8 hours ago 3

Tanner Wall has already made the most of his BYU experience, but he’s ready for even more

Tanner Wall’s first taste of game action at BYU came rather unexpectedly.

It was late in the Cougars’ deflating 26-17 loss to Boise State back in 2021, and star receiver Puka Nacua was out of gas. Needing a breather, he approached his freshman position-mate Wall to take his spot on the punt return unit in the fourth quarter.

And thus, the lifelong BYU diehard Wall made his first appearance for the same program he grew up adoring, though a Hobbs Nyberg fair catch made the moment a bit anticlimactic.

Special Collector's Issue: "1984: The Year BYU was Second to None"

Get an inclusive look inside BYU Football's 1984 National Championship season.

His first snap as a Cougar may have come on a whim and without any sort of fanfare or excitement, but standing on the damp LaVell Edwards Stadium turf lit a fire within Wall — he’d accomplished his dream of making it on the field. Now he intended to scrap, claw and do whatever was necessary to remain there.

It worked.

Nearly four years later, the current star safety who first played as a sudden replacement has become irreplaceable as a leader and pillar of BYU’s 2025 operation.

“That was a crazy moment,” Wall told the Deseret News this spring, reflecting on that rainy October afternoon against the Broncos. “At the time, I definitely had aspirations for becoming a starter and becoming a leader on the team. I didn’t didn’t know what that journey would look like, but now looking back on everything, I’m very grateful for every step of that journey and how it really played out.”

Unique journey

Wall’s journey has been unique, impressive and inspiring — but it’s possibly one of the last of its kind. With the House settlement and its new roster limits looming, football programs are trimming their rosters and essentially eliminating walk-ons from the equation. BYU has produced a number of notable walk-on stars over the years, and Wall could be the final such success story in Provo.

But he’s not interested in entertaining that narrative now. All of Wall’s attention is set on helping the Cougars take another step forward in 2025.

“We’re really focused on making sure that the whole team is on the same page as far as expectations go,” Wall said. “We were close, we were on the (playoff) bubble last year, so we know we’re a championship-caliber team and we want to go accomplish that.

“Making sure that everyone’s on board, bought into our culture and headed to the same destination is really important for us.”

Despite a dominant high school career as one of the top athletes in the Washington, D.C., area — he was the first player in Arlington, Virginia, county history to be named both offensive and defensive player of the year in the same season — BYU didn’t show much recruiting interest in Wall, even after being named wide receiver MVP at the program’s 2017 summer camp.

It wasn’t until the Cougars were between offensive coordinators following the 2017 campaign that staff holdover Steve Clark offered Wall a preferred walk-on spot at receiver, which the Virginian chose to accept over other opportunities closer to home.

Following a mission to Brazil, Wall arrived at BYU and was asked to grayshirt for a year, requiring him to sacrifice an academic scholarship he’d earned from the school. A year later, he cracked the Cougars’ roster, but redshirted.

Two years as a scout team receiver were followed by a position switch to safety upon the hiring of defensive coordinator Jay Hill, where Wall quickly captured a starting spot before an injury ended his 2023 season at the end of September.

Given what he’s been through, it’s remarkable that Wall is still alive and kicking in the program, let alone his ascension to the role of team captain, key defensive contributor and recognizable star.

‘Something special’

“I just saw something special in (Wall) from the beginning, from the very beginning.” BYU coach Kalani Sitake told reporters back in March. “You can just see it in some of these guys, they just have no quit and don’t know any other way than to work hard. Those guys usually do really well, and I like being surrounded by them because they make me work, too.

“But having him around has been special, and seeing him progress and grow in so many different ways, seeing him get older and go through that transition into an adult, being a team leader and a captain, it’s been amazing for me to coach him.”

The 2024 season saw Wall win the starting free safety job out of fall camp, maintaining that role all season and recording 53 tackles, grabbing a team-high three interceptions, and allowing a 55.2 opposing passer rating in coverage.

Making the switch to safety had been a major gamble for Wall with no guarantees, but he was already well-versed in betting on himself — he’s a walk-on, after all — and fully embraced “trusting the process” for another leap of faith.

It’s paid off handsomely, as BYU is 13-3 in his starts on defense since 2023 as he’s “grown in my love for the game.”

‘Grateful for the timing’

“It’s kind of felt like a pretty seamless transition,” Wall said of his move to safety. “I’m really grateful for the timing of all of it, being able to switch right when Coach Hill got here and learn his system alongside all the other guys and almost be on even ground. I‘m very grateful for the way that that played out.”

Though the two play different positions, Wall says his top football influence is Taysom Hill, who he refers to as his “BYU idol” and tries to emulate in his play on defense.

“Looking at Taysom and what he’s been able to accomplish in the NFL, he’s a guy who puts the team first and will do anything,” Wall said. “He plays quarterback, they’ll hand him the ball, they’ll throw him the ball, he’s blocking punts on special teams, blocking on kickoff or returning kickoffs, so that’s kind of the attitude and approach to the game that I want to take, that I can impact the game and help my team in any way possible.”

Such a mentality is evident in Wall’s work on special teams, which may be what he takes the most pride in. BYU special teams coordinator Kelly Poppinga has even hailed him as “probably (the) best special teams player on our team” — particularly high praise considering the unit produced four return touchdowns in 2024.

Special teams is near and dear to Wall’s heart. It offered him his first opportunities to see the field at BYU. It’s helped him improve at safety and thrive there. It’s where he feels he can maximize his impact on each game, and it’s where he may have his best chance of playing professionally in 2026 and beyond.

“Coach Poppinga talks about it all the time, how with the average number of snaps on special teams in the game, that’s still a significant amount of snaps you can use to impact the game,” Wall said. “So my aspirations are to add those skills to my repertoire and make game-changing plays on special teams, because that might be a role for me in the future on an NFL roster.”

Many hats

In addition to his duties as a starting defender, special teams ace and captain, Wall serves as both a co-chair on BYU’s Student-Athlete Advisory Committee and as a BYU Pathways mentor, while also helping to host prospective teammates on recruiting visits. He’s spoken at a number of devotional services around Utah, even doing so alongside Jimmer Fredette on last month’s athletic department-sponsored cruise.

Perhaps most impressive, however, is his work in the classroom. Wall’s 3.89 GPA in BYU’s finance program earned him First Team Academic All-American honors, becoming the Cougars’ 16th such selection in program history and first since 2010.

"I’m super grateful for everyone who made that possible, between the amazing mentors and other academic advisors and people who who are behind that," Wall said. “Obviously a lot of credit goes to my parents, especially my mom who is a school teacher, and from a very young age helped me to understand the importance of education.

“I’m grateful for a leader like Coach Hill who reminds us often that our pursuit of excellence in everything is important, not just in football, but how being great in the classroom and being great at home and in all aspects of our life ends up making us a better football player, and I firmly believe that.”

Wall’s time at BYU has been a dream come true, and he’ll be the first to tell you that. The once widely-overlooked East Coast walk-on has risen to become one of the faces of the program, with one final campaign to further ascend into one of the most accomplished Cougars of his generation.

But much like potentially being BYU’s last great walk-on, Wall doesn’t want to think about any individual legacy he may leave someday. All of his focus lies in being part of a team that flies to unprecedented heights together.

As a 6-year-old in 2006, Wall dogpiled with his dad, uncles and grandfather in celebration following BYU’s dramatic last second “Beck to Harline” victory over Utah. It was an instrumental moment in his love for BYU, which he’s done his best to display throughout his time as a Cougar.

For his last act at BYU, Wall wants to be part of authoring more such memories — moments of joyous, dogpiling delight never to be forgotten for Cougar fans and families.

“It’s kind of surreal to think about all that we as a program have been able to accomplish in recent years, but also for me on a personal level,” Wall said. “Reflecting on everything that’s been part of the journey, finishing this year with a (Big 12) championship would mean the world to me.

“That would be really special, and we as a team recognize what a special fan base we have and what a special place this is, so bringing a championship to them would mean everything to us. We’re looking forward to hopefully doing that.”