BYU leaned into the moment ahead of its showdown with Notre Dame by rolling out a hype video fronted by one of its own, Fred Warner.
Warner, the former BYU standout now starring as one of the NFL’s top linebackers with the San Francisco 49ers, narrated the clip that tied the Cougars and Irish together through their shared identity. The video opened with Warner saying, “There are two places in college football where faith isn’t a footnote. Where game day starts in solemn prayer,”
He followed that with, “Where the biggest name you play for isn’t on the back of your jersey, nor the front. South Bend and Provo. That’s where the common ground ends.”
That line drew the sharpest contrast in the piece, and Warner kept building from there. “One has a seat saved at every table.
The other got handed the late shift. While the East Coast slept, Cougar Nation stayed up, and we made the late shift ours.”
Then came the climb BYU has made since entering the Big 12. Warner said, “Year one, we pulled up the chair.
Year two, we are in the seat. Year three, close enough to hear the door shut.
Now, year four, number two. Number eight.
And still the underdog, still asked to explain ourselves. So let’s settle it.”
The video closed with Kalani Sitake’s familiar pregame line from before the 2024 Utah game: “They don’t know, but they ’bout to find out”
The matchup is set for No. 8 BYU against No.
2 Notre Dame on Saturday, October 17, 2026, with kickoff at 5:30 p.m. MDT.
The game will be televised on ABC, and radio coverage will be on KSL NewsRadio at 102.7 FM and 1160 AM.
In Other News...
BYU Gets Defensive Reinforcements Before Notre Dame With One Big Unknown
BYUs defense is getting some help at the right time, with linebacker Isaiah Glasker and strong safety Raider Damuni expected back for the matchup with Notre Dame. Glasker is slated to rejoin the starting lineup after recovering from injury, while Damuni is set to contribute in key defensive snaps even though he will not start.
The bigger question hanging over the Cougars is what the rest of the rotation will look like by game time. Running back Sione Moa has been cleared to play, but his status for the game is still unclear, and there has been no announcement yet on nickel back and punt returner Cannon DeVries. [Read more 🡒]
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The payday only got bigger from there, with Utah Jazz and Mammoth owner Ryan Smith and his partner doubling the prize to $2 million and adding another $1 million for charity. For BYU, it was a reminder that one unexpected opportunity can change everything in an instant, and for Carter Smith it turned a brief window on national television into something far beyond a routine kicking contest. [Read more 🡒]
BYU Spider-Man Turned A GameDay Stunt Into An Unreal Provo Payday
Week 7 of ESPNs College GameDay in Provo produced one of those campus moments that people will be talking about long after the stage gets packed up. A BYU student named Carter, dressed as Spider-Man, stepped into Pat McAfees Kicking is Easy contest and turned a novelty bit into the kind of scene that can define a Saturday around the program, with the prize pool boosted by Utah Jazz owner Ryan Smith and his business partner Ryan Sweeney.
Carter missed on his first try, but the second attempt changed everything, sending BYU fans into a celebration that fit the energy of a GameDay stop in Provo. It was the rare college-football sideshow that felt bigger than the gimmick itself, and for one student in costume, it also became the kind of payday that will linger as part of BYU lore. [Read more 🡒]
