As someone who was born and raised in Utah but has lived in the broader Appalachian region for over 20 years now, I want Mark Pope and Collin Chandler to be wildly successful for the Kentucky Wildcats in this year’s Sweet 16, and for years to come.
As a middle-aged, passionate, lifelong BYU fan, I've learned that some things are more important to me than BYU-Kentucky recruiting advantages, the transfer portal, and conference rivalries. I want Pope and Chandler to succeed at Kentucky because of the positive representation they can provide as members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in a Bible Belt state.
Both men are members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and Chandler just returned last year from a two-year mission to Sierra Leone.
Pope left as BYU's head coach for Kentucky last April, a decision that prompted Chandler to decommitted from BYU and follow Pope to the Bluegrass State. In Kentucky, a state where less than 1% of the population identifies as Latter-day Saints, their prominence and platform is significant.
Few things can unite people from different backgrounds and cultures faster than cheering for the same sports team. This is especially true with college sports where passions run deep and often span generations.
Celebrating Ramadan and welcoming a Jewish quarterback
We in the BYU community have recently seen the positive effects of rallying around athletes of different faiths at a school where roughly 98% of the student body are members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
The most religiously diverse subset of students at BYU are likely student-athletes.
In 2023 BYU men’s basketball team, which was coached by Mark Pope at the time, featured three Muslim players who made news by fasting during Ramadan while playing in the Big 12 tournament. Aly Khalifa, Atiki Ally Atiki, and Fousseyni Traore helped members of the BYU community who may not have been wholly familiar with Ramada to learn more about this Islamic practice while fostering common ground with Latter-day Saints who also practice fasting, though one day per month.
Traore, a Mali native and senior who has played all four years in Provo, is a beloved player who will be remembered with fondness by BYU fans for years to come. He is a foundational piece in facilitating the program’s successful transition into the Big 12 and integral in this year’s historic run to the Sweet 16. Fouss won't have to pay for many lunches in Provo for the rest of his life. Regarding his acceptance as a religious minority at BYU, Fouss once said, “[Being a Muslim at BYU] is actually super cool. Everyone respects our beliefs.”
On the gridiron, BYU starting quarterback Jake Retzlaff is hands-down the most famous Jewish football player in the country. At a time when many universities have been confronting outright antisemitism on their campuses, Retzlaff told the Jewish Herald-Voice about his acceptance by the BYU community, “I’ve never been so welcomed by a place that at first you may think could be so different.”
Retzlaff’s recent NIL deal with Manischewitz Latkes has helped the BYU community to better understand Jewish practices like keeping kosher and honoring Passover.
Fostering understanding and goodwill through sports
Through BYU sports, Muslims, Jews, and members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints have been united by a common bond.
It’s this type of positive association through sports that I’m hoping Mark Pope and Collin Chandler can foster among Kentucky’s passionate fanbase. In a state where fewer than 1 in 100 residents share the faith held by Pope and Chandler, they may be the two most prominent Latter-day Saints in some UK fans’ lives.
As striking as this may sound, Latter-day Saint representation in the state of Kentucky is somewhat on par with the percentages of Muslims and Jews at BYU with both demographics coming in at less than 1%.
While I will always be “loyal, strong, and true” in my support of BYU, the broader aims of the church that sponsors the school has me also rooting for Mark Pope and Collin Chandler.
Go Cougs!
...and go Cats!