Uhila Wolfgramm’s speed and size give BYU’s defense a big boost

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When Harry Schwenke took over Maple Mountain’s football coaching duties last spring after the departure of Kalin Hall, nine of his starters left, eight of whom went to Orem High School.

Only one of the big stars stayed: Big defensive end Uhila Wolfgramm.

This was a loyalty test. For Wolfgramm, it was his 300 Spartans and the Battle of Thermopylae moment. He chose Maple Mountain’s banner. He stayed home because he believed it was important to be with those he played with who remained.

Last Thursday, Schwenke saw Wolfgramm choose to play at BYU over Oklahoma, a decision to stay close to home and build his legacy from Provo.

Although this decision came down to the wire, Schwenke saw what he believed was a core value in what makes Wolfgramm tick.

“He’s a loving, loyal, hard-working kid,” said the coach.

Oh, Wolfgramm was pressed hard by Beehive State Oklahoma commits Bode Sparrow and Krew Jones, the No. 1 and No. 3 prospects in Utah in the Class of 2027 according to 247 Sports.

Wolfgramm is ranked No. 2 behind Sparrow. Wolfgramm and Sparrow took recruiting trips to Oklahoma and BYU together, and Sparrow was working Wolfgramm hard to join him in Norman.

All season long, Schwenke told recruiters — and it didn’t matter who they were — that Wolfgramm was the easiest person to recruit in the world.

“It’s because he is not into flashy things. If you start talking about money, you’re barking up the wrong tree,” Schwenke said. “The most important things to him are the family, education and (The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints).

“I told them if your establishment and community have those, you have a chance, but as soon as you start talking about what your university is about, and what you can give him, even playing time, that’s not important. He is a mission kid, and that is his priority after he finishes high school next year.”

These traits, more than glory or money, were what attracted Wolfgramm to Oklahoma’s Brent Venables and BYU’s Kalani Sitake. They were genuine in their love for God, a Christian life, values and family, Schwenke said.

I will be committing to…@GregBiggins@adamgorney@BlairAngulo@Hayesfawcett3@CKennedy247@BrandonHuffman@247recruitingpic.twitter.com/r36u4uVG3C

— Uhila Matekitonga Finefeuiaki Wolfgramm (@UhilaMFW4) July 2, 2026

Getting back to Wolfgramm’s decision to stay at Maple Mountain in Spanish Fork instead of following friends and teammates to Orem, where they later won a state title, Schwenke said it came down to loyalty to the school and to him as a new coach.

You see, Schwenke married a Wolfgramm. Uhila’s uncle, Kolapa Wolfgramm, is an assistant coach.

The Wolfgramm family is a huge, close-knit family whose roots trace back to German immigrants in Tonga during World War II. It produced the famous Jetts singing group comprised of Wolfgramms. Former BYU running back and current Utah running backs coach Mark Atuaia married a Wolfgramm.

Uhila’s grandparents adopted him, and the young football player has become part of the Wolfgramm family line. The grandfather has nine siblings, and most of them have eight or nine children each.

So, when you talk about loyalty and family, staying close to home was almost inevitable. That turned out to be a bonanza for BYU football.

Getting a commitment from this Wolfgramm, a 4-star elite pass rushing defensive end, could be a building block for the 2027 recruiting class for Sitake and his staff.

That Wolfgramm joins a pair of promising interior linemen in Jeremiah Williams of Tustin, California, and Granger High’s Moa Havili, is huge for BYU defensive coordinator Kelly Poppinga.

This may be the best defensive line group in any class committed to Sitake during his tenure at BYU.

Monster in Provo! pic.twitter.com/OZZzxPy6Sq

— Bomb3r_CFBMafia (@Bomb3r_CFBMafia) July 3, 2026

Uhila knows hard work. He lives on a farm in West Mountain on the outskirts of Spanish Fork. He gets up at 5 a.m. to feed the animals, which include horses, cows, pigs, sheep and chickens. He moves and fixes sprinkler pipe almost every day and isn’t a stranger to hard labor.

“He’s the main farmhand on the farm,” according to Kolapa Wolfgramm.

After morning chores, Uhila showers and readies for school. After that come football and the weight room, and then he comes back to the farm and does his chores.

Former Maple Mountain athletic director Dave Boyack also helped with the school’s track team and had the 6-foot-3, 250-pound Uhila run the 100 meters and the anchor leg on the 4×100 relay team.

Wolfgramm has been clocked at 11.5 seconds in the 100 meters, which is 10.5 in the 100-yard dash. To say he can rush off the edge with a little heat is underselling his talent.

“He’s just a very gifted athlete overall,” said Schwenke. “He has speed, size and athleticism. He’s a kid everyone wants. Obviously, he’s got a lot of recognition for his power and speed. The last two years as a sophomore and junior, he just relied on his athleticism, his power and his speed. He just did a lot of things that other kids can’t do.

“As coaches we try and coach up kids and the majority of kids in high school just can’t do what Wolfgramm can do. We have to teach them basic techniques to get the in and out of situations. Wolfgramm can get himself in a bad situation and get himself out of it with his size and speed. He can dominate the run game and he’s hard to block on the pass rush. Opposing teams schemed against him, ran away from him or chipped him on pass protection. This year I don’t think it’s going to have much effect on him because he’s a different player.”

This offseason, Schwenke said Uhila has gone to different football camps and been taught by some very talented college coaches. What he’s learned from these experiences has been priceless.

This summer has been the busiest of his life because of his football trips, the camps and piling up a lot of football experience on top of his farm chores. Maple Mountain has already scrimmaged against other teams, and he’s seen coaches scheme against him, making changes inside the scrimmage.

“Other kids around have gone to camps most of their lives. This hasn’t been the case for Wolfgramm. He’s flown under the radar most of his high school career as far as exposure. This summer changed that,” Schwenke said.

Kolapa Wolfgramm has handled most of the recruiting calls and other “agent” like duties for Uhila this past year. He’s seen the pressure mount, the decision weighing heavily on the kid.

Uhila told Jeff Hansen of 247Sports that BYU was on him early.

“BYU has just been consistent,” Wolfgramm told Hansen. “They offered me early, kept in contact when I was nobody making a name for myself, and when I made a name for myself my relationship with the staff was years ahead.

“Oklahoma is a great place and it was the hardest decision in my life so far. The coaches were supportive of me even after I told them, but for me, the difference maker was me wanting to build my legacy here at home.”

Wolfgramm’s primary recruitment came from BYU, Oklahoma, UCLA, Cal and Utah, and he had other offers.

“It was hectic, but yeah, we’re finally there,” said Kolapa Wolfgramm. “We are locked in now.”

Uhila is rated a 4-star recruit with a high composite score. He could become a 5-star edge rusher by the end of his senior year and is definitely a cornerstone of BYU’s recruiting class for 2027, with 4-star receiver Blake Wong also a key get.

How crazy did it get?

“It was back and forth between BYU and Oklahoma and he didn’t make it official until about 1 a.m. Wednesday,” said Kolapa Wolfgramm.

“It was very hard for him to call Oklahoma coaches and tell them he decided on BYU. He had great conversations with both staff members, and Oklahoma was very good and supportive of him. While Oklahoma coaches were disappointed, they were happy for him and told him to go and celebrate going to BYU.”

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