PROVO, Utah — BYU head coach Kalani Sitake today announced the mid-year additions of graduate transfer running backs Christopher Brooks from Cal and Houston Heimuli from Stanford. Both players have enrolled for winter semester at BYU.
Brooks is a 6-foot-1, 235-pound tailback from Oceanside, California, who was Cal's leading rusher in two of the past three seasons, while Heimuli is a 5-foot-11, 265-pound fullback out of Bountiful, Utah, who appeared in 42 games as a blocking back for the Cardinal and was named a team captain this past season.
“We are excited to welcome Chris and Houston to our football family,” Sitake said. “Chris is a talented tailback with a power-running style who has been a leading contributor on the field for Cal. As a former fullback, I have a huge appreciation for the consistent and important contributions Houston has made for his team over his career. Both Chris and Houston are also outstanding students, and we are pleased they have chosen BYU to continue to achieve their on-field and academic goals.”
Brooks played in 40 games for Cal from 2018-2021 and totaled 1,734 yards rushing with 14 touchdowns on the ground while adding 50 catches for 345 receiving yards and seven touchdowns as a receiver. Previously known as Christopher Brown, he signed with the Golden Bears in 2018 after amassing 3,249 yards rushing and 34 scores with 25 receptions for 260 yards during his final three seasons at El Camino High School. He changed his last name from Brown to Brooks between the 2020 and 2021 seasons in honor of his mother by taking her maiden name.
He led Cal in rushing as a sophomore in 2019 when he played in all 13 games, including 12 starts, and ran for 914 yards and eight touchdowns while also catching 22 passes for 166 yards and four more scores. This past season Brooks averaged a 5.2 yards per carry to total a team-leading 607 rushing yards with four touchdowns, while adding 19 receptions for 131 yards and three touchdowns as a receiver.
Brooks has had four career 100-yard rushing games—against UC Davis (197), Illinois (120) and UCLA (111) in 2019 and a season-high 131 yards in 2021 against Stanford. He finished this past season with 240 rushing yards over the final three games. He appeared in all 13 games off the bench as a true freshman in 2018, contributing 148 rushing yards and 31 receiving yards. Slowed by injury, he played in just three games during the pandemic season of 2020 with 65 yards rushing.
Heimuli, the son of former BYU running back Lakei Heimuli (1983-86), was a two-time all-state player at Bountiful High School where he was rated the nation’s second-best fullback by Scout and ESPN before signing with Stanford in 2015. After serving a two-year mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Heimuli was a member of the Cardinal football program from 2017-2021.
A key contributor as a blocking back, Heimuli redshirted in 2017 before playing in 24 games in 2018 and 2019 at fullback and special teams, including three starts in 2019. He earned All-Pac-12 honorable mention in 2020 during a pandemic-shortened six-game schedule, before being selected as a team captain and appearing in 11 games this past season. Heimuli received the Outstanding Senior Award in 2021 and finished his Stanford career with seven receptions for 25 yards and one touchdown.
In addition to Brooks and Heimuli, six previously signed recruits have enrolled at BYU for winter semester. Offensive lineman Kingsley Suamataia and defensive standouts Logan Fano, Brooks Maile, Bruce Mitchell, Isaiah Glasker and Aisea Moa have all started their college careers this semester as mid-year enrollees.
Suamataia, a 6-foot-6, 330-pound offensive lineman from Orem, Utah, signed with BYU in 2021 as a transfer from Oregon after being a five-star standout at nearby Orem High School as one of the nation’s top-rated offensive tackles.
Fano, a 6-foot-4, 225-pound defensive end/outside linebacker from Spanish Fork, Utah, signed in December 2020 as part of the 2021 recruiting class before a mission to San Antonio, Texas. He was a 5A All-State First Team player and four-star recruit rated the No. 23 defensive end in the nation coming out of Timpview High School.
Maile, a 6-foot-4, 285-pound defensive lineman from St. George, Utah, signed with BYU as part of the 2019 recruiting class as a Deseret News All-State Second Team selection. He has enrolled after serving a mission in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Mitchell, a 6-foot-4, 265-pound defensive lineman from Kamas, Utah, was a member of the 2019 signing class after helping South Summit High School win two state titles and go 33-3 in three years as a varsity player. He served a mission in Seattle, Washington, prior to enrolling at BYU.
Glasker, a 6-foot-5, 205-pound defensive back from South Jordan, Utah, signed with BYU last year after a standout two-way career at Bingham High School where he was a Deseret News All-State Second Team honoree.
Moa, a 6-foot-3, 245-pound four-star defensive lineman, signed with BYU in December as part of the 2022 recruiting class and starts his college career early coming out of Weber High School in North Ogden, Utah.
BYU welcomes running back transfers Brooks and Heimuli among mid-year additions
