When he was first approached about giving a BYU devotional, Kalani Sitake was unsure about it.
But one of his heroes soon helped get him fully on board and behind the mic.
“At first I was a little hesitant to (speak), and then they said, ‘Well, LaVell (Edwards) did it,’” Sitake told reporters Tuesday afternoon. “And I said, ‘OK, if you want me to do it, then just say LaVell did it and I’m going to do it.’ … That’s why I go to some of the events that are out there, because LaVell started it and it was a big part of it. I want to be and I want to do exactly like he did, and he did it the right way.”
Sitake addressed nearly 8,000 Marriott Center attendees Tuesday morning as the assigned speaker for BYU’s weekly campus devotional, where he shared a message of God’s love and plan for His children.
“I actually really enjoyed it,” Sitake said. “It was really cool for me to review things and think about what I wanted to say to the students. I’m just so relieved now that it’s over with, I was so nervous about it. I was so nervous, but I was excited for the opportunity.
“That was a lot of fun, though, and I appreciate all the students showing up, our entire team being there and our entire staff. That was really cool for me to have my family and the team there.”
Sitake joins Edwards as the only Cougar football coaches in program history to be tabbed as devotional speakers. Edwards spoke on two occasions — once as an active coach in 1976, and again in 2001 following his retirement.
He also famously spoke at General Conference in the middle of BYU’s 1984 national championship season.
Other notable BYU athletic figures to speak in a campus devotional setting include athletic director Tom Holmoe in 2006, associate AD Chad Lewis in 2014 and women’s golf head coach Carrie Roberts in 2019, among others.
“I think it was great to be able to just to show a little bit of vulnerability in who I am, and that I have struggles, too,” Sitake said. “I hope that (the audience) can maybe connect on what I had to say. I hope I did a good enough job teaching it so that people can apply it to their own life.
“That was an honor, and I enjoyed the experience, and then after it was done I felt even better, but I mean, it was nice to be able to talk about God, football, the wonderful Atonement that’s in my life and that I can be just who I am as a football coach and as a person that makes mistakes as a disciple of Christ, so that was really cool for me.”
Sitake selected BYU safety Tanner Wall and wide receiver Chase Roberts to give the opening and closing prayers at the devotional.
“Chase and I were super grateful to be part of that experience today with Kalani being the devotional speaker,” Wall said. “It was packed.
“(University) vice president (Keith) Vorkink was telling us it was probably the biggest crowd they’ve had for a devotional this year, so I’m glad that all of Cougar Nation showed up to listen to Coach today and hear from his message and his stories. I loved all the things that he shared.”
As Roberts prepared to pray, technical difficulties resulted in the microphone turning off, delaying the benediction for a few moments — with which Sitake had some fun with his star receiver.
“The mic went out on Chase, and I just told him, ‘It’s adversity. You’ve got to figure it out,’” he said with a laugh. “I was ready for him to belt out the prayer, but honestly, just seeing all the coaches with my family, seeing all the players right in front of me, that was really cool.
“I’m just so thankful that I get to coach these guys and I get to be with them and work alongside them. It was a really cool experience. I hope everyone gets a chance to (give a devotional). Maybe you guys can volunteer so they never have to come back my way again.”
