BYU is wedged tight in the college sports big time, trying to field competitive teams of national significance.
And it has the scars to prove it.
The latest wound came on Wednesday, when the school said it “became aware” of the arrest of well-known senior receiver Parker Kingston, who is being held in a St. George jail on the charge of felony rape.
Some believe the school’s claim is bogus, that BYU and its coaches have known that St. George police have been investigating Kingston for months now, the rape having allegedly occurred in February, 2025. But the statement, issued Wednesday, from the school reads: “BYU became aware today of the arrest of Parker Kingston.”
It did not say it became aware of the investigation on Wednesday.
Either way, the football program that often proclaims an allegiance to Jesus Christ by way of a university owned and operated by a church that does the same, now faces another high-profile case of an athlete tangled up in a serious charge of an awful crime. Everyone in the United States caught up in such a charge, caught in any legal thing, should be presumed innocent until proven guilty.
But the negative publicity that comes from a situation like this, as a standout athlete sits in a jail cell until a scheduled court appearance on Friday, tarnishes one of the primary reasons BYU has placed so much emphasis on its athletic programs: to gain positive publicity.
There are other benefits the powers that be at the school see for those students who compete for BYU and also those who cheer for them and their teams and who donate large amounts of money to help them succeed. But somewhere at the heart of the endeavor is the national recognition, the spotlight that comes to BYU and to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which is a missionary faith always looking for ways to find new converts to reel in.
BYU sports is a way, if not to convert people, to introduce them to a church they may not know much about. A mom and dad and kids, say, somewhere in Kansas, sitting in front of their big screen, watching college football on a Saturday night in the fall, see the Cougars playing TCU or Notre Dame, and are impressed by not just the quality of play — the Cougars are 23-4 over their past two seasons — but also the quality of young men on the field, and they become slightly aware of the organization behind the school and the team.
Ecclesiastical leaders of the church not only have signed off on this deal, more than a few of them attend BYU football and basketball games. Those leaders may want to see their school’s athletes vanquish their foes, but what they do not want is to read headlines about their school’s athletes allegedly or otherwise committing crimes.
One of those headlines was posted on ESPN’s website on Wednesday: “BYU receiver Kingston charged with felony rape.” CBS Sports featured this one: “BYU WR Parker Kingston arrested, facing felony rape charge.”
That’s not what the prophets and apostles at church headquarters had and have in mind. BYU’s Honor Code prohibits, among other things, premarital sex, something that is perfectly legal, if participants are of a certain age, in the laws of the land. A charge of felony rape is enough to infuriate anyone, let alone a bunch of leaders who preach a strict version of their Christian gospel and who see their church and its school and its students as adhering to a lofty standard far above horrific allegations.
The legal process will play out with Kingston. It played out with starting quarterback Jake Retzlaff months ahead of BYU’s 2025 football season, the start of which saw Retzlaff transferred to Tulane, after he was initially accused of sexual assault before reaching a resolution with an accuser as he faced a seven-game suspension by BYU. Other Cougar athletes also have had run-ins with the law.
It happens with athletes at more than a few schools, just as it happens with non-athletes. But BYU sets itself apart from other universities. Whether it should hold itself in such high regard is a discussion for another time. Many BYU students are law-abiding, faithful, Honor Code-following individuals.
But whenever there is a serious allegation against an athlete or a coach at BYU, something that comes under the glare of a hot spotlight, it makes any thinking person wonder how many hits to the school’s reputation church leadership is willing to absorb before it considers bailing on college sports’ big time and the benefits that pursuit is supposed to bring.