The BYU Cougars will kick off the 2026 season in 51 days against Utah Tech. As we count down the days until kickoff, today we will profile the player who wears No. 51 - redshirt senior interior offensive lineman Sonny Makasini.
Sonny Makasini's background
As crazy as this sounds, Sonny Makasini was part of the class of 2019 coming out of Timpview High School in Provo. To put that in perspective, Puka Nacua was the No. 1 prospect in the state of Utah that year. Makasini had a slightly lower profile than Puka as a low three-star recruit with a modest 81 rating. He was the No. 23 prospect in the Beehive State that year.
He originally committed to Utah State but then decommitted after serving a full-time mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to Oakland, California. He instead opted to walk on at BYU, betting on himself and his ability to find the field for a bigger program.
It was a wise decision.
𝑀𝒾𝓈𝓈𝒾𝑜𝓃𝒶𝓇𝓎 𝑀𝑒𝓈𝓈𝒶𝑔𝑒: @sonmakjr pic.twitter.com/6M4GOeQsJN
— BYU FOOTBALL (@BYUfootball) October 15, 2024
Makasini's past and present with BYU
Sonny's career at BYU began like many lower-profile recruits at a big-time program, meaning it took time for him to grind his way up the depth chart.
In 2022 he redshirted but appeared in one game that year. In 2023 he once again appeared in one game for the Cougars.
But in 2024 he had a breakout season in what was his redshirt sophomore campaign. That year he appeared in 10 games with six starts, making his contributions to a BYU team that went 11-2 and beat Deon Sanders' Colorado program in the Alamo Bowl. He demonstrated his ability to play any of the three positions across the interior offensive line - center and both guard positions - allowing BYU to deploy him wherever he was needed.
In 2025 he once again made many contributions on a massively successful 12-2 BYU team. Last year he appeared in all 14 of BYU's games with two starts against Portland State and Stanford.
Coach Kalani Sitake has praised the veteran for his versatility. In an article by Brian Preece at KSL, coach Sitake called Makasini a "complete lineman." He went on to say, "He can play so many positions, but he’s focused on the interior three, which gives coach TJ Woods a lot of flexibility to be able to use him at left guard, center, and right guard.”
Looking forward to 2026, the 6-foot-5, 315-pounder could very well lock down a starting guard position. The competition at guard is intense and a number of different players could wind up starting, and Makasini's knowledge of the offense and veteran savvy could place him in the starting lineup.
At minimum he will be a key key rotational player at multiple positions, a spot starter when needed, and special teams contributor in his final college season.
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