The BYU Cougars will kick off the 2025 season in 89 days against Portland State. As we continue counting down the days until kickoff, today we will profile the player who wears No. 89 - redshirt freshman wide receiver Dominique McKenzie.
Dominique McKenzie’s background
Cougar fans have been waiting for a couple of years to see what Dominique McKenzie can offer to BYU’s offense. Originally a three-star recruit in the class of 2022 and the No.12 prospect in the state of Utah, the 5-foot-11, 180-pound speedster served a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saint then redshirted last season.
He had a host of Power Four offers coming out of high school, including the likes of Oregon, Virginia, Pitt, Arizona, and Duke, and he originally committed to play for Virginia under former BYU coach Bronco Mendenhall.
Coming to Provo is like coming home for Dominique. His father, Brian, was a former running back at BYU and Dominique played his high school ball St. George, Utah. He’s joined on the roster by his twin brother, Marcus, a cornerback on BYU’s defense.
During his redshirt freshman campaign last year Dominique appeared in two games - Southern Illinois and in the Alamo Bowl blowout against Colorado - without recording any stats.
McKenzie’s potential impact in 2025
The one aspect of McKenzie’s game that could separate him in a talented, crowded wide receiver room is his elite speed.
In high school he broke the Utah state record in the 200 meters and ran the 100 meters in a blazing 10.65 seconds. If BYU football players went head-to-head in a foot race, it wouldn’t be surprising to see Dominique McKenzie emerge victorious.
But track speed doesn’t always translate to on-field production. Based on where things stand today, Dominique is buried pretty deep on BYU’s depth chart. The Cougars return veterans and contributors like Chase Roberts, Parker Kingston, Jojo Phillips, and Stanford transfer Tiger Bachmeier. McKenzie is also competing for snaps against other young, talented receivers like four-star Cody Hagen, Tei Nacua, and touted true freshman Lamason Waller.
Redshirt freshmen like Dominique McKenzie need to do at least one thing at an elite level to see the field. He clearly has elite speed and could earn some reps this year if he can translate it into on-field production.