PROVO, Utah — BYU head coach Kalani Sitake was recognized as a recipient of the Utah County Person of the Year award on Tuesday during the 2026 State of Utah County event held at the Utah Valley Convention Center.
Presented during the Utah County Commission's annual State of the County address, Sitake was recognized with the award for the impact of his leadership as the BYU head football coach on Utah County's culture, economy and national recognition resulting from the success of the BYU football program.
Utah County Commissioners Skyler Beltran, Amelia Powers Gardner and Brandon Gordon formally recognized the award recipients and highlighted their outstanding contributions to the community. Sitake was joined by former Orem City mayor Jim Evans in receiving Person of the Year recognition, while Harward Farms and Thanksgiving Point were honored as the Business of the Year and Organization of the Year, respectively.
In 2025, Sitake led BYU to a 12-2 record and No. 11 final ranking in the AP Top 25 with one of the best resumes in college football. Only national champion Indiana achieved more wins than BYU over teams that won nine or more games, and the Hoosiers and College Football Playoff semifinalist Oregon were the only teams to earn more wins over teams with a winning record.
Sitake has guided the Cougars to back-to-back seasons contending for the College Football Playoff and earning bowl victories over ranked teams as a member of the Big 12 Conference. At 23-4 (.852) over the past two years, only Indiana, Oregon, Ohio State and Notre Dame have a better winning percentage than BYU in that timeframe.