimson Cliffs made it a seven-point game.
Pula then added a second long touchdown — this one from 35 yards — with eight seconds left in the second quarter to start a run of 28 unanswered points for the Knights.
Preston Pitts, Edge
Clear Falls High (League City, Texas)
247 Sports composite: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ (0.8822 composite ranking)
- Last week: Season hadn’t started
- This week: No game
Pitts and Clear Falls will kick off their 2025 season next week with a home game against Fort Bend Hightower on Aug. 29. Pitts had a whooping 116 tackles, 27.5 tackles for loss, nine sacks and an interception for Clear Falls last season, according to MaxPreps.
LaMarcus Bell, RB
Lake Oswego High (Lake Oswego, Oregon)
247 Sports composite: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ (0.8767 composite ranking)
- Last week: Season hadn’t started
- This week: No game
Bell and Lake Oswego will start their 2025 season next week on Aug. 29 at South Medford. Lake Oswego is ranked No. 2 in the state of Oregon by MaxPreps.
Bell ran for 1,538 yards and 25 touchdowns with an 8.9 per-carry average last season, when Lake Oswego was the state runners-up in the 6A Open classification, finishing with an 11-1 record.
Moses Sparks Jr., IOL
Cleveland High (Rio Rancho, New Mexico)
247 Sports composite: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ (0.8750 composite ranking)
- Last week: Season hadn’t started
- This week: Saturday at Centennial
Sparks helped Cleveland win the Class 6A state championship last season, as the Storm finished the year with a 12-1 record while averaging 209.5 rushing yards per game.
Michael Johnson, QB
Douglas County High (Douglasville, Georgia)
247 Sports composite: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ (0.8750 composite ranking)
- Last week: W, 21-7 over North Gwinnett
- 59 passing yards, 1 touchdown; 4 carries, 49 rushing yards
- This week: Friday at Jonesboro
Johnson and Douglas County were victorious in the final game of the Corky Kell + Dave Hunter Classic, played at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, home of the Atlanta Falcons.
He threw a touchdown in the second quarter to give his team a 21-7 lead.
Later in the second quarter, though, Johnson was hurt on a run and did not play in the second half, according to Sports Illustrated’s Levi Payton.
When he exited the game, Johnson had accounted for 108 total yards and led three touchdown drives.
Javion Ramon, DL
Monterey High (Lubbock, Texas)
247 Sports composite: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ (0.8700 composite ranking)
- Last week: Season hadn’t started
- This week: No game
Ramon and Monterey will begin their 2025 season next week on Aug. 29 against Choctaw.
LaGary Mitchell, LB
Meridian High (Meridian, Idaho)
247 Sports composite: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ (0.8700 composite ranking)
- Last week: Season hadn’t started
- This week: No game
Mitchell and Meridian open the 2025 season on the road next week in a game at Eagle on Aug. 29. Mitchell originally committed to Boise State, but flipped his commitment after visiting Utah.
Major Hinchen, CB
La Quinta High (La Quinta, California)
247 Sports composite: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ (0.8678 composite ranking)
- Last week: Season hadn’t started
- This week: No game
Hichen and La Quinta open their 2025 campaign at Yuca Valley on Aug. 29. Hinchen, who’s also a returner and has played some on offense, had 21 tackles, three pass deflections, two interceptions, a tackle for loss and a forced fumble last season, according to MaxPreps.
Perrion Williams, ATH
Archbishop Riordan High (San Francisco)
247 Sports composite: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ (0.8650 composite ranking)
- Last week: Season hadn’t started
- This week: No game
Williams and Archbishop Riordan will begin their season the same day as Utah, when they host McClymonds on Aug. 30. Williams previously played at Saint Francis, where he had 95 receptions for 1,412 yards and 16 touchdowns over his sophomore and junior seasons, according to MaxPreps.
Aisa Galea’i, S
Orem High (Orem)
247 Sports composite: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ (0.8600 composite ranking)
- Last week: W, 42-12 over Granger
- This week: Friday at Lone Peak
Galea’i didn’t record any stats in the Tigers’ season opener. He previously played at Timpview, where he had 74 tackles, six interceptions and three sacks a year ago.
Dylan Waters, CB
Fort Bend Marshall High (Missouri City, Texas)
247 Sports composite: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ (0.8600 composite ranking)
- Last week: Season hadn’t started
- This week: No game
Waters and Fort Bend Marshall have one more week until they open the season at Friendswood on Aug. 29. Waters had 20 tackles and three pass deflections last season for Fort Bend Marshall, according to MaxPreps.
Rowdy Pearce, IOL
Midland Christian High (Midland, Texas)
247 Sports composite: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ (0.8600 composite ranking)
- Last week: Season hadn’t started
- This week: No game
Pearce and Midland Christian will begin their 2025 season next week, when they host Graham on Aug. 29. Pearce helped Midland Christian average 180.8 rushing yards per game.
Carter Stewart, S
Shadow Creek High (Pearland, Texas)
247 Sports composite: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ (0.8450 composite ranking)
- Last week: Season hadn’t started
- This week: No game
Stewart and Shadow Creek will kick off their season next week on Aug. 29, when they host Summer Creek. Stewart played both ways for Shadow Creek a year ago, finishing the season with 21 tackles, six pass deflections and a fumble recovery while leading the team with 60 receptions for 922 yards and 15 touchdowns, according to MaxPreps.
Bear Fisher, TE
Queen Creek High (Queen Creek, Arizona)
247 Sports composite: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ (0.8350 composite ranking)
- Last week: Season hadn’t started
- This week: No game
Fisher and Queen Creek will begin their 2025 season next week when they travel to Mojave on Aug. 29. Fisher, who catches passes from Clemson quarterback commit Tait Reynolds, had 13 receptions for 160 yards and a touchdown a year ago, according to MaxPreps.