We are in the heat of transfer portal season, and plenty of battles are raging.

The portal drives clicks and attention right now, but I need to highlight a related Big 12 story that is not as flashy and might be even more important: BYU’s roster retention.

Head coach Kalani Sitake and the Cougars have done an incredible job of holding onto nearly all of their top-flight talent this offseason after a 12-win season. Not a single starter from the 2025 team has entered the transfer portal. 

That is difficult for any team in any offseason. Add in the fact that Kyle Whittingham was hired at Michigan and plucked Cougars defensive coordinator Jay Hill and cornerbacks coach Jernaro Gilford, and it becomes a monumental feat for BYU to have kept the two-deep intact.

Whittingham was clearly taking no prisoners with programs in Utah. He took six coaches from Morgan Scalley and the Utes and signed three (and counting) high-profile Utah transfers in edges John Henry Daley and Jonah Lea’ea and tight end JJ Buchanan. He is also in the running to land CB Smith Snowden.

If Whittingham was willing to do that to a program he built a two-decade-long legacy at, imagine what he’d be willing to do to the rival program whose name he wouldn’t even utter at press conferences?

But the Cougars seemingly built a moat around LaVell Edwards Stadium to keep the Ann Arbor vultures out. I’m not sure what they kept in the water – sharks, crocodiles, piles of NIL cash (probably a lot of that) – but it worked. 

Wolverine fans thought they were landing All-America safety Faletau Satuala, but he announced he is staying. So did All-Big 12 linebacker Isaiah Glasker, fellow linebacker Siale Esera, and defensive lineman Keanu Tanuvasa. Even CB Evan Johnson, who lost both his defensive coordinator and position coach, is sticking around.

Quarterbacks in the transfer portal are being offered $5–6 million or more, and Big 12 QBs like Josh Hoover and Sam Leavitt decided to chase a new home. But not BYU star QB Bear Bachmeier. As you might expect, he is staying put.

He’ll have Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year LJ Martin back by his side at running back, too. Martin flirted with the NFL but opted to come back for one more season. 

It’s all a testament to one thing above all: BYU’s culture. 

The player-driven leadership is remarkable, but the tone has always been set by Sitake. 

He had an opportunity to leave himself this offseason. Instead of leaving the Cougars high and dry before the biggest game of the season, as former Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin did to the Rebels, Sitake stayed and got BYU’s administration to double down on maintaining football success. 

That commitment is a big part of what happened here. Yesterday’s price is not today’s price, and the cost of keeping the 2025 stars around is undoubtedly much higher than it was a year ago.

But even similar money wouldn’t keep most players from leaving with their defensive coordinator for a top-10 program in college football. Elite culture, paired with comparable money, will. 

BYU fans should never take that for granted. I could not have more respect for what Sitake has built and the way he has gone about doing it.

The retention haul won’t grab the headlines that Texas Tech’s portal haul will, but it’s equally as important. The Cougars should enter next season as favorites to return to the Big 12 championship game alongside the Red Raiders. 

In fairness, Tech has also done a great job retaining the most important pieces of its 2025 roster.

Just don’t sleep on the ceiling of the 2026 BYU Cougars, who will bring a wealth of talent, experience, and culture to the Big 12 race. 

What You Need to Know

• A surprising Big 12 team is in the top five of 247 Sports’ transfer portal rankings. 

• Miami’s win over Ole Miss knocked the SEC out of the title game for a third straight year, and could open up more playoff spots for the Big 12 in the future. 

• Texas Tech lost out on the number one offensive weapon in the transfer portal. 

• The Big 12 has the top two teams in the men’s AP Top 25 this week. One Big 12 team dropped out of the top ten despite going 2-0 last week. 

• K-State finally hired its offensive coordinator, and he already has experience as an offensive coordinator in the Big 12. 

• One of Utah’s best offensive weapons announced he is coming back for another season. 

• Former K-State head coach Chris Klieman told the Manhattan Mercury, “I would die if I kept doing this job.” Here’s more on why he retired.

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