When BYU released its initial depth chart of the 2024 season, there were a total of 20 "or" designations included therein.
One position without an "or" in the starting spot, however, was that of free safety, where walk-on and converted wide receiver Tanner Wall won the job outright following a competitive training camp battle with highly touted freshmen Tommy Prassas and Faletau Satuala.
"My first reaction was just gratitude," Wall told reporters earlier this week of earning his starting nod. "Just feeling grateful that my coaches recognize my abilities. I think as someone who's had an interesting journey here, it's very rewarding to feel that. I just felt immensely grateful to my Heavenly Father, to my parents and to a lot of people who have helped me get here."
Along with his duties as the Cougars' starting free safety, Wall has been selected as one of 11 co-captains within BYU's leadership council, which was announced this past Monday .
Not too shabby for a guy who's had to grayshirt, redshirt, change positions and come back from a season-ending injury prior to this point, all while remaining a walk-on.
"I think, I feel and I hope that (my teammates) recognize that I'm always going to come in, put my head down and do whatever it takes to help us win and help us be better," Wall said. "I come with that same approach every single day, and I'm grateful that my teammates recognize that in me. I want to inspire that in them as well, so that they can take that same approach, not only to football, but to life, and tackle everything with that mentality of just outworking and outlasting if you have to."
Wall starred as a receiver and safety — along with some time at quarterback and as a return specialist — at Yorktown High in Arlington, Virginia, where he earned a number of notable regional accolades along with a preferred walk-on offer from BYU.
Thanks to his 1,650 all-purpose yards and 17 touchdowns as a senior, the Cougars recruited him as a receiver, a position he'd play during the 2021-22 seasons before finally electing to move to the defensive side of the ball.
"Ultimately, it came down to some good conversations with coach Kalani (Sitake), who has always believed in me as a football player and kind of encouraged that switch," Wall said. "It was pretty natural right when coach (Jay) Hill got here. So I'm super grateful for those coaches who believed in me and gave me that opportunity to make the switch."
Wall did make three starts at the free safety position in 2023, only for a bicep injury to end his season following the Cougars' late September win over Cincinnati . Despite the missed time, he still ranked as BYU's No. 8-ranked defender by Pro Football Focus grade among all players on the campaign with at least 150 recorded snaps.
"I think I've learned to trust what I'm seeing a lot more from last season to this season," Wall said. "I definitely believe in myself as a tackler, as someone who can come down and make the plays that need to be made, and also someone who reads the field well and understands where quarterbacks are trying to attack just based on preparation during the week and understanding schemes. So I'm looking forward to even building upon and feeling a lot more confident in what I'm doing when we put that on the field on Saturday."
Now, fully healthy once again, Wall is looking to finish what he started at the position a year ago.
"I'm just really excited, I'm super grateful for being able to come back off an injury and recover fully and feel really good out here flying around with the boys," Wall said. "But it's definitely been a heated battle in the room with lots of great players, and I think it's elevated all of us to play better. I'm just super excited to put our finished product out on the field on Saturday, a lot of work this offseason went into that."
Cincinnati Bearcats running back Corey Kiner (21) gets tackled by BYU safety Tanner Wall (28), defensive end Blake Mangelson (93) and safety Ethan Slade (26) during game at LaVell Edwards Stadium in Provo on Friday, Sept. 29, 2023. | Kristin Murphy, Deseret News
