‘From protests to prayers’: New BYU linebacker Cade Uluave’s journey from Cal to Provo

I don’t think you could get more polar opposite places. It is crazy, but I love it. It is cool. I went from protests to prayers.

New BYU linebacker Cade Uluave, a transfer from Cal “It was a tough decision, but after a lot of prayer and contemplation, I decided there is no better place to play my last year than BYU, which is home to a lot of my family,” Uluave said. Indeed, Uluave’s grandfather, Peter Uluave, was bishop of the first Polynesian ward in the Provo area for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and his cousin, Semisi Uluave, signed with BYU in 2025 and is currently on a church mission.

‘This place is in my blood’

“My grandpa has been a BYU season ticket holder for 20 years. This place is in my blood,” Cade Uluave said. “The roots run super deep.” His father, Kalisi, played linebacker at Southern Utah and went to graduate school at BYU. His sister, Chloee, attends BYU. At Mountain Ridge, a large but relatively new school that opened in 2019, Uluave played both linebacker and running back, and registered 154 tackles and rushed for 1,638 yards and 26 touchdowns. He also played baseball and ran track. He was rated as a four-star LB out of Mountain Ridge by 247Sports, but didn’t really draw a lot of interest from BYU and picked Cal over offers from UCLA, Boise State, Duke, Washington State and others. Uluave said he didn’t have a “super big preference” as his favorite team growing up, but “deep down” was always a BYU fan because his dad grew up in Provo and his grandfather always praised the school. “As I’ve walked around campus, I can’t tell you how many people have said, ‘I know your grandpa, or, I know your cousin,’” Uluave said. “I love that, I really do.”

A linebacker with receiver’s speed

Uluave has been clocked running anywhere between a 4.51 to 4.75 seconds time in the 40-yard dash, which is extraordinarily fast for a man his size. He ran the 4.51 time in 2022 at a high school regional combine in Dallas, and although he hasn’t been tested recently, he believes he’s even faster now after three years of college training. “He’s maybe the second-fastest guy on our team right now, and we have some really fast guys,” defensive coordinator Kelly Poppinga said in March. “… We’ve clocked Cade in practice at 22 miles an hour, which is as fast as most of our cornerbacks. “I watched his film (when he was at Cal) and I thought he was fast, but he’s faster and more explosive than I thought he was,” Poppinga continued. “When that guy pulls the trigger in the run game and comes downhill, it is as quick and fast as I’ve seen. Really excited to see what he is going to do in Big 12 games.” Uluave played spring ball with a heavily bandaged, club-like right hand, but said he will be ready to go in May when the players get back together for player-run practices and workouts. “They said 22 (mph), so if that is true that’s the fastest I’ve ever been at,” Uluave said. “I credit coach (Ryan) Phillis and the strength staff. One of the first things I noticed at BYU was how big, fast and strong our guys are. That’s a huge credit to type of workouts we do. We work hard and the (strength staff) elevates us.” Having played in the Pac-12 and the ACC, Uluave said BYU’s players are just as athletic and talented as anywhere in the country. “We got players who are legit,” he said. “We got size, speed, you name it. We played Miami and they probably had one of the biggest O lines that I have ever seen, and now I’m at BYU and our O line is probably the most athletic O line I have ever seen. Being able to play in three different conferences, from the Pac-12 to ACC and now the Big 12, it has been awesome. We are right there, for sure.”

Can Uluave play in the NFL?

Having played four seasons in the NFL, former BYU linebacker Justin Ena — now the school’s special teams coordinator — knows what it takes to make an NFL roster. He believes Uluave is well on his way. “There’s no doubt in my mind that he’s going to be a huge contributor (to the BYU defense), just the way he plays,” Ena said. “He’s very, very intentional, and you can tell that by just how he plays. He has a motor. He’s violent (tackling). He’s also a master of the film, because you see his reads, and his reactions are elite.” Both Poppinga and Ena noted that newcomer Jake Clifton, who transferred from Kansas State after a church mission to Nicaragua, also looked great in spring camp. “Those are two transfer guys, Jake just coming along this mission, who can play at the next level,” Poppinga said. “Those guys have played a lot of football, and then you combine that we already have with Siale Esera, Miles Hall, Isaiah Glasker, Ace Kaufusi, Maika Kaufusi, Pierson Watson, it is super competitive in the linebackers room.” Uluave said his position coach at Cal was also the defensive coordinator, so he’s grateful that Poppinga will be both the DC and the inside linebackers coach. “I am looking to be versatile in this defense and just showing people that I can be all over the field,” Uluave said. “In coach Poppinga’s defense, that is literally what it is all about, being versatile and making plays. That’s something I am excited to do for BYU.”