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new BYU defensive coordinator Kelly Poppinga instructs players during a drill during spring practices. March 6, 2026

Courtesy BYU Photo

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BYU defensive coach Kelly Poppinga gets his team fired up before the start of a Big 12 football game against Iowa State in Ames, Iowa, on Saturday, Oct. 25, 2025.

Courtesy BYU Photo

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Please direct all your questions to the new defensive coordinator.

Well, not every question, but enough them to keep new BYU defensive coordinator Kelly Poppinga perhaps busier than normal as he adjusts to his new role

“I think back to my time with other coordinators and whenever a position coach has a question, you go in and ask the coordinator. And now I’m realizing there’s like five other guys coming to me asking those questions of how you want something done,” Poppinga said. ” So yeah, just being able to get everybody on the same page, getting everybody coordinated, and doing it the way that we want to do it is the most important.”

Yes, spring practice isn’t all about the players, and them working themselves into the Cougar system as best they can, but it’s also about the coaches doing the same. And considering Poppinga’s role in replacing Jay Hill, someone who was widely considered one of the best defensive coordinators in BYU football history, it’s easily one of the more important learning curves on the team.

Fortunately for all concerned, Poppinga was able to tackle after being tutored by some of the best.

Bronco Mendenhall was his first mentor, first as a player during the 2006 and 2007 seasons, and then as an assistant to the former BYU head coach at both BYU and Virginia. Boise State was his next stop where he coached under Spencer Danielson for one season before coming back home to Provo to be part of Hill’s staff as defensive ends coach and as Special Teams Coordinator.

Now, in his new capacity, he’s surrounded himself with top coaches, such as defensive line coach Sione Po’uha, who also serves as the team’s assistant head coach, new outside linebacker coach Chad Kauha’aha’a, who previously worked as a special assistant, and of course special assistant Gary Andersen, who is one of the more seasoned defensive coaches anywhere in the country. Add Kalani Sitake, who has a wealth of experience himself coaching successful defenses before taking on BYU’s head-coaching responsibilities and the resources are plenty.

It’s all prepared him for the role he has now at BYU, and it’s a role that he relishes. And so far the transition to greater responsibilities has gone well in large part due to his existing staff, which includes many of the aforementioned coaches, along with some notable additions, which include safeties coach DeMario Warren and cornerbacks coach Lewis Walker.

“I’m not about like what I want, it’s what we want and what we’re best at,” Poppinga said regarding the input he readily takes from his defensive staff. “There’s a lot of really good coaches in that room that have a lot of really good ideas and experience. So we get to use all the resources that we have to help us be successful.”

Turns out the resources he has on the actual field of play looks pretty good as well, with the stated strength of the Cougar defensive players being the work they do away from the gridiron.

“I think we’re I think we have strengths everywhere,” Poppinga said. “I think leadership, if I’d have to say anything right now (is our biggest strength), I feel really good about our leadership. I think Keanu Tanuvasa’s done a great job there. I think Evan Johnson does a great job with the back end. Raider (Damuni), Fale(tau Satuala) and Tommy Prassas (are doing a) great job in the safety room. I just I feel like leadership in every room is really good … It’s as good as I’ve seen since I’ve been here.”

As strong as BYU’s defensive staff may appear on paper, it’s the players that provide most of the returns, and not just through their play on the field.

“Something I learned from Bronco (Mendenhall) a long time ago is a player-led team is way better than a coach-led team,” Poppinga said. “So if we have to sit there and helm them and be on them all the time, we just don’t have the right guys and we don’t have the right team. But this team is holding themselves accountable and holding a high standard … As coaches we really don’t have to say or do much. The players are doing that for us.”