Faletau Satuala, other key BYU players announce their return to Cougars in 2026

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Faletau Satuala, other key BYU players announce their return to Cougars in 2026
BYU safety Faletau Satuala (11) celebrates after a play against the Texas Tech Red Raiders during the Big 12 championship game held at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, on Saturday, Dec. 6, 2025.
BYU safety Faletau Satuala (11) celebrates after a play against the Texas Tech Red Raiders during the Big 12 championship game held at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, on Saturday, Dec. 6, 2025.
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Isaac Hale, Deseret News

Faletau Satuala isn’t going anywhere.

BYU’s starting strong safety and rising defensive star will return to the Cougars in 2026, he announced Friday via social media.

With Jay Hill’s move to Michigan, there was some speculation among fans and pundits regarding the possibility of Satuala transferring elsewhere or even following Hill to Ann Arbor.

However, the former four-star recruit and Bountiful High product will instead remain in Provo for his third campaign with the Cougars.

As a sophomore in 2025, Satuala led all BYU defenders with 83 total tackles, also recording three interceptions, two forced fumbles, a pick-six and a sack to earn second-team All-American honors from the Football Writers Association of America.

Satuala isn’t the only BYU star to announce his plans to stick with Kalani Sitake’s program. Wide receiver Parker Kingston, defensive end Nusi Taumoepeau, cornerback Tre Alexander and safety Raider Damuni each posted to social media Friday sharing that they will be running it back with the Cougars in 2026.

Kingston racked up 1,277 all-purpose yards and nine touchdowns in 2025 as BYU’s leading receiver and return man.

After missing the start of the season due to injury, the freshman Taumoepeau made 12 tackles with 12 hurries, a sack, a forced fumble and a team-high 29.4% pressure rate as another high-ceiling building block for the Cougars defense.

Alexander started 11 games at corner in 2025 and made 34 total tackles with five passes defended, a sack and interception, while Damuni logged 43 tackles with an interception as well.

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