BYU is making the transition from fall camp to game prep after Wednesday's off day. On Thursday, the Cougars will begin start practice focusing on week one's contest against Southern Illinois.
Today's conclusion of fall camp coverage revisits BYU football and missionary service for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Cougar fans can also learn more about BYU’s unique program, its history and the university with additional content from fall camp, including information about 100 Seasons of BYU Football and related events, Cougars in the NFL and Alumni and Tailgate Events.
Single game tickets are now on sale and season tickets are still available for the 2024 season.
Missionary service has been a staple within the BYU football program since its inception. Nearly half of all current BYU football players have served full-time, voluntary missions for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. That is routinely the case. While those within the Church understand the details of what a mission entails, they can be foreign to those not of the faith.
In an effort to help those outside of the Latter-day Saint faith community, including media members, fans and others through the Big 12 Conference — understand a bit more about missions, we hope the following is helpful.
What is a mission?
The Church’s missionary program is one of its most recognized characteristics. Latter-day Saint missionaries can be seen on the streets of hundreds of major cities in the world as well as in thousands of smaller communities. Missions last 18 months to two years. They are voluntary and self-funded. BYU student-athletes who chose to serve missions do so out of a love for Jesus Christ and a desire to serve others. Some BYU student-athletes elect to fulfill their missionary service after they graduate high school and defer their enrollment to BYU. Others take a break from studying and competing at BYU and perform their missionary service partway through their time as a student-athlete. Missionaries receive their assignment from Church headquarters and are sent to countries all throughout the world where governments allow the Church to operate. Missionaries do not request their area of assignment and do not know beforehand whether they will be required to learn a language. Due in part to the many international missionary service experiences among BYU students, more than 60 percent of the student body speaks a second language.
Why serve a mission?
Ultimately, missionary work is about serving God and serving His children, dedicating one's life to that service for two years. Missionaries often talk about serving a mission as a small way to show appreciation to God for all that He has given them in their lives. As missionaries learn and work and serve, they also gain essential life skills in areas of study, planning, logistics, interpersonal communication, relationship building, cross-cultural competence, patience, resilience and time management. A mission can serve as an important foundation for the rest of one's life, ultimately benifitting those who serve in their future education, family life, work life and Church service.
BYU Football missionary service by the numbers
- 55 players on the current roster served missions
- They served in 32 different countries
- They speak 14 different languages