BYU adds defensive depth, a few surprises — and a Nacua — in 2024 early signing period

PROVO — Kalani Sitake and Jay Hill, former co-workers at the University of Utah who have reunited at BYU, both want the same thing on their defensive front: monsters.

Wednesday identified the first round of such a group.

The Cougars signed some two dozen new additions to the roster on the first day of the early signing period, including an emphatic seven players to fortify the defensive line and edge rusher positions.

"We should have monster, athletic, nasty D-lineman here at BYU," Hill told a small group of local media. "I think this class is a great start of where we're heading, and we have great players on the defensive line like Tyler Batty and Isaiah Bagnah. … We've got to continue to bring in guys that get to see how (Batty) does it, but I love the guys we signed. There's great length and athleticism in this group."

Schools are no longer bound by signing class limits — only by 85 total scholarships — under new NCAA regulations, making it easier than ever for programs to flip a roster from one year to the next, using high school recruiting, junior college commitments and the transfer portal.

The Cougars used all three in what has become the new national signing day, paired alongside bowl season and the ever-evolving transfer portal window.

Hinting at "a few surprises" to come, Sitake unveiled the first 25 players in the class of 2024, including four-year transfers Jack Kelly from Kearns by way of Weber State and punter Sam Vander Haar from Melbourne, Australia, by way of Pitt.

But the jewel of the class was on offense, the four-star tight end Ryner Swanson, the 6-foot-5, 240-pound from Laguna Beach, California, who caught 178 passes for 2,255 yards and 27 touchdowns in three seasons at Laguna Beach High.

Swanson plans to graduate early and enroll at BYU in time for spring football, so that he can play as a freshman before leaving to serve a two-year mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

The towheaded Californian is likely an immediate contributor at tight end, with the departure of all-time scorer Isaac Rex to the NFL draft. But offensive coordinator Aaron Roderick has plans for Swanson, as well as redshirt freshman Jackson Bowers and a tight end room that will also add wide receiver Keanu Hill.

The 6-foot-4, 215-pound receiver has struggled to stay below 230 pounds for much of the season, Roderick added. So the coaching staff decided to move him to tight end after catching 73 passes for 1,212 yards and 11 touchdowns over the past five years.

"He's been a great playmaker for us," said Roderick of Hill, while also added that offensive lineman Brayden Keim has opted to return for his final season of eligibility. "This year, he struggled with a stress fracture in his shin. The guy's so tough; he wanted to play every week, but he fights to keep his weight down. He's 6-4, 235 pounds on any given day, and with our depth at wide receiver, we thought, 'why fight it?'

"He's one of our best blockers on the team, so just let him keep his weight and stop fighting it."

In terms of quarterbacks, the Cougars also signed three, though only former UTSA commit Noah Lugo will enroll for 2024 while Enoch Watson and Carson Su'esu'e both serve missions.

BYU also added a late commitment in a long-time recruit — one who was "recruited" to BYU since he was a toddler by four older brothers who spent time with the Cougars.

But Tei Nacua is his own player, a three-star recruit from Timpview High who caught 139 passes for 2,121 yards and 20 touchdowns en route to 5A first-team all-state honors by the Deseret News as a senior.

"He's all of the brothers' best features in one person," Sitake said of the youngest son of Penina and the late Lionel Nacua. "You can see a lot of Puka and Samson in him, but also a lot of the toughness of Kai and Isaiah. He's a big-time playmaker, and we're really excited to have him."

The focus of the class, though, is on defense — including cross-country signees Therrian Alexander III from Decatur, Georgia, who held off a late push from his home state's Georgia Tech (among others) to reaffirm his commitment to the Cougars after taking an official visit this past weekend.

The new defensive additions also include junior college transfers Luke Toomalatai, Sani Tuala and Danny Saili, who previously committed to Oklahoma and Texas Tech while playing two seasons at Hutchinson Community College in Kansas.

The Cougars also flipped former Bingham High standout Viliami Pouha, an expected decision by the son of BYU defensive tackles coach Sione Pouha. The younger Pouha was a three-star edge rusher who signed with Utah prior to serving a two-year church mission to Birmingham, Alabama in 2021.

Another Utah target, Ephraim Asiata, signed with BYU as a pass rusher. The 6-foot-2, 210-pound Herriman High product racked up 53 tackles and 21 tackles for loss as a senior at Herriman High, when he was recruited by Utah, USC and Tennessee, among others, before the son of former Utah and NFL running back Matt Asiata committed to the Cougars.

"All three of us have had great relationships with his mom and dad for a long time," Hill said, signaling toward Sitake and Roderick. "(Matt Asiata) was a phenomenal player that we coached at Utah, and now we're super excited to have Ephraim down here with us. He's a dynamic pass rusher, super physical, and he's going to do great things early in his career at BYU."

The list also includes athletes who didn't know they'd be signing to play football as recently as a few years ago, like five-star kicker Brody Laga. The Mountain Ridge High standout was an all-state soccer player who scored 24 goals with five assists in three seasons with the Sentinels before focusing on football full-time.

Since then, Laga — who first picked up the odd-shaped oval ball three years ago — kicked 2,440 yards on kickoffs, 1,085 yards on punts as a senior during a three-year career that included 42 field goals, a career-long 70-yarder (that he mentioned to ESPN 960 radio in Utah County), and 100-of-108 PAT conversion rate.

"We're excited about him, and what he adds to the team," Sitake said.

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