BYU Athletic Director Tom Holmoe announced today that BYU will be playing a full fall football schedule against a collection of Pop Warner Little League teams from Utah Valley.

“It seems that the most important thing is that the team plays a full season and we see a good opportunity to do so by making a change in our schedule for the upcoming year.” said Coach Sitake “We’re undecided on whether we will compete at the 7th or 8th grade level, but we know it won’t be easy; we anticipate some stiff competition from the talented 11- and 12-year-old athletes we have here in Utah”

National news media reportedly believe that this move may also aid BYU in recruiting the next generation of Cougar football stars. “Getting the chance to play against a team gives you the best picture of how their players actually stack up, so seeing local kids play first hand against a college team will be a big leg up for BYU when it comes to recruiting the best talent in the area,” comments Jesse Palmer of ESPN.

Contrary to expectations, no concerns regarding the safety of their future middle school opponents have been raised. “We’re confident out boys can handle their business,” says Tyler Myers, a defensive and Capri-Sun coordinator for the Provo Prowlers 8th grade football team, “We’ve gone over some game tape from BYU over the past few seasons and there wasn’t too much there we couldn’t handle.”