It’s no secret that BYU Cougar football fans at LaVell Edwards Stadium are known for being very kind and hospitable toward fans of opposing teams, and this week they were recognized for that kindness and hospitality by the father of a very notable opposing player.
The Cougars, of course, played the Arizona Wildcats last Saturday at the stadium, and on Tuesday, Les Fifita, the father of Wildcats star quarterback Noah Fifita, took to social media to thank BYU and its fans for the experience he and his family had.
“So much love and respect for BYU ... and the people of Provo,” he wrote on X, tagging Cougars head coach Kalani Sitake and associate head coach/defensive tackles coach Sione Po’uha," Les Fifita wrote.
“From the minute we parked, it was “Welcome to Provo,” “Good luck today,” “Go Cats.” People offered us food and drinks from their tailgates. Inside the stadium, same thing even ice cream at 2nd quarter. And their crowd was electric."
Fifita continued that he sat in a wheelchair-accessible seating area with his father-in-law, who was wearing his grandson’s jersey, yet BYU fans “constantly checked on him and treated him with nothing but respect, even when Arizona made a play.”
Then came the main point of Fifita’s message.
“Made me think, this is what real competition should look like. Welcome people into your home, treat them with respect and grace, then when the ball is kicked off, try to knock each other’s heads off,” he wrote.
Fifita is the co-founder and president of a youth football league in Southern California and said his experience in Provo inspired how he wants his league to run.
“I told our staff: make everyone feel welcome,” he wrote. “If someone genuinely can’t pay at the door, let them in. Let them watch their kid. If we want to change the culture at the high school and college level, it starts in youth.”
The Fifitas are vocal about their Christian faith, and Les Fifita closed his message about that.
“And I don’t think it’s a coincidence faith is at the center of BYU’s culture,” he wrote. “Jesus welcomed everyone to His table. Compete hard. Cheer loud. Want to win BAD. But still love people. Appreciate the love, Provo.”
The Cougars won Saturday’s showdown 28-17. In the losing effort, Noah Fifita completed 23 of 31 pass attempts for 230 yards with a touchdown and an interception, and added 38 rushing yards on 11 carries with a touchdown.
