Copyright Salt Lake Tribune
The 2026 BYU football recruiting class is nothing short of historic. Highlighted by five-star quarterback Ryder Lyons, the Cougars’ 2026 class ranks No. 22 nationally and is the highest-ranked class in BYU history. But while this class boasts powerful talent from all across the country, one of the biggest prizes comes from only 15 miles north of LaVell Edwards Stadium: Lone Peak’s Bott Mulitalo. Standing at 6-foot-5 and weighing in at 290 pounds, the senior offensive lineman believes that the 2026 class can “do something special.” If you ask Mulitalo what he likes about football, he will give you the perfect answer for an offensive lineman. “I love just mauling guys,” the No. 12-ranked offensive line recruit in the country said. “Just putting dudes in the floor and showing them true aggression. I feel like we set the tone as the team on the offensive line.” Mulitalo was a two-way player for most of his high school career, playing on both the offensive and defensive line, but converted fully to the offensive side of the ball for his senior year, because colleges liked his upside there more. “I think he can do either,” Lone Peak head coach Bart Brockbank said about his four-star offensive lineman. “He’s a fantastic defensive lineman, but he’s a great offensive tackle as well.” It was the coaching staff at BYU that showed so much faith in Mulitalo on the offensive side that he decided to decommit from Oregon in March. “When I switched to offensive lineman, I feel like [Oregon] wasn’t as interested in me as much as BYU was,” Mulitalo said. After his recruitment reopened, Mulitalo began talking with other BYU recruits, who discussed the idea of creating something special in Provo. Four-star tight end and the No. 69-ranked player in the country, Brock Harris, was a huge factor in getting Mulitalo and other top recruits to buy into Kalani Sitake and the BYU culture. “I feel like Brock really brought us together,” Mulitalo said. “He really hit me up a lot about BYU at the time I was committed to Oregon. … I built a great relationship with him, Jax Tanner, and Ryder Lyons. I’ve got to build a great relationship with Ryder, because he’ll be my quarterback for the next few years. Those are great boys right there.” During those talks with Harris, who plays for Pine View High School in St. George, the two developed the idea of being “hometown heroes” for the Cougars. “I feel like it starts just growing up in the city, man, and playing in your backyard,” Mulitalo said. “To have kids like Brock Harris and other Utah kids at BYU, I feel like that will definitely change the culture there.” Mulitalo, who is the third-highest-ranked player in the Beehive State, highlights a recent wave of in-state recruiting success for BYU. During his childhood, he and his seven older brothers, all of whom played football as well, grew up cheering for the University of Utah. But when it came to his recruitment, Mulitalo fell in love with Sitake and BYU’s culture. Lone Peak is currently 5-4 on the season and battling for a playoff spot amid the gauntlet that is Utah’s 6A Region 3. Mulitalo has the duty of protecting an offense that features Idaho State commit Kepa Niumeitolu at quarterback and Utah wide receiver commits Jaron and Kennan Pula. Mulitalo will enroll early at BYU to participate in the Cougars’ spring practice next semester. Over the next two seasons, Mulitalo will be tasked with blocking for quarterback Bear Bachmeier and, eventually, Lyons once he returns to Provo from his mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. “I feel like we can definitely do something special,” Mulitalo said.
