BYU Racks Up Top-10 Wins Since 2021 as Honor Code Fuels NIL Success

1 articles · Updated · Fox News · Nov 7

Tied for the ninth-most wins in college football since NIL began in 2021, BYU has climbed to No. 7 in the AP poll after many expected its strict culture to be a handicap.
Steve Young and BYU vice president Keith Vorkink said the school's honor code and Kalani Sitake's program culture turned that difference into a recruiting asset rather than a barrier.
BYU says it does not try to lead the NIL market on pay, pointing instead to players such as Bear Bachmeier and Bruce Branch staying despite richer offers and to No. 1 NBA pick AJ Dybantsa thriving after arriving.
The school argues NIL let it compete legally for talent it previously might have missed, including non-LDS athletes who embraced campus life despite rules barring alcohol, tobacco, coffee, tea and sex outside marriage.
Both Young and Vorkink still said the broader NIL system needs congressional or legislative guardrails to stabilize athlete compensation, transfers and governance across college sports.