Although he still gets a good chuckle over the mistake that EA Sports’ “College Football 27″ made in July when it depicted him as being of a different race, BYU’s Cannon DeVries hopes he will now be known more for his plays on the football field than a botched likeness on a video game.
The sophomore defensive back from North Ogden and Weber High made that a possibility last Saturday. DeVries returned two punts for a combined 73 yards and a kickoff 100 yards for a touchdown in BYU’s 63-7 win over Utah Tech.
The big returns helped him earn Big 12 Special Teams Player of the Week honors, but, more importantly, gave him a healthy dose of confidence as he enters his second season in Provo.
“Yeah, it meant a lot. That is something that I had the goal to reach and to get, so to get it the first week was pretty special for me,” DeVries said after BYU’s practice Wednesday. “As a young kid, I always believed that I could do special things on the field, so being able to go out and do them was definitely a dream come true.”
DeVries also got the start in the defensive backfield from his nickel position and recorded a tackle. He was just as thrilled that secondary mates Tre Alexander, Evan Johnson and Matthias Leach recorded interceptions in the opener.
“It was a memorable night for a lot of us,” he said.
It was BYU’s first kickoff return for a touchdown since Talan Alfrey took Houston’s onside kick 58 yards to the end zone in 2024. Head coach Kalani Sitake said he wasn’t surprised. He’s been watching DeVries make big plays on special teams for years.
“He’s been doing that since high school. You guys know, you’ve seen the highlights that he’s done,” Sitake said Monday. “He’s an amazing returner, and he has an amazing IQ when it comes to knowing how to view the whole field in the return game.
“You gotta be light on your feet, be ready to make a juke when it is needed, and you gotta be fearless, too. You can’t be scared back there because that’s when bad things happen. Confidence is the key.”
— BYU return specialist Cannon DeVries on what makes a good returner
“I think you either have it, or you don’t, and he has it. So it’s nice that (he’s young). He’s got a lot of years to be doing that too. … We have a lot of guys that can do it. I don’t think we need just one guy to do it, but he’s probably made a good case for himself to be the kick returner and punt returner.”
The positions were up for grabs entering the 2026 season after all-Big 12 specialist Parker Kingston was dismissed from the team last February. After Saturday’s debut, it appears that DeVries will have it for a long time.
“I just came in very confident. I’ve done punt returns and kick returns my whole life, so I had a lot of faith and trust in myself,” DeVries said. “It’s always great when coaches and teammates have my back coming in. They knew I could go in and do the job. It wouldn’t have worked without them, without my teammates, being able to block things up the right way. I am just one part of the piece. And so it’s pretty awesome when it all comes together.”
DeVries said he had “hundreds of text messages from friends, family, a bunch of people from my mission and people who have been a part of my life for a long time” on his phone when he logged on after the game, including one from Kingston himself.
“Me and Parker are good friends. We grew up in northern Utah together, played basketball and football together, and have always been good buddies,” DeVries said. “So yeah, he definitely showed some love and support.”
Running back Preston Rex, who has also been a candidate to return kicks, said nobody was surprised when DeVries took it to the house.
“If you run the Weber High School film, you’ll see that Cannon’s been doing this for a long time,” Rex said. “So it was really awesome to see him do it in a game. I’m glad he’s getting his opportunity, filling that hole. He’s been doing it in practice, and he’s super shifty, super fast. I wasn’t surprised.”
What’s DeVries’ secret?
DeVries said he’s always had a knack for making long returns — he returned five interceptions for touchdowns in high school — partly because he’s got outstanding speed. He ran a 10.81 in the 100 meters at the 6A state track meet and was a 6A finalist along with former teammate Cody Hagen, former Utah standout Smith Snowden, and the aforementioned Kingston.
“I think it just comes down to confidence, knowing that when the ball’s in the air, you’re going to come away with it, and when it’s in your hands, that you are going to make a play.
“You gotta be light on your feet, be ready to make a juke when it is needed, and you gotta be fearless, too,” he continued. “You can’t be scared back there because that’s when bad things happen. Confidence is the key.”
As far as being a position player, DeVries was with the cornerbacks last year but has made the switch back to the safeties room, working with Demario Warren and former BYU and NFL standout Daniel Sorensen. Although he’s listed as a nickel on the depth chart with freshman Crew Clark while Jonathan Kabeya remains out with an injury, he works out with the safeties.
“I mostly do nickel stuff, but in meetings, we’re in the safeties room,” he said.
Said new cornerbacks coach Lewis Walker: “Cannon has done a tremendous job ever since we got here in the winter. … The vision that he has and the trust that he has in the guys blocking for him, and in himself, is special.”
‘Everyone found it super hilarious’
As for the video game goof that “was a hot topic around the locker room” for a couple of weeks, DeVries said he was never offended or put off by the gaffe.
“People from back home, just my friends down here, everyone found it super hilarious,” he said. “It was a really fun moment, and we have joked about it a lot. It’s a good laugh now, even when you still pull up the picture. I got a good chuckle out of it.”
DeVries says he still has no idea whom the video game was trying to depict.
“Just some random guy, I guess,” he said.
Thanks to Saturday’s performance, the same can’t be said about him.