BYU COUGARS

BYU Football To Recognize 37 Players On Senior Day

Nov 14, 2022, 4:25 PM | Updated: Nov 15, 2022, 8:46 pm

BYU Football, Jaren Hall, Puka Nacua...

BYU football will honor Puka Nacua (left), Jaren Hall (right), among 34 total players on Senior Day. (Photo by Julio Aguilar/Getty Images)

(Photo by Julio Aguilar/Getty Images)

PROVO, Utah – Get in your seats early for Saturday’s BYU football game against Utah Tech. It’s going to be a lengthy pregame Senior Day ceremony.

BYU football will recognize 37 players with a Senior blanket before the first-ever game against the in-state Trail Blazers. Out of the 34 players that will be honored, 13 know for sure are heading into their last games at LaVell Edwards Stadium. The rest are either COVID-Juniors that still have eligibility to come back potentially.

“I think the safe bet for me is just to honor everybody,” said BYU coach Kalani Sitake. “And then they don’t have to make a decision this week. There’s going to be guys that are probably going to have the benefit of getting two senior days, I guess.”

Last season, BYU celebrated five players that ended up returning for the 2022 season. Those five players include Matthew Criddle, Lopini Katoa, Gunner Romney, Earl Tuioti-Mariner, and Joe Tukuafu. So they will be getting a second senior blanket.

Gunner Romney can get a third senior blanket in 2023 if he wishes. The starting wide receiver has dealt with a lacerated kidney injury this season. As a result, he’s only appeared in two games. If he appears in only four games this year, he could use this year as a redshirt season, which is still available.

13 BYU football seniors will play in their final home game

The list of 13 players in their final game at LES includes Criddle, Katoa, Tuioti-Mariner, and Tukuafu. Joining those four in their last home games at BYU are Chris Brooks, Lorenzo Fauatea, Kaleb Hayes, Houston Heimuli, Chris Jackson, Lane Lunt, D’Angelo Mandell, Pepe Tanuvasa, and Alden Tofa.

Noticeably absent from the senior list is starting safety Malik Moore. Moore suffered a broken hand injury in game four against Wyoming. He’s been sidelined for the season and is using this year as a redshirt year. The same goes for linebacker Chaz Ah You, who is redshirting this year after appearing in two games before going out with an injury against East Carolina. With them not listed on the Senior Day list, you can probably pencil them in for the 2023 roster.

Update: Since publishing the initial list of senior day recipients, Chaz Ah You, Malik Moore, and Ammon Hannemann were added to the list.

COVID-Juniors have decisions to make

Where things get interesting is the rest of the Senior Day list, which includes COVID-junior stars Jaren Hall and Puka Nacua. Hall and Nacua each have the opportunity to return, thanks to the free year of eligibility from the COVID-impacted 2020 season.

Sitake had conversations with players last week during the bye to get a better idea of which players are coming back next season or not. But nothing is set, according to the seventh-year head coach.

“We don’t have to have a decision this week. And we didn’t have to have a decision last week,” said Sitake. “They can take their time in making that decision. In terms of legacy, all of those guys should be proud of what they’ve done here. It’s not just stuff on the field. But things off the field as leaders and as teammates.”

Along with Hall and Nacua, potential NFL draft prospects Blake Freeland and Clark Barrington are on the list of “Juniors/Others.”

“I want to get our guys in front of people that are in the know. Because I think they’re hearing it from one side,” Sitake said. “I want to give them the opportunity to speak to scouts and NFL personnel and just get advice from a lot of different areas.

“We just have a bunch of guys, because of COVID, that have their degree in hand and they’ve had it for over a year. So I think the decision has got to be theirs. We can give them all of the information. But we’ll have a more motivated player in the program if they decide to come back. I think there are a lot of good reasons to come back. But this is a private decision that they’re going to make with their family and their loved ones and all we can do is give them the feedback and the information on our end.”

BYU football players that will be recognized on Senior Day 2022

Seniors

  • Chris Brooks, RB
  • Matthew Criddle, DB
  • Lorenzo Fauatea, DL
  • Kaleb Hayes, DB
  • Houston Heimuli, FB
  • Chris Jackson, DB
  • Lopini Katoa, RB
  • Lane Lunt, TE
  • D’Angelo Mandell, DB
  • Pepe Tanuvasa, LB
  • Alden Tofa, DL
  • Earl Tuioti-Mariner, DL
  • Joe Tukuafu, OL

Juniors/Others

  • Chaz Ah You, LB (Added after initial list)
  • Clark Barrington, OL
  • Brayden Cosper, WR
  • Blake Freeland, OL
  • Jaren Hall, QB
  • Ammon Hannemann, DB (Added after initial list)
  • Britton Hogan, LS
  • Jackson Kaufusi, LB
  • Harris LaChance, OL* (Has said publicly 2022 would be his last year)
  • Hayden Livingston, DB
  • Atunaisa Mahe, DL
  • Jackson McChesney, RB
  • Malik Moore, DB (Added after initial list)
  • Puka Nacua, WR
  • Jake Oldroyd, K
  • Keenan Pili, LB
  • Alema Pilimai, DL
  • Morgan Pyper, LB
  • Gunner Romney, WR
  • Gabe Summers, DL
  • Max Tooley, LB
  • George Udo, DB
  • Masen Wake, FB
  • Payton Wilgar, LB

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 him on Twitter: @Mitch_Harper.

  • BYU Cougars Scoreboard

  • BYU Cougars Team Leaders

  • BYU Cougars Standings

BYU Cougars

AJ Dybantsa, Utah Prep, BYU Basketball, Grind Session...

Mitch Harper

AJ Dybantsa Had Memorable Prep Battle Against Future Big 12 Foe

BYU basketball signee faced a future Kansas Jayhawk in a high school game.

1 day ago

BYU Basketball, Cincinnati, Trey Stewart, Takeaways...

Mitch Harper

Takeaways From BYU’s Blowout Loss At Cincinnati

Takeaways from BYU's loss at Cincinnati.

1 day ago

BYU/Cincinnati, Game Recap, Final Score, Richie Saunders...

Mitch Harper

BYU Suffers Road Setback Against Hot-Shooting Cincinnati

BYU falls to 6-6 in Big 12 play after a road setback at Cincinnati.

1 day ago

BYU Football, Recruiting, Malakai Lee, Top Six...

Mitch Harper

BYU Football Among Blue Bloods In Final Cut For Top Hawaii Recruit

BYU is in the mix for one of the nation's top offensive tackle prospects in 2026.

3 days ago

Jake Shoff, BYU Basketball, Death...

Mitch Harper

Jake Shoff, Former BYU Basketball Player, Dies In Car Accident

Former BYU basketball player Jake Shoff passed away at the age of 46.

3 days ago

byu basketball, aj dybanta...

Tanner Tripp

BYU Basketball Reportedly Will Play In 2025 Diamond Head Classic 

BYU basketball is reportedly off to the islands of Hawaii for a MTE in Hawaii.

3 days ago

Sponsored Articles

...

Northern Utah High School Basketball Players of the Week – Week 2

SALT LAKE CITY – The John Watson Northern Utah High School Player of the Week is celebrating the best high school basketball players in Northern Utah. Presented by John Watson Chevrolet in Ogden, each week we honor athletes for their exceptional performance on the gridiron. Our winners for week two of the season were Jackson Maw from […]

salt lake county player of the week...

Salt Lake County High School Basketball Players of the Week – Week 2

SALT LAKE CITY – The Hercules Salt Lake County High School Player of the Week is celebrating the best high school basketball players in Salt Lake County. Presented by Hercules First Federal Credit Union, each week we honor athletes for their exceptional performance on the gridiron. Our winners for week two were Faythe Stauffer from Riverton High […]

...

Utah County High School Basketball Players of the Week – Week 2

SALT LAKE CITY – The Mr. Mac Utah County High School Player of the Week is awarded each week to the top prep boy’s and girl’s basketball players in Utah County. Sponsored by Mr. Mac, it honors athletes for their performances on the court and exceptional play. Our winners for week two were Easton Hawkins from Lehi […]

...

Northern Utah High School Basketball Players of the Week – Week 1

SALT LAKE CITY – The John Watson Northern Utah High School Player of the Week is celebrating the best high school basketball players in Northern Utah. Presented by John Watson Chevrolet in Ogden, each week we honor athletes for their exceptional performance on the gridiron. Our winners for week one of the season were Sam Romer from […]

salt lake county player of the week...

Salt Lake County High School Basketball Players of the Week – Week 1

SALT LAKE CITY – The Hercules Salt Lake County High School Player of the Week is celebrating the best high school basketball players in Salt Lake County. Presented by Hercules First Federal Credit Union, each week we honor athletes for their exceptional performance on the gridiron. Our winners for week one were Beckham Bayles from Cyprus High […]

...

Utah County High School Basketball Players of the Week – Week 1

SALT LAKE CITY – The Mr. Mac Utah County High School Player of the Week is awarded each week to the top prep boy’s and girl’s basketball players in Utah County. Sponsored by Mr. Mac, it honors athletes for their performances on the court and exceptional play. Our winners for week one were Jaxon McCuistion from Timpanogos […]

BYU Football To Recognize 37 Players On Senior Day