BYU’s Richie Saunders Embracing Tater Tot Fame
Mar 20, 2025, 12:32 AM | Updated: 12:33 am
DENVER – BYU basketball junior guard Richie Saunders became an overnight celebrity for his connection to tater tots.
He was already a star in the hearts of BYU fans for his play on the floor by emerging as a First Team All-Big 12 player.
But the tot’s connection only adds to the stardom.
Tater Tot star
The story caught fire on social media during the Big 12 Tournament in Kansas City.
Now it’s time for the NCAA Tournament.
Richie Saunders is gearing up for the NCAA Tournament
If BYU makes a run in the “Big Dance,” don’t be surprised if Saunders’ family ties to the creation of tater tots grab more headlines as Saunders will be playing on a bigger stage in the NCAA Tournament.
The Tator Tot story has caught College Basketball by storm over the past week or so. Today at the #NCAATournament #BYU‘s Richie Saunders explains the background to him being the great-grandson of the @OreIdaPotatoes founder.#GiveMeYourTots #TatorTots @KSLSports pic.twitter.com/skXxSLy7Au
— Sam Farnsworth (@Samsworth_TV) March 19, 2025
Saunders laughed when asked at the NCAA Tournament about his new fame away from the court.
“It’s hilarious. I don’t know where that came out of. It came out of nowhere,” said Saunders.
“My great-grandpa founded Ore-Ida, which founded the tater tot. I don’t even know how it got started. Maybe Tyson (Jex) knows. I don’t know where it came out, but we’ve had a lot of laughs just in our house and had a lot of tater tots.”
The story caught fire when Michael Mower, a Senior Advisor of Community Outreach and Intergovernmental Relations for Governor of Utah Spencer J. Cox, tweeted about the connection on X.
Fun fact: Richie Saunders’s great grandfather invented the tater tot. I had some today to celebrate his All Big 12 First Team honors. He is such a class act, just like his dad, @RichSaunders10. Go Cougars! pic.twitter.com/rhSoDXqNWE
— Michael Mower (@MikeLMower) March 10, 2025
Saunders’s great-grandpa is F. Nephi Grigg, a co-founder of Ore-Ida Potatoes.
In reply to Sam Farnsworth’s video of Saunders discussing the tater tot connection that he shared on X, Ore-Ida Potatoes responded by saying, “when the tot king speaks we listen.”
when the tot king speaks we listen
— Ore-Ida Potatoes (@OreIdaPotatoes) March 19, 2025
BYU fans are having fun with the Tater Tot story. Orem restaurant Chubby’s near University Mall, which has a room filled with BYU memorabilia, is adding tater tots to their menu for a limited during BYU’s March Madness run.
BYU vs. VCU
First Round – 2025 NCAA Tournament
Location: Denver, Colorado
Arena: Ball Arena
Tip-Off: 2:05 p.m. (MDT)
TV: TNT
Radio: KSL NewsRadio (102.7 FM, 1160 AM in Utah – Extended pregame begins at Noon)
Mitch Harper is a BYU Insider for sports.ksl.com and hosts the Cougar Tracks Podcast (SUBSCRIBE) and Cougar Sports Saturday (12–3 p.m.) on KSL Newsradio. Follow Mitch’s coverage of BYU in the Big 12 Conference on X: @Mitch_Harper.
