The prestigious award–presented annually since 1985 to the most impactful linebacker in college football–was named after Dick Butkus who was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1983 and the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1979. The 2024 Butkus Award watch list contains 51 linebackers, mirroring the No. 51 jersey worn by the award’s namesake.

Kelly, a 6-2, 235-pound redshirt junior from Kearns, Utah, transferred to BYU from Weber State following the 2023 season. The four-star transfer was recently named to the Phil Steele Preseason All-Big 12 Third Team, Athlon Sports All-Big 12 Fourth Team, and was also named Preseason All-Big 12 Honorable Mention by College Football Network.

In addition, Kelly was graded as the seventh highest linebacker in the Big 12 by Pro Football Focus and was named to the East-West Shrine Bowl Watch List.

In 28 games for Weber State from 2021-23, Kelly had 85 tackles, 20 tackles for loss, 16.5 sacks, five forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries, seven pass breakups and an interception. In 2023, he led the Big Sky Conference in sacks (10.5), forced fumbles (4) and fumble recoveries (2) on his way to being named first team All-Conference.

Semifinalists for the Butkus Award are expected to be named on Nov. 4, with the finalists announced on Nov. 25. The winner of the 2024 Butkus Award will be unveiled live on Dec. 8, during The Home Depot College Football Awards on ESPN.

Founded in 1985, the Butkus Award is presented by the Butkus Foundation and selected by a 51-member expert panel of coaches, scouts and journalists. Now in its 40th season, the Butkus Award honors the nation’s best linebacker.

Jazz announce latest signings

The Utah Jazz announced on Tuesday they signed forward Johnny Juzang and forward Svi Mykhailiuk, as well as signing forward Oscar Tshiebwe to a two-way contract. In a related move, the team has waived guard Taevion Kinsey. Per team policy, terms of the deals were not released.

Juzang (6-7, 215, UCLA) appeared in 20 games (five starts) in 2023-24 with the Jazz, owning averages of 7.2 points on 41.6 percent from beyond the arc, along with 1.8 rebounds, and 1.2 assists in 18.6 minutes per game. The 23-year-old posted a career-best 27 points on 7-of-8 from three-point range at Golden State on April 7.

The Tarzana, Calif., native has spent two seasons (2022-24) as a two-way player for the Jazz, appearing in 38 games (five starts) with averages of 6.1 points and 2.0 boards per game. With the Salt Lake City Stars, the Jazz’s G League affiliate, Juzang saw action in a total of 39 regular season games (24 starts), averaging 20.4 points, 4.7 rebounds, and 3.1 assists in 32.4 minutes per contest.

The 2021-22 All-Pac-12 First Team honoree averaged 15.8 points, 4.4 rebounds, and 1.7 assists in two seasons at UCLA (2020-22). In nine career NCAA Tournament games, he recorded averages of 19.3 points and 4.6 rebounds, helping lead UCLA to the Sweet 16 in 2022 and the Final Four in 2021–the program’s first Final Four appearance since 2008. He left school ranked 10th on the Bruins’ all-time scoring list in the NCAA Tournament with 174 points.

Juzang played in 85 career collegiate games over three seasons with Kentucky (2019-20) and UCLA (2020-22), recording career averages of 11.6 points, 3.6 rebounds, and 1.3 assists in 25.5 minutes per contest.

Mykhailiuk (6-7, 205, Kansas) appeared in 41 games (two starts) for the 2023-24 NBA Champion Boston Celtics last season and averaged 4.0 points on 38.9 percent from beyond the arc, along with 1.2 rebounds in 10.1 minutes per game.

The Cherkasy, Ukraine native has played in 293 career games (56 starts) for the Celtics, Charlotte Hornets, New York Knicks, Detroit Pistons, Los Angeles Lakers, Oklahoma City Thunder, and Toronto Raptors during his six-year career. The 27-year-old owns career averages of 6.3 points, 1.7 rebounds, and 1.3 assists while shooting 40.4 percent from the field. Mykhailiuk was selected with the 47th overall pick by the Lakers in the 2018 NBA Draft.

The Kansas product appeared in 136 collegiate games (70 starts) in four seasons with the Jayhawks, averaging 8.7 points, 2.5 rebounds, and 1.5 assists. Mykhailiuk set the KU single-season record for three-point field goals made with 115 and earned All-Big 12 honors his senior year.

Tshiebwe (6-9, 260, Kentucky) spent the 2023-24 season on a two-way deal with the Indiana Pacers–appearing in eight NBA games and averaging 3.3 points and 2.0 rebounds in 5.3 minutes per game. He was named Kia NBA G League Rookie of the Year and All-NBA G League First Team after appearing in 23 regular season games (21 starts) for the Indiana Mad Ants and averaging 16.2 points, 16.0 rebounds, and 1.5 assists in 27.2 minutes per contest.

BYU women’s soccer prepares to kick off regular season

No. 3 BYU women’s soccer opens the 2024 season with a top-20 matchup against No. 19 Wisconsin on South Field Thursday evening.

BYU opens its season with a top-25 matchup on South Field for the second year in a row. The Cougars return just two starters from the 2023 College Cup squad in Allie Fryer and Lynette Hernaez. After saying goodbye to 11 seniors, the 2024 roster bolsters 12 new faces; four transfers and eight freshmen. BYU has won its season opener in six consecutive seasons, including last year’s victory over Saint Louis on South Field.

Wisconsin finished its 2023 season with a 14-5-4 overall record, going 7-2-1 in Big Ten conference play. After falling to Iowa in the Big Ten Championship, the Badgers made a run to the NCAA tournament. Texas beat Wisconsin in the second round of the NCAA tournament, as the Badgers finished the season ranked No. 12 in the nation. Head coach Paula Wilkins, who is in her 24th season, is 20th in win percentage (69.4%) and 28th in wins (312) among active Division I head coaches.

The Cougars and Badgers have competed twice previously, with BYU leading the series 2-0. The last time the two teams met, BYU defeated Wisconsin 1-0 on South Field on September 14, 2007. Both BYU and Wisconsin have had 24 NCAA tournament appearances. Both teams also have two College Cup appearances, including a national runner-up.

The game is scheduled for 7 p.m. MT and will be streamed on ESPN+.