Why BYU’s Marketing Team Hit a Gold Mine

Shower Thought - August 19, 2025

Audio Transcript

Driving up I-15 from Provo to Salt Lake feels like the mecca of billboard creativity. Every hip tech company trying to hire has a billboard about getting home from work in time for family home evening. Ken Garff has the ear thing. A vasectomy doctor features a stick-figure family on the back of a minivan with 15 kids. An injury lawyer dressed as Obi-Wan promises he’ll fight for you. Another one from a jacuzzi company talks about soaking. They grab your attention, they’re clever.

Most of these billboards are created by graduates of BYU’s highly regarded marketing department. They understand that you need to catch people’s eye, that you need something that stands out.

And let me tell you, they’ve got that with the football team this year. The starting quarterback is named Bear. He wears number 47. He’ll be throwing to his brother Tiger. I can already picture the ESPN mini features before the game, the College Gameday segments, the social media graphics. Bear Bachmeier becomes the first true freshman to start a season at quarterback for BYU, and the marketers are already having a field day.

Last year was BYJew. He was a national story, a Jewish kid playing at a Mormon school, he was great with the press, he won a bunch of games and helped BYU get even more attention because of how cool the story was. I think if this kid can win, he’ll get even more ink from national media because of his name and number.