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Provo • In a news conference that was lighthearted and often filled with laughter, new BYU football coach Kalani Sitake introduced his first signing class on Wednesday, saying this is the beginning of the school's increased worldwide recruiting efforts to find the best athletes who can fit in at the church-owned school.

"We are really pleased with the talent we are bringing onto our team," Sitake said while announcing the addition of 25 new signees and six scholarship players who are returning from church missions. "We have gotten a lot bigger, a lot stronger, and then we also got lengthier. And we got some speed."

The class is comprises 23 high school signees and two junior college transfers — Snow College receiver Jonah Trinnaman and defensive lineman Handsome Tanielu — and includes players from seven states. Eleven are from Utah. More than 10 are expected to go on two-year church missions before enrolling, although the staff didn't specify which ones.

Sitake, who was hired on Dec. 19 to replace Bronco Mendenhall, called the process "a sprint for six weeks" as he assembled a staff, secured the recruits who had committed to the previous staff and went about finding a half-dozen or so new recruits. Flanked by assistant coaches Ty Detmer, Ilaisa Tuiaki and Ed Lamb at the BYU Broadcast Building, Sitake said recruiting won't stop at Signing Day but that it will be a 24 hour, 365 day a year happening under his watch.

"We are going to search the whole world, to be honest with you," he said, when asked if he will focus on luring Polynesian players to Provo. "So, calling on all LDS faithful, if you see a big guy who can move pretty good, call us. Get a hold of us. I don't care what sport they are playing. And if they can kick a ball through the uprights, I don't care what it is. If you are an athlete, and a good person and you want to be in this football family, then we want you. The scope of recruiting is going to cover the whole world."

Perhaps the day's biggest pickup — counting guys who had not previously committed — was Alema Pilimai, a three-star linebacker from Tustin, Calif., who had committed to Utah last summer. BYU also beat Oregon State for Kearns running back Sione Finau and Kahuku (Hawaii) linebacker Hirkley Latu and Colorado for Keanu Saleapaga, a defensive lineman from La Mirada High in Southern California.

They managed to hold onto tight end Hank Tuipulotu, the son of former Cougars star Peter Tuipulotu, who received an offer from South Carolina last month.

Detmer said the Cougars are still actively recruiting one of their own, quarterback Taysom Hill. Coaches expect a decision from Hill within a couple of weeks.

The coaches said they did not lose a single recruit who committed to the previous staff, but they did lose a couple prospects they were hoping to get when Signing Day arrived. Most notably, five-star linebacker Mique Juarez of North Torrance High in California, an LDS recruit who visited BYU last week, chose UCLA.

And Corner Canyon (Draper) lineman Keaton Bills picked Utah over BYU and Stanford.

"Recruiting will continue. We will recruit every day. That's never going to stop," Sitake said. "But now we have some time to work with a lot more guys, to evaluate them. We have to establish an identity on the offensive side, and on special teams, and defense and get ready for spring ball, which will take place at the beginning of March."

The returning missionaries who will join the program in the fall are defensive linemen Trajan Pili, Uriah Leiataua and Zac Dawe, offensive linemen Austin Chambers and Chandon Herring and defensive back Isaiah Kaufusi. Tuiaki said three of the five defensive linemen who signed Wednesday — presumably Freddy Livai of Fontana, Calif., West Jordan's Atunaisa Mahe and Box Elder's Darius McFarland — will go on church missions before enrolling.

Lamb singled out defensive back Chris Wilcox, a late commit from Roosevelt High in Fontana, as a player who might be able to contribute right away. Lamb offered Wilcox when he was still Southern Utah's head coach.

"For us [flipping a few recruits] was a necessity because of the coaching staff change," he said. "We had to come in and make our own evaluations, and we couldn't just give up on a guy who was maybe committed to another place. … I hope there is less flipping in the future, and more work to get them to commit to us earlier."

Twitter: @drewjay —

BYU recruits

Name Pos. Ht/Wt HS/Juco

Atunaisa Mahe NT 6-1/295 West Jordan HS

Committed to Cougars in August, will go on mission first

Jaren Hall QB 6-1/180 Maple Mountain HS

Son of former BYU RB Kalin Hall is a dual-threat QB

Skyler Southam K 6-1/180 Wasatch HS

U.S. Army All-American will go on mission first

Solofa Funa DE 6-1/220 Spanish Fork HS

Commitment held firm after overtures from Pac-12 schools

Aleva Hifo DB 5-11/180 Heritage HS (Calif.)

Also played receiver for his Menifee, Calif., high school team

Freddy Livai DE 6-3/250 A.B. Miller HS (Calif)

Also had offers from Colorado, Arizona State, Oregon State

Max Tooley DB 6-2/195 Bountiful HS

Held to commitment despite late offers from Utah, others

Troy Warner DB 6-2/185 Mission Hills HS (Calif.)

Brother of LB Fred Warner picked BYU over USC, Oregon

Keenan Pili LB 6-2/198 Timpview HS

Played in Semper Fi All-American All-Star Game

Drew Jensen DB 6-2/195 Brighton HS

Also played QB at Brighton; prep career hampered by injuries

Hank Tuipulotu TE 6-3/225 Nation Ford HS (S.C.)

Son of ex-BYU great Peter Tuipulotu offered by South Carolina

Darius McFarland DE 6-2/250 Box Elder HS

Also had offers from Army, Air Force, Wyoming

Jonah Trinnaman WR 6-0/185 Am. Fork HS/Snow Coll.

Speedster holding firm to commitment despite push from Utah

Handsome Tanielu DT 6-3/310 Snow College

Flipped from Utah to BYU when Cougars hired Kalani Sitake

Chris Wilcox DB 6/2/170 Eleanor Roosevelt HS (Calif.)

Committed after receiving offer during official visit last week

J.T. Gentry OL 6-5/260 Columbine HS (Colo.)

Named to the 5A All-State first-team by Colorado Preps

Clark Barrington DE 6-6/260 University HS (Wash.)

Spokane product started on OL/DL for three years

Lisala Tai DE 6-7/310 Hawthorne HS (Calif.)

Another prospect BYU began recruiting when new staff arrived

Caden Haws OL 6-2/292 Pulaski Academy (Ark.)

Wanted to commit to former staff, but offer was pulled last Sept.

Sione Finau RB 5-11/170 Kearns HS

Was committed to Oregon State, but followed Sitake to Provo

Alema Pilimai LB 6-4/205 Tustin HS (Calif.)

Three-star recruit was swayed from Utah commit by Sitake

Hirkley Latu LB 6-3/200 Kahuku HS (Hawaii)

Narrowed choices to BYU, Oregon State, Utah State before picking

Keanu Saleapaga DL 6-6/265 La Mirada HS (Calif.)

Was interested when BYU hired Sitake, chose Cougs over Colorado

Mack Richards WR 6-1/185 Alta HS/Hawaii

Signed with Hawaii, but changed his mind on church mission

Jackson Kaufusi LB 6-1/185 Brighton HS

Surprise after leaving BYU off his final three favorites —

Storylines

R The Cougars got Alema Pilimai, an LB from Tustin, Calif., to flip from Utah and Sione Finau, an RB from Kearns High, to flip from Oregon State

• BYU beat Colorado for Keanu Saleapaga, a defensive lineman from La Mirada, Calif.

• The Cougars signed 25 players and will also welcome back six scholarship players returning from LDS Church missions