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SALT LAKE CITY — Bradlee Anae is the odd man out.
When it comes to his family’s loyalty in the rivalry game between BYU and Utah, blue is the predominant option; and in most cases, the only option. The Anae family is and always has been a BYU family … mostly.
Anae’s father, Brad, played defensive end for the Cougars as a two-time All-American from 1979-81. His uncles, Robert and Matt, also played for the Cougars, and Robert Anae coached at BYU two separate times under former head coach Bronco Mendenhall from 2005-10 and again from 2013-15.
Even Anae’s grandfather, Famika, played for the Cougars.
Except for him and his sister Adora, a first-team All-American and three-time All-Pac-12 volleyball player at Utah from 2014-17, the Anae family bleeds blue.
But for as long as Bradlee Anae is still a Ute — one more season — that predominant blue will have a red hue to it for his family, even if just temporarily.
“It's a big saying around my family: You guys only have to be Ute fans for one more year,” Bradlee Anae said. “And I was like, 'all right, that's for you guys. For me, I'm going to be a Ute for life — I'm a Utah man for life.'
“I’ll always be a Ute, that’s all that matters.”
The rivalry means a little more for Anae, who enters the season as arguably one of the best defensive ends in the country. Not only is it a game with a lot of family rivalry implications, but it’s the beginning to his senior season — one where Utah is projected to be one of the best teams in the country, not just the Pac-12.
Showcasing his talent against a bitter rival is just the icing on the cake to what could be a special year. It’s an opportunity for bragging rights and a step in the right direction to claim Utah’s goal of a Pac-12 title and a potential spot in the playoff, though there’s no talk about playoffs from the senior who also serves as one of the team’s captains.
In the same vein as his head coach Kyle Whittingham, it’s all about BYU and the rest will take care of itself if Utah keeps winning.
“Just every single week committing ourselves, all our energy, our focus to that game,” Anae said. “Spending excess amount of time in the weight room, excess amount of time in the film room. Each and every week, just taking one week at a time, I think will be our best approach at consistently winning throughout the season, hopefully being perfect.”
That team-first focus is what drives Anae.
The senior has received national praise for his ability to get to the quarterback and pressure the opposing offenses, but Anae isn’t necessarily worried about his own stats. If anything, he’s more interested in living up to the legacy of the position at Utah. Everyone before him over the last decade or so has been an incredible disruptor and ones that have challenged all-time school records.
Nate Orchard, Hunter Dimick, Trevor Reilly, to speak just about the most recent guys on the defensive line.
“You come here and you know the expectations are high,” Anae said. “And the biggest thing that coaches harp on is: ‘You are going to change for the group, they're not gonna change for you.’ So you come into the program, you're going to meet that expectation or exceed it.
“It's just the way the coaches go about their way of coaching, which brings the younger guys up, you know,” Anae added. “It's not a program where you come in and the guys are stagnant. They're constantly trying to get better each and every day because the bar is so high.”
Anae currently sits 11th all-time in career sacks at 17 — Dimick set the record in 2016 with 29.5 sacks — but the new “Mayor of Sack Lake City” enjoys the pressure; it’s something that serves as a motivator throughout the season.
“I just use it as motivation and take it and flip it into proving them right because it's something that I believed in myself,” he said. “Honestly, any player should believe that, or try to become the best, you know. And now that everyone's — the recognition is there — it doesn't change anything for me, doesn't change how I go about preparation and things like that.
“But it's sure good to have,” he added. “It's like a manifestation of what you've been working for over almost your whole life.”
Anae had the opportunity to pursue an NFL career after his junior season, but elected to return to school to finish his senior season. Graduating from the school was definitely a priority for the defensive end, but it was the "unfinished business" that really made the decision easy for Anae.
"It was a pretty fairly easy decision for me because I wanted to come back and bring a title back to Utah," he said. "We all want to, all the seniors wanted the same thing for Utah. We wanted to leave the program better than we found it.
"But coming back, unfinished business is the term that's going around — it was the biggest factor for me."
So his family will have to wait to be Cougar fans at least one more season.
But whether it’s a game against Anae's heated rival or the 12th game of the season, Anae is not distracted by the noise. He welcomes it with anticipation — even if that means some back-and-forth jabs at his rivals on Twitter.
“You know, we're football players, we're entertainers — giving the fans what they want,” he joked. “And you know, give them a little extra on social media and whatnot.”
Utah opens up the season on Thursday at 8:15 p.m. at LaVell Edwards Stadium. The game will be broadcast on ESPN.
