Quietly, BYU has built one of the stronger safety pipelines in the country over the last 15 years. Daniel Sorensen, Kai Nacua, Zayne Anderson, Troy Warner, and Tanner Wall all got at least a taste of the NFL, and now the Cougars may have the most gifted safety of the bunch sitting at the top of the room.
That player is Faletau Satuala, and the case for him is loud. At 6-foot-4 and 215 pounds, he has the size to affect the game at every level of the defense.
As a true sophomore, he finished with team-highs in tackles with 67 and pressure rate at 30%, while also adding three interceptions and 29 total stops, good for second on the team. He now enters his junior season ranked as the seventh-best returning safety in the country by PFF and as the third-highest-rated strong safety in the College Football 26 video game.
The numbers tell part of the story, but the tape from last season is what really makes him jump off the page. His huge hit on Utah wide receiver Larry Simmons, the forced safety against Stanford, and the pick-six against Iowa State - which was arguably the defensive play of the year - are the kinds of moments that stick.
Satuala would start for almost any team in the country. For BYU, he’s the kind of defender who can change the ceiling of the entire unit.
His 2025 season was a breakout one, good enough to earn 3rd Team All-Big 12 honors. The Bountiful, Utah native piled up 84 tackles, including 7.5 tackles for loss, along with a sack, four interceptions, and seven pass breakups.
He was once the biggest high school recruiting win in well over a decade, and this offseason he became the biggest retention win BYU could have asked for. That kind of player isn’t limited by scheme.
He transcends it.
Raider Damuni also deserves a mention. He finished eighth on the team in tackles and total stops despite playing only 12th-most snaps, which says plenty about how productive he’s been when on the field. He should be in line for a much bigger workload this season.
After that, though, the experience falls off fast. No other returning safety played more than 15 snaps at the position last year.
Tommy Prassas logged 159 snaps there in 2024 before shifting to corner last season, but he is a year removed from playing full-time safety. Behind him are Jarinn Kalama and true freshman Kennan Pula, who combined for just 14 career snaps.
Pula arrived as a monster recruit in the 2026 class and is one of the freakiest athletes in the room, but he’ll have to pick things up quickly if he’s going to help right away.
That lack of proven depth is why the safety group lands sixth in the rankings, even with Satuala anchoring it. It sounds strange to say with a star like that in place, but the concern is real.
Early fall camp scrimmage clips showed BYU receivers getting behind this group with some regularity, and that’s a warning sign. There’s talent here, but for this room to meet the standard BYU has set in recent years, Damuni, Prassas, and Pula all have to take major steps forward.
In Other News...
BYUs Jaxon Kohler Move Comes With One Massive Question
Jaxon Kohlers path to BYU became one of the most notable roster developments of the offseason, giving the Cougars an experienced frontcourt piece with real production behind him. The Michigan State big man has committed to BYU and, thanks to a temporary injunction tied to a California lawsuit involving fifth-year graduated players, is eligible to suit up this coming season. For a program looking to strengthen its interior presence, the move brings immediate credibility and a player who has already logged heavy minutes on a major stage.
Kohler spent four seasons at Michigan State, starting 69 games over his last two years and finishing his senior season at 12.5 points and 8.9 rebounds per game. Those numbers are part of why his arrival is expected to have a significant impact on BYUs roster, but the larger question still hangs over everything: how long that eligibility window remains open and what it means for the Cougars if the legal landscape changes again. [Read more 🡒]
BYU Just Landed A Frontcourt Boost Fans Did Not See Coming
A familiar name from the Utah prep scene is headed back closer to home, and BYUs frontcourt suddenly looks a lot more settled for the long term. The American Fork product spent four seasons at Michigan State before committing to the Cougars for an extra season under the NCAAs new five-in-five eligibility rule, a policy that is still facing legal challenges but would allow him to spread five seasons across five years.
For BYU, the appeal is obvious: an experienced center who should step into the lineup and give the Cougars a proven presence in the middle. The timing matters too, because if the rule survives, he would be available for the 2026-27 season, giving BYU another layer of size and skill at a position that can change the shape of a roster fast. [Read more 🡒]
BYU May Have Finally Solved Its Biggest Roster Problem
BYUs search for a proven center has taken a significant step forward with the commitment of Jaxon Kohler, the former Michigan State big man who will suit up for a fifth college basketball season after receiving an additional year of NCAA eligibility. Kohler spent four seasons in East Lansing and capped that run by earning All-Big Ten Honorable Mention honors last season, giving the Cougars a veteran interior presence at a spot that had loomed as one of the rosters biggest needs.
His arrival gives BYU a much clearer answer in the middle and should help balance a frontcourt that needs both size and spacing. Kohlers game also fits the Cougars desire to improve perimeter shooting from the inside out, but the bigger question now is how quickly he can settle in and how much he changes the ceiling of a roster that was still searching for its starting center. [Read more 🡒]