PROVO, Utah — BYU football head coach Kalani Sitake announced 18 high school signees to the 2025 recruiting class on Wednesday’s first day of the December early signing period.
“I’m really excited about the talent in this class and the relationship that we’ve built with these young men and their families,” Sitake said. “The players joining our program are those that want to be at BYU for the right reasons and we are looking forward to mentoring them and helping them develop and achieve their goals. I also have a lot of gratitude to express to our recruiting department and the people that work behind the scenes in recruiting, from the university, faculty, staff, our players, fans and all those that promote the brand of BYU.”
The 18 recruits who signed on Wednesday’s first day of the signing period include 10 offensive players, seven defensive and one specialist. Profiles on all the BYU signees can be viewed on BYU’s Signing Day Central as well as any updates taking place during the December signing period and on National Signing Day on Feb. 5.
On Wednesday, BYU signed players from seven different states, including six in-state products from Utah. In addition to the local prospects, five are from California, two from Hawaii, from Oregon and one each from Nevada, Georgia and Missouri.
OFFENSE
On the offensive side, the Cougars add three offensive lineman, three tight ends, two running backs, one wide receiver and another athlete who could play at either quarterback or tight end.
Up front, the offensive line is bolstered by Rivals.com four-star lineman Austin Pay from Lone Peak.
Pay is the younger brother of current BYU offensive linemen Connor and Trevor Pay and son of former BYU lineman Garry Pay. The 6-foot-7, 295-pounder rated the No. 5 overall player in Utah and No. 39 offensive tackle in the nation.
BYU also added Andrew Williams and Siosiua Finau. Williams is another offensive tackle body at 6-foot-8 and 280 pounds from Kirksville High School in Missouri, while Finau also brings another big frame at 6-foot-6 and 295 pounds out of Alameda High School in Oakland.
BYU added three to the tight end room in Tucker Kelleher, Blake Bryce and Jackson Doman. Kelleher, a 6-foot-6, 225-pounder from Alpharetta, Georgia, is a skilled pass catcher and physical blocker who also played lacrosse. Bryce, 6-foot-5, 235 pounds from Camarillo, California, was a first-team all-league player and top 100 player in California at Newbury Park High School. Doman, a familiar name to BYU football, comes from Canby, Oregon, where at 6-foot-6, 220 pounds he was a two-way player earning all-league honors on offense and defense and also won a state title in wrestling.
Nolan Keeney, a 6-foot-5, 226-pound quarterback from Tualatin, Oregon, threw for more than 6,200 yards and 76 touchdowns in high school. An elite athlete with a big frame, Keeney could also play multiple positions, including tight end.
Two running backs join the fold, including Cale Breslin and Kingston Keanaaina. Breslin, 5-foot-11, 186 pounds, prepped at Faith Lutheran in Las Vegas and is rated Nevada’s No. 11 overall player. He ran for 2,810 yards and 32 scores in high school, including 15 games of 100 yards or more. Keanaaina, a 6-foot, 205-pounder from Saint Francis High School in Union City, California, ran for 2,300 yards and 23 touchdowns as a senior and was the section and league player of the year. He posted more than 5,700 all-purpose yards and 47 touchdowns at Saint Francis.
One wide receiver joins the program in the class with Rivals.com four-star wideout Lamason Waller III. The 6-foot-1, 178-pound Waller was rated the No. 30 overall player in California out of Oak Hills High School. Waller posted 2,945 career receiving yards and 41 touchdowns as a three-time Maxpreps All-American honoree.
On offense, Breslin, Kelleher, Waller and Williams are expected to be midyear enrollees while Bryce, Doman, Keeney, Keanaaina and Pay are expected to serve missions for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints before enrolling.
DEFENSE & SPECIAL TEAMS
Defensively, BYU added five defensive lineman, two linebackers and one kicker/punter to the fold.
With the trenches being a focus, the Cougars picked up five players who can play on the edge with some who can move inside to the tackle position
BYU added Kelepi Finau, the twin brother of offensive lineman signee Siosiua Finau. The 6-foot-5, 250-pound defensive lineman competed at Alameda High School. In addition to Finau, the Cougars also added Sale Fano, Ulavai Fetuli, Vincent Tautua and Kendal Wall.
Fano, 6-foot-4, 225 pounds, prepped at Westlake High School where he played end and linebacker and saw time at tight end as well. Fetuli, a 6-foot-4, 245-pounder originally from Laie, Hawaii, played high school ball at La Habra High School in California. Fetuli was rated the No. 67 overall player in California and was the Epsilon League Defensive Player of the Year with eight sacks, three interceptions, six touchdowns and 18 tackles for loss.
Tautua, another Hawaii product, comes from Ewa Beach and prepped at Saint Louis High School. The 6-foot-3, 250-pound Tautua is a physical player who posted 3.0 sacks, eight tackles for loss and two forced fumbles as a senior. Wall is an in-state player from Mountain Ridge High School out of Herriman, Utah. At 6-foot-5, 215 pounds on the edge, Wall was rated the No. 16 overall player in Utah and recorded 54 tackles 13 TFLs, eight sacks, two forced fumbles and six blocked field goals.
The linebacker room added two players in local products from Utah, Tyler Payne and Taaniela Makasini. Payne, a 6-foot-1, 220-pounder who prepped at Weber High School, is a tough inside the box backer and the son of former BYU All-American kicker and punter Matt Payne. Payne was a tackling machine in high school, setting the 6A state record with 174 takedowns in 2024 and posted 352 total tackles, 31 tackles for loss, 10 sacks and three interceptions in high school. Makasini, the younger brother of current BYU offensive lineman Sonny Makasini, was rated the No. 12 overall player in Utah out of Timpview High School. The 6-foot-1, 200-pounder recorded 145 tackles and three picks as a senior for the T-Birds.
BYU also added one specialist in Will Walker out of Riverton High School in Riverton, Utah. The 6-foot-5, 210-pound punter and kicker received both 6- and 5-star marks at Chris Sailer Kicking and was the 6A Region II specialist MVP in 2024, leading the region in field goals made and had a 41.7-yard punting average.
Payne and Tautua are expected as midyear enrollees while Fano, Makasini and Walker are planning to serve missions before joining the program.
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