BYU Lands Signing Day Commit From Springville’s Kinilau Fonohema
Dec 20, 2023, 5:13 PM | Updated: Dec 21, 2023, 10:29 am
SPRINGVILLE, Utah – BYU football won a Signing Day hat ceremony over rival Utah.
That player was Springville High’s Kinilau Fonohema. The 6-foot-5, 220-pound edge rusher had his recruitment down to BYU, Utah, and Oregon State, but the top two schools were the in-state programs.
Kinilau Fonohema picks BYU over Utah, Oregon State
Fonohema announced his commitment to BYU at his high school with his Springville teammates Dallin Johnson and Luke Nadauld. Both Johnson and Nadauld signed with BYU as well on Wednesday.
Fonohema has emerged as one of the top sack artists in the state of Utah for the 2024 recruiting cycle.
During his senior year with the Red Devils, Fonohema had 12 sacks and 20 tackles for loss. In his junior year in 2022, he had 10.5 sacks and 11 tackles for loss.
Last fall, Fonohema had three games where he recorded more than one sack. Those performances were against Cyprus (2), Park City (2), and East (1.5).
Defensive line continues to be a priority for BYU football
Fonohema is the latest commitment along the defensive line for BYU football in the final push for the 2024 recruiting class.
He becomes the sixth player that’s either an EDGE rusher or a defensive tackle prospect that BYU has landed commitments from in December.
That’s a positive development for a defense that has failed to generate a pass rush. Last season, BYU was 129th nationally in total sacks with 11.
Springville Trio
Fonohema announced his commitment to BYU with fellow Cougar commits Dallin Johnson and preferred walk-on commit Luke Nadauld next to him.
Mitch Harper is a BYU Insider for KSLsports.com and host of the Cougar Tracks Podcast (SUBSCRIBE) and Cougar Sports Saturday (Saturday from 12–3 p.m.) on KSL Newsradio. Follow Mitch’s coverage of BYU in the Big 12 Conference on X and Threads: @Mitch_Harper.
