Big 12 membership elevated BYU recruiting. But there’s more to it than that

You can’t ignore it, BYU recruiting has become elite since joining the Big 12.

All the noise about the challenges of the honor code? Barriers to competitively paying coaches, elevating resources for support staff and facilities?

It’s become roadkill in the rearview mirror.

At the Big 12 football media days last week, athletic director Brian Santiago told reporters recent news — including the Jake Retzlaff departure — proves a point.

“We can still chase greatness and still stand for our values,” Santiago told media members.

“We want Jake to be successful, we are going to rally around him,” he said.

But there is an expectation that athletes who agree to abide by the rules are expected to do just that.

“We can still chase greatness and still stand for our values.”

BYU athletic director Brian Santiago

BYU’s restrictive code has actually turned into a strength and there is multi-sport evidence that it’s working. Santiago and coaches are finding that many recruits are attracted to the school’s honor code, as are their parents.

Look no further than the fact some of the nation’s top athletes have committed or signed to play for the Cougars.

In basketball, Kevin Young signed the No. 1-ranked basketball player in the country, AJ Dybantsa, the projected 2026 No. 1 NBA draft pick. There were three campus visits by Dybantsa and his parents before there was any talk of NIL money, where with other programs he considered, NIL was the first thing discussed. Things like, “What number is it going to take?”

In track, the Cougars have the commitment of the No. 1 female 1,500-meter runner in the country in Timpview High’s Jane Hedengren. Named the 2025 COROS Outdoor Athlete of the Year by Milesplit, Hedengren set high school records in the 5,000 meters, mile, two-mile and 3,000 meters. She ran the second-fastest mile ever (4:04.68) by a prep female athlete since the 4:04.62 by Mary Cain in 2013, according to Track and Field News.

In golf, coach Bruce Brockbank Jr., has signed Kihei Akina, ranked No. 5 in the class of 2025, a Utah prepster who has already played on the PGA and Korn Ferry tours. He had top-15 finishes at the 2023 and 2024 Hawaii Match Play championships and a top-15 finish at the Sunnehanna Amateur. Also, Jackson Shelley, another commit is ranked among the top 60 in junior golf rankings and has won the AJGA Salt Lake Junior, qualified for the U.S. Junior Amateur, and secured top-five finishes at the Nike Junior Invitational along with two Utah high school 5A state titles.

In football, the 2026 recruiting class is now being hailed as the best in school history. So far, head coach Kalani Sitake and staff have secured the commitment of five-star quarterback Ryder Lyons, the No. 1-ranked football player in California and among the top three nationally at that position.

In addition, BYU has commitments from the top two football players in Idaho and Utah and the No. 3-ranked recruit in Arkansas, SEC territory, in LB Braxton Lindsey, the No. 35-ranked linebacker in the country, according to 247Sports.

On Saturday, the Cougars secured the commitment of Jax Tanner, a four-star offensive lineman from Meridian, Idaho, who was named the Gatorade Player of the Year with offers from Oregon. He joins Pineview High tight end Brock Harris, the No. 2-ranked Utah prep player and the No. 3-ranked prospect, Bott Mulitalo, an offensive lineman from Lone Peak.

Currently, BYU’s football recruiting ranks No. 1 in the Big 12 ahead of Baylor, Texas Tech and TCU.

The remarkable thing about this is that BYU’s point total is 223.16, and second-ranked Baylor’s is 219.98. Texas Tech (213.04 points) with its billionaire Matador Club NIL clout and TCU’s (205.73 points) location in the Dallas-Fort Worth area is big.

Consider that, in general, Texas, California and Florida are considered to be the top recruiting grounds in the country.

What business does BYU have being ranked ahead of three Big 12 Texas programs in recruiting?

Apparently, it does have that kind of business, at least in 2026.

“Recruits are vocalizing it, that they want structure, discipline and leadership, something they can embrace at BYU,” according to Santiago, speaking to 1280 The Zone radio in Frisco, Texas.

“I haven’t met a parent yet that said, ‘This won’t be good for our kid.’”