Justin Kirkland’s fifth season of college football starts with a strange little loop back to where it all began.
On Saturday night at LaVell Edwards Stadium, the BYU defensive tackle will line up against Utah Tech, the same program he faced four years ago as a true freshman. Back then, he was on the other sideline for the Trailblazers. Now he’s a co-starter at nose tackle for the 14th-ranked Cougars, and the opener feels like the kind of moment that can only happen after a long, winding college career.
“It’s kind of a full-circle moment for me, playing against Utah Tech in game one,” Kirkland said earlier this week. “In 2022, I was on the other side of that at LES, playing BYU. And after knee surgery, being able to take time and come back 100%, I’m ready to roll with the boys.”
That road to BYU wasn’t short. Kirkland grew up a BYU fan in West Haven, Utah, but the 6-foot-3, 305-pound nose tackle didn’t land on the Cougars’ radar out of high school.
A 3-star recruit by 247Sports, he got his first real college opportunity from Utah Tech, then still in the middle of its rebrand from Dixie State. He took the scholarship, played in St.
George, and made the most of it right away with 40 tackles, 6.0 tackles for loss, 2.0 sacks and a fumble recovery as a freshman.
“It was fun,” Kirkland said of his time at Utah Tech. “I had a lot of teammates from Roy High who played on that team, or knew that northern Utah football. I still have a lot of fond memories of the coaches down there, who were some of the first to show me what college ball was like.
“I've got nothing but good things to say about St. George: the people down there, the fans down there. It was a ton of fun playing for Utah Tech that first year.”
That freshman season changed his profile. After he entered the transfer portal, bigger programs came calling, including Oklahoma State. Then-coach Mike Gundy offered him a scholarship, and Kirkland spent two seasons there, appearing in 26 games with seven starts while recording 40 tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss and a sack.
Eventually, he and his wife Marlee wanted to come back to northern Utah. That led them to BYU, where Kirkland arrived last fall - and almost immediately hit another setback. A torn meniscus in his knee during his first week of workouts limited him to six games, but it also opened the door for a medical redshirt and a fifth year of eligibility.
For Kirkland, that extra season became a chance to do it again with BYU teammates Keanu Tanuvasa, Isaiah Glasker and the rest of the defense while chasing a Big 12 championship.
“I was just tell (his former self) 'enjoy the ride, and enjoy the momenet,'" he said. "As you talk to older people, they all say life goes by so fast.
Even looking back now in my fifth year of college football, I know that did kind of disappear. So I would just say enjoy the moment; remember the hard times, the good times, the laughs and stuff like that.
“Football takes care of itself,” he added. “But you can never really recreate the moments in the locker room and fall camp. So just enjoy it.”
He has also used the offseason to reshape his body. Kirkland dropped from 345 pounds to somewhere between 305 and 310 during training camp, and he says his wife played a major role in the change by cooking healthier meals and helping him stick with it.
“We quit going to get ice cream,” he said. “I was on a no-fun-food diet. But it worked.”
His teammates have noticed the difference. Tanuvasa, who lines up next to him, said Kirkland’s size and role make life easier for the rest of the defensive front.
“He does a great job of alleviating pressure from me and our other defensive tackles,” Tanuvasa said. “He does his role very well, and I see him as a true nose.
When he is in there to eat up blocks, I can play that 3-eye or 4-eye technique. It's very freeing.
“The way he's transformed his body has been phenomenal,” he added. “He's proud of it, too; you can see him with his shirt off all the time now.”
Kirkland also pointed to BYU’s strength and conditioning staff - Skyler Mayne, Ryan Phillis and their assistants - as part of the process, even if he was still allowed one cheat meal a week.
“It was a group effort,” Kirkland said. “But once I cut out the bad calories, it was easy.
“I feel like I can run forever,” he added. “It's been a lot of fun.”
Now Kirkland is part of a defensive line group that includes Tanuvasa, Viliami Po'uha, Bodie Schoonover, Anisi Purcell, Hunter Clegg and others, working behind what has been described as one of the top linebacker units in BYU’s modern history with Glasker, Nusi Taumoepeau, Siale Esera, Kansas State transfer Jake Clifton and Cal transfer Cade Uluave.
Kelly Poppinga, in his first year as BYU’s defensive coordinator, said the group stands out for its experience and leadership.
“I think we're big, we're strong and we're experienced,” he said. “All of those guys have played a lot of football, from Keanu to Anisi to Vil and Bodie - and Justin may have had the biggest improvement of any of those guys, just in his body transformation and everything else. Those guys are so consistent, and I think we've got some really good young guys coming along as well that are making their way up.”
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