How BYU DT Justin Kirkland transformed his body for one last go with No. 14 Cougars

PROVO — Justin Kirkland's redemptive tour in his fifth season of college football begins Saturday night in LaVell Edwards Stadium.

But before the 6-foot-3, 305-pound nose tackle barrels toward the future, he'll first take a brief look at the past.

The 14th-ranked Cougars will open the 2026 campaign against FCS Utah Tech (6 p.m. MT, ESPN+), which is a team the Roy High grad knows well. Four years ago, Kirkland played in the first meeting between the two teams — for the Trailblazers, as a true freshman in his first of 11 straight starts for the university that had recently rebranded from Dixie State.

"It's kind of a full-circle moment for me, playing against Utah Tech in game one," Kirkland said earlier this week. "In 2022, I was on the other side of that at LES, playing BYU. And after knee surgery, being able to take time and come back 100%, I'm ready to roll with the boys."

Kirkland was listed as a co-starter at nose tackle in the Cougars' multiple defense under first-year defensive coordinator Kelly Poppinga. But before he reaches his "full-circle" moment, a lot had to happen for he could play — and at BYU, no less.

Kirkland's long road back

Kirkland grew up a BYU fan in West Haven, Utah, just short of a two-hour drive north of Provo in Weber County. But the former 3-star recruit by 247Sports received limited recruiting attention outside of the Trailblazers, who were undergoing a name change during his senior season in high school.

So the three-time all-region selection at both offensive and defensive lineman who also lettered in basketball, tennis and track and field accepted the Trailblazers' scholarship offer before posting 40 tackles, 6.0 tackles for loss, 2.0 sacks and a fumble recovery as a freshman in St. George.

"It was fun," Kirkland said of his time at Utah Tech. "I had a lot of teammates from Roy High who played on that team, or knew that northern Utah football. I still have a lot of fond memories of the coaches down there, who were some of the first to show me what college ball was like.

"I've got nothing but good things to say about St. George: the people down there, the fans down there. It was a ton of fun playing for Utah Tech that first year."

But that season put Kirkland on the radar, and when he entered the transfer portal after the season, teams took notice. Lots of teams — power conference teams, even. One of them was Oklahoma State, where then-coach Mike Gundy offered him a scholarship, and Kirkland went on to play in 26 games including seven starts in two seasons and total 40 tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss and a sack.

But after two seasons, he and his wife Marlee, who also grew up in northern Utah and followed him to Stillwater when the couple were newlyweds, were looking for a change. Specifically, they hoped to head back home.

"Home" became BYU, where Kirkland joined the team last fall.

That's not the end of the story, though. The hefty people-mover was limited in six games after transferring to BYU due to injuries, including a torn meniscus in his knee during his first week of workouts with the Cougars. That opened the door for a medical redshirt and a fifth season of eligibility.

Not that Kirkland would necessarily have it any other way. What was difficult at the time offered him and his wife an opportunity to "run it back" with Keanu Tanuvasa, Isaiah Glasker and the rest of the defense in pursuit of a Big 12 championship.

"I was just tell (his former self) 'enjoy the ride, and enjoy the momenet,'" he said. "As you talk to older people, they all say life goes by so fast. Even looking back now in my fifth year of college football, I know that did kind of disappear. So I would just say enjoy the moment; remember the hard times, the good times, the laughs and stuff like that.

"Football takes care of itself," he added. "But you can never really recreate the moments in the locker room and fall camp. So just enjoy it."

Healthy, and 40 pounds down

Kirkland didn't just return for laughs and a good time in his fifth year, though. He's motivated to chase more.

With that in mind, he went to work in the offseason, reworking his body and dropping from 345 pounds to somewhere between 305 and 310 as he moved around the practice field during training camp.

For that, Kirkland credits his wife, who cooked him healthy meals — a lot of chicken and avocado, he says — and helped him through what he calls the toughest part of the weight-loss regime.

"We quit going to get ice cream," he said. "I was on a no-fun-food diet. But it worked."

His coaches and teammates took notice, too.

"He does a great job of alleviating pressure from me and our other defensive tackles," said Tanuvasa, the 300-pound tackle who lines up next to Kirkland. "He does his role very well, and I see him as a true nose. When he is in there to eat up blocks, I can play that 3-eye or 4-eye technique. It's very freeing.

"The way he's transformed his body has been phenomenal," he added. "He's proud of it, too; you can see him with his shirt off all the time now."

Kirkland also credits BYU strength and conditioning staff of Skyler Mayne, Ryan Phillis and their assistants — even if he was allowed to "limit myself to one cheat meal" every week.

"It was a group effort," Kirkland said. "But once I cut out the bad calories, it was easy.

"I feel like I can run forever," he added. "It's been a lot of fun."

Leading up front

Kirkland and Tanuvasa lead a defensive line group alongside Viliami Po'uha, Bodie Schoonover, Anisi Purcell, Hunter Clegg and others in the trenches behind what some have called one of the top linebacker units in BYU's modern history with Glasker, Nusi Taumoepeau, Siale Esera, Kansas State transfer Jake Clifton and Cal transfer Cade Uluave (to name a few).

It's a group that Poppinga calls "the best leadership we've had" since he returned to his alma mater four years ago.

"I think we're big, we're strong and we're experienced," he said. "All of those guys have played a lot of football, from Keanu to Anisi to Vil and Bodie — and Justin may have had the biggest improvement of any of those guys, just in his body transformation and everything else. Those guys are so consistent, and I think we've got some really good young guys coming along as well that are making their way up."

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