BYU President Shane Reese Says Football Helps Mission of University 'Shine'

New BYU president Shane Reese addressed how BYU football fits in with the mission of the church

Oct 21, 2023; Provo, Utah, USA; The Brigham Young Cougars students display TIFOs before kickoff against the Texas Tech Red Raiders at LaVell Edwards Stadium. / Rob Gray-USA TODAY Sports

Since the beginning of BYU athletics, many fans have wondered where athletics at BYU fits within the overall mission of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. BYU is owned and operated by the church, and its mission is very unique compared to the schools that it competes against in sports. Amateurism in collegiate athletics is evaporating, and it will be gone for good when athlete revenue sharing is introduced. Is BYU willing to adapt to a new era of college sports and pay athletes? Does the church leadership care about BYU's competitiveness? BYU is now in the Big 12, and being competitive at the P4 level will require more investment than ever before.

On Saturday night, BYU president Shane Reese addressed the longstanding question of BYU football's fit within the mission of the church. Reese explained that it is critical for BYU to be different from its peers. " I think that it's critical for us to be different," Reese said. "To have things that we do that are distinctive." Reese gave a few examples of BYU being unique last year, like turning tailgates into service projects and baring the state flags of its opponents for road games. You can listen to his comments in their entirety here.

Reese explained that BYU's mission should not limit the Cougars from being competitive, and that the mission of BYU doesn't fully shine if football is not competitive. "We want to go on that field and we want to be competitive and we want to hit people as hard as we hit anyone else, right? We, we want to be out there really digging in and competing hard. That's an important part for the mission of the university to shine," Reese said. "It doesn't shine if we're not competitive on the football field, but it doesn't mean we have to do it the same way everyone else does. And I love what happened last year. I saw hearts changed and at the end of the day, if we're gonna be an institution that says that we are believers in Jesus Christ and we follow Jesus Christ. It's got to manifest itself in the classroom. It's gotta manifest itself on the football field."