BYU Football Family On Display During NFL Preseason Action

PROVO, Utah – Everywhere you looked throughout week one of NFL preseason action it seemed, there was a BYU football alum making plays. The Cougars have 27 players currently in NFL training camps this summer, and they are working to make their impact felt.

The presence of BYU football players in the NFL strengthens the BYU brand and the BYU football family.

Whenever you hear current and former BYU players talk about the culture in the program, family is usually one of the words that they bring up. That family extending

One of the big trends among NFL players right now is to pose for photos with a bunch of their fellow alma mater brethren. BYU had a handful of those types of pictures this past weekend, showing the increase in numbers the Cougars have made in getting their football family to the league.

In week one, here’s a roundup of some of those moments featuring BYU players gathering after NFL preseason games.

Brady Christensen, Micah Simon, and Isaiah Kaufusi

These guys still look good wearing the white and blue!! 💙🤍🤙 pic.twitter.com/YLcU5Chm5L

— BYU FOOTBALL (@BYUfootball) August 16, 2021

You love to see it, @BYUfootball!

– @Brady_BYU, @isaiah_kaufusi, and @micahsimon_ in a combined practice with the @Panthers and @Colts.#BYU #BYUSN pic.twitter.com/OdmwLCKCAN

— Spencer Linton (@Spencer_Linton) August 12, 2021

The Indianapolis Colts defeated the Carolina Panthers, 21-18. Three BYU football players made their NFL debuts, with Brady Christensen starting along the offensive line and playing 95% of the Panthers’ offensive snaps.

In the second half, Colts linebacker Isaiah Kaufusi recorded a team-high five tackles and made a great play on a fourth-down stop.

Zac Dawe and Chandon Herring

They were both recruited together and now years later played in their first NFL preseason game! Congrats to Chan and Zach! #BYUFOOTBALL @ChandonHerring @EvanTheAgent pic.twitter.com/M05rVVlfXz

— Michael Herring (@mikedherring) August 14, 2021

A pair of undrafted free agents made their NFL debuts in the Tennessee Titans/Atlanta Falcons game. Former BYU linemen Zac Dawe and Chandon Herring were both members of the 2014 recruiting class for the Cougars, and they were living out their dream in Atlanta.

Herring led all Titans offensive players in snaps with 54 snaps in the 23-3 win, while Dawe played 15 snaps at left end and had one tackle.

Fred Warner, Daniel Sorensen, Corbin Kaufusi, Zayne Anderson, and Kai Nacua

Love seeing our guys come together at the next level!! 🤙 #GoCougs pic.twitter.com/pDdop4LFAA

— BYU FOOTBALL (@BYUfootball) August 15, 2021

The 49ers-Chiefs game had quite the BYU presence. A total of five former BYU players were part of the game. San Francisco kept out star linebacker Fred Warner after signing his record-setting contract this off-season.

Of the five former BYU players pictured, four played for Bronco Mendenhall and Kalani Sitake during their careers with the Cougars. Kansas City Chiefs standout Daniel Sorensen last played at BYU in 2013.

49ers safety Kai Nacua finished with six tackles, second-most among defenders for San Francisco.

Dax Milne and Harvey Langi

Bingham High School —>BYU —> Livin the NFL Dream! So cool playin out there with the dude I looked up to as a kid💯 All love🤝@LANGI21 pic.twitter.com/uQtI8pRf3G

— Dax Milne (@DaxMilne) August 16, 2021

In the Patriots/Washington Football Team game, two former BYU stars, who also happened to prep at the same high school, lined up against each other. WFT WR Dax Milne and Patriots linebacker Harvey Langi. Langi played in 52 snaps, leading the Patriots in tackles with 10.

Milne had two catches for 16 yards and a punt return that he returned 19 yards.

Mitch Harper is a BYU Insider for sports.ksl.com and host of the Cougar Tracks Podcast (SUBSCRIBE) and Cougar Sports Saturday (Saturday from 12-3 pm) on KSL Newsradio. Follow him on Twitter: @Mitch_Harper.

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