Fireworks, fan experiences and a Jake Retzlaff sighting: What you may have missed at BYU’s home opener

BYU coach Kalani Sitake gave a shoutout to the fans following the Cougars’ season-opening 63-7 win over Utah Tech late Saturday night.

Even with BYU taking on an FCS opponent, Sitake was impressed not just with his team’s play, but with the fan support in the home opener at LaVell Edwards Stadium.

He believes it set an impressive standard for players who transferred in from other schools, in their first experience playing at home in Provo.

“Really proud of the team, proud of the way the guys played, proud of the energy that we had. And just want to tell all the fans, thank you so much for your energy. They stayed here till the very end. The ROC (BYU’s student section) was here the whole entire time,” Sitake said.

“(That) impressed a lot of our players that came from the portal, been other places. They couldn’t believe the support that the fans had for the team and the energy — made a lot of noise. And you know, we’re going to need them next week (vs. Arizona). It’s going to be a lot of fun, but we need them all year long.”

Watch Sitake’s message for the fans, as well as players’ reactions and scenes from the dominant win in the video above, as the Cougars started the season 1-0.

Jake Retzlaff back supporting the Cougars

Former BYU quarterback Jake Retzlaff was one of several former BYU players at the contest — so, too, was former Cougar running back Jamaal Williams.

Retzlaff, who left BYU after facing an honor code violation and played the 2025 season at Tulane, was back in Provo for the next game now that his college career is done.

Retzlaff spent time on the sidelines, and after freshman running back Devaughn Eka scored a fourth-quarter touchdown, Retzlaff was there to congratulate the young back.

High-fives all around

Call it a bit of karmic goodwill.

As BYU headed back out on to the field following halftime, a young Cougar fan had secured a spot where he could greet players as they headed down the tunnel.

The first player to take him up on a high-five ended up being Cannon DeVries, who minutes later returned the second-half kickoff 100 yards for a touchdown.

After DeVries gave the fan a high-five, he built up his confidence and took another step towards the players and coaches heading out to the field and received several more high-fives from BYU players and coaches, including head coach Kalani Sitake.