Over the past year, the BYU football and basketball teams have been on the receiving end of derogatory chants targeting The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, with incidents at Arizona, Colorado, Cincinnati and, most recently, Oklahoma State. That\u2019s four of the 15 fellow Big 12 programs since BYU joined the conference 2 1\/2 years ago.<\/p>\n
The latest flashpoint was in Stillwater, Okla.<\/a>, on Feb. 4. After the conference fined Oklahoma State $50,000 on Feb. 8, the Big 12 released a statement that it \u201cwill not tolerate any behavior that targets or demeans others.\u201d<\/p>\n When asked for additional comment, the Big 12 reaffirmed its zero-tolerance policy toward any discriminatory behavior by conference members or at league events.<\/p>\n In a statement to The Athletic, a spokesperson from the Church, which sponsors Brigham Young University, said: \u201cWhile not representative of the broader community, we expect better from those who do engage in these derogatory chants at various sporting events. Such chants are offensive, discriminatory, and unacceptable. We commend the Big 12 Conference\u2019s commitment to a unifying remedy. It is time to move beyond the cycle of recurring apologies without improvement. We reaffirm our \u2018love of neighbor\u2019 and pray for greater kindness and compassion among all.\u201d<\/p>\n Despite the unequivocal response, \u201cF\u2014 the Mormons\u201d being shouted in the stadiums and arenas where BYU competes has become routine. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints \u201cdiscourages\u201d the use of the term \u201cMormon\u201d unless used in the context of the Book of Mormon, a church text from which the term derived.<\/p>\n The Cougars have thrived competitively \u2014 football reached the Big 12 Championship Game in December, and men\u2019s basketball is ranked in the Top 25 \u2014 but the chants have become a distressing and unavoidable part of the experience for the university and its supporters.<\/p>\n Publicly, the Big 12 conference office has issued reprimands and fines. Privately, the league has pushed for increased education and consequences, particularly within student sections, where the issues tend to start.<\/p>\n After the incident at Oklahoma State, Cowboys fans insisted the chant was actually \u201cref\u2019s a Mormon,\u201d and a university investigation determined the chanting was directed at officials, but that it \u201cdid not meet our standards and expectations,\u201d the university said via statement.<\/p>\n It sparked an impassioned postgame response from BYU basketball coach Kevin Young.<\/p>\n \u201cI got four small kids at home. I\u2019m a Mormon. When I get home, (my kids are) going to ask me about it,\u201d Young said. \u201cSame way they asked me about it last year at Arizona. There\u2019s just too much hate in the world to be saying stuff like that. We\u2019ve got enough problems in our world without going at people\u2019s religion and beliefs, whether it\u2019s en vogue or not.\u201d<\/p>\n BYU coach Kevin Young said he heard some \u201cF- the Mormons\u201d chants during the #OkState<\/a> game. <\/p>\n He wasn\u2019t happy. pic.twitter.com\/n1OVQS1K4o<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Eric Bailey (@EricBaileyTW) February 5, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n Most events feature a pregame announcement prohibiting offensive or hateful language, including Arizona, which ran a video message from men\u2019s basketball coach Tommy Lloyd encouraging sportsmanship before an incident-free game against BYU this week.<\/p>\n At Texas Tech, men\u2019s basketball coach Grant McCasland talked to student sections before a home football game against BYU about being respectful; football coach Joey McGuire returned the favor during hoops season, with no known issues either time. Like the Arizona video this week, it could be an example for other schools to follow.<\/p>\n At least one league school instructed its marching band to start playing if it heard any derogatory chants from the crowd, and schools are expected to actively issue warnings and remove offending fans from the venue.<\/p>\n \u201cIt does become a hivemind, it becomes a meme, it becomes drunk college kids or even adults chanting this at a game,\u201d said Patrick Q. Mason, a professor of religious studies and history at Utah State University who is also the chair of Mormon history and culture.<\/p>\n The chants haven\u2019t been an issue only in the Big 12. In December 2024, BYU was on the receiving end of them during a road game at Providence, a Catholic school administered by the Dominican Friars. The chant popped up during BYU\u2019s years as an FBS football independent in games at USC (2021) and Oregon (2022). While over 98 percent of the students at BYU identify as Latter-day Saints, the most religiously diverse portion of the student body is in athletics. Two of BYU\u2019s star players this year, A.J. Dybantsa and Robert Wright III, are not members of the church. BYU\u2019s starting quarterback, Bear Bachmeier, is Catholic.<\/p>\n \u201cI understand what we represent,\u201d Young said. \u201cI try to talk to our guys about being examples in the world.\u201d<\/p>\n Mason said bigotry against members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has become an \u201cacceptable prejudice\u201d societally.<\/p>\n Mason said that Latter-day Saints members are easy targets, because while there are an estimated 17 million members worldwide and nearly 7 million in the U.S., many who participate in the chant have likely never befriended a member before. That, Mason explained, makes it more accepted, because it\u2019s often easier to be cruel to a subgroup you know nothing about. Some people, Mason said, only know the church through media representations that include stereotypes.<\/p>\n \u201cMinorities need allies \u2014 especially small minorities \u2014\u00a0because that\u2019s the whole point: you aren\u2019t big enough. You need allies to stand up for you,\u201d said Mason. \u201cI think that\u2019s what Latter-day Saints are looking around and asking for.\u201d<\/p>\n Former BYU center Eric Mika said his alma mater has been an ally to other Big 12 members in its short time in the conference.<\/p>\n Before BYU football\u2019s road win in late November at Cincinnati, the LDS Church helped donate <\/a>27,000 pounds of food to the school food pantry for the holiday season. During BYU\u2019s 26-14 win, some Cincinnati fans still unleashed the chant.<\/p>\n