It’s been almost one year since BYU hired Brian Santiago to replace Tom Holmoe as the school’s athletic director.
Since that hiring, BYU’s football team went 11-2, the men's basketball team will likely have the No. 1 overall pick in the NBA Draft, the women’s cross country team finished runner-up at the NCAA Championships, and all teams have gone a combined 11-3 in head-to-head games against the University of Utah.
While BYU’s athletic success and Brian’s role as athletic director are well documented in the public eye, there are many roles he has held throughout his life that aren’t as visible. Here’s an inside look at just a few of them.
Santiago as a brother
“I was in 8th grade, he was in 5th grade, and that was the first time he beat me in one-on-one basketball,” his brother Mark said. “That was devastating to me.”
That moment left such an impact on the sports-enthused eighth grader that he’s remembered every detail. It’s also affected every game since.
“It was at the Smith Fieldhouse, on the south basket where the volleyball team plays now. I remember my dad and my older brother watching,” he said. “He never really rubbed it in, but it was almost like he had a mental edge from that point forward in anything we played.”
Mark, who was a much more introverted child, described Brian’s personality from a very young age as “outgoing, open, friendly, funny, and really engaging,” and remembered having distinct impressions to encourage his younger brother to embrace that side of himself and express it fully.
“Anything we did was sports-related,” he said. “There was always a game going, whether we were playing in it or watching it. That was really how we connected as a family.”
Growing up in the Santiago home included lots of basketball out in the driveway. Kevin, Mark, and Brian’s older brother would play them individually in games to 21 — but with a catch: he would give them an 18–0 lead to start the game, meaning all they had to do to win was make one three-pointer. Brian was the first to beat him.
Mark and Brian played basketball at Utah Valley State College (now UVU) when Mark was a recently returned missionary and Brian had just finished high school.
“We had a really diverse team … and Brian was kind of the glue that kept our whole team together,” Mark said.
A couple of their teammates weren’t from Utah, and one hailed all the way from New Zealand, but Brian used his outgoing personality to embrace them as well.
“He just kept everyone laughing," Mark said. "He made those guys feel at home even though they were so far away from home.”
Mark’s admiration for Brian has extended much further than athletics.
“He is a super generous person. He’s always been, since he was small,” he said. “Anytime he gets an opportunity to take care of someone, he loves it — he thrives on that.”
He’s seen that generosity firsthand, whether in the form of time, attention, or material things. “I think half my wardrobe is free stuff he’s given me — from shoes to you name it,” he said.
Mark has always respected his brother’s passion but has also seen him grow in meekness and in his ability to control that passion.
“I’ve seen him, over the last ten years, evolve into a very controlled — still passionate — but measured and thoughtful leader.”
That growth he has seen is largely a result of his faith and commitment to Jesus Christ, something Mark called “remarkable.”
When Brian was an associate athletic director at BYU and working another job to make some extra money, he was called to preside over the elders quorum in his local congregation. When Mark found out, he asked him how he could possibly take on another responsibility with all that he had going on. Brian’s response was simple: “Because the Lord called me … and it’s gonna work.”
Santiago as a missionary
From 1989–1991, Brian Santiago served as a missionary in the Dominican Republic Santiago Mission. His mission president, Marshall Romney, and his wife, Luana, were in charge of leading the missionaries.
“Brian was an awesome missionary,” President Romney said. “I’m not surprised that he is the athletic director (at BYU) because he performed so well in the mission, and I expected him to perform well in his career.”
President Romney had the unique opportunity to individually interview every missionary in the Dominican Republic every six weeks. He said it was nice to see how well the other missionaries liked Brian and enjoyed working with him.
“You could just see it when he interacted with his companions in the mission field," he said.
Because Brian was an effective missionary and got along with people, President Romney gave him an assignment to be a traveling assistant to the president, where he would travel all around the Dominican Republic to help other missionaries improve their teaching skills and work ethic.
“He had to encourage and set a great example, and he was always positive," Luana Romney said. “He always had a smile on his face. He had a wonderful light in his eyes, and people were drawn to him.”
President Romney noticed that many missionaries struggled to embrace the culture of the Dominican Republic because it wasn't what they were used to. The electricity would often go off, and they faced many other challenges living in a low-income, developing country. But Brian wasn’t one of them.
He would say, “I love the people, I love the country, and I love the culture.”
Brian was creative while establishing connections with those he met while serving. According to President Romney, he used his basketball skills to connect with many different people while he was serving. Whenever he saw someone playing, he would shoot around and build friendships with them, and many of those interactions led to conversations about Jesus Christ.
Near the end of his mission, Brian asked President Romney if his brother Mark, who served a mission in Puerto Rico, could spend a week in the Dominican Republic with him to go and minister to people and teach the gospel.
“I thought it was an interesting way to build relationships with his family while doing the work that he and his brother loved,” President Romney said. “They did a fantastic job together.”
Brian’s relationships with other missionaries have continued throughout the years. He still meets up with many of his mission companions and their families. According to President Romney, two of his companions struggled after they got home, but Brian was always concerned about helping them through the challenges they faced after their missions ended.
He has also continued to develop his relationship with the Romneys. President Romney spoke about a time when Brian helped facilitate an opportunity for his son to participate in a BYU basketball camp, and Luana spoke about how they have always admired his kindness.
“He has a very tender heart. He loved the people in the Dominican Republic … and the missionaries that he served with,” she said. “He worked his heart out, and we just admire him very much.”
Santiago as a husband
Before they were married, Brian and Kim Santiago went to high school together at Provo High. During their freshman year, Brian would often ride his 10-speed bike over to Kim’s house on Sundays to visit her.
“He would have his Sunday socks on still, with his Adidas slides … and we would walk around the park,” she said. “We kind of liked each other, but we were too young to really date.”
Over the next couple of years, Kim dated someone else, but when her boyfriend left on his mission, Brian jumped at the opportunity. The two spent time drinking slushies at the park, talking by the river up the canyon, and playing basketball together, but to Kim, it didn’t really matter what they did.
“We could do nothing, and it was like the funnest date I’d ever been on,” she said. “He’d make me laugh … he’s a great storyteller. Even today, he totally entertains me. He can make just about anything seem interesting.”
Kim was attracted to his confidence in who he was. While he had a tough and strong exterior, she saw a soft side of him that was unique.
“There was this soft side to him. He didn’t swear, he didn’t go to R-rated movies; he wore his religion on his sleeve, but not in a weird way,” she said. “It was just part of his being.”
According to Kim, their relationship has become softer and sweeter the longer that they have been together, largely in part due to Brian’s humility and willingness to change and apologize.
Early on in their relationship, she remembers a trend of sarcasm that arose as one of the main sources of humor for a lot of people. They realized that while intended to be humorous, sarcasm can sometimes be hurtful, and both decided they wanted to cut it out of their marriage. That pattern has continued with anything they feel has kept them from being at peace with God and with each other.
“If there’s anything that’s creating issues with that peace, we’re pretty quick to resolve it,” she said. “There’s always this confidence that we know we’re gonna work it out.”
For Kim, that confidence has only grown as she’s witnessed Brian take his challenges to the Lord.
“He rolls out of bed and goes straight to his knees in the morning,” she said. “When we’ve gone through our toughest things, his mode is to turn to the Lord, but also to wrap me up in his arms.”
While they were engaged, Kim recalled a conversation they had where they promised to have each other's backs and never let anything come between them, not even their kids. She has seen Brian have her back time and time again. And other people have noticed.
One of their good friends said that being around Brian makes him want to be better to his wife.
“I feel like that’s the best compliment that you could give anyone,” she said. “That being around them makes them want to be better to their wife.”
She has continuously seen Brian have people’s backs and minister to the one, whether that was boldly and comfortably ministering to people from church, or even ministering to their oldest son, who has autism.
“I really feel like that was the best decision in my life, to marry Brian,” she said. “I love doing life with him, he brings so much joy to my life.”
Santiago's vision
During his introductory press conference in May of last year, he spoke boldly about his vision to see the athletics program succeed, but he also recognized that his goal was to build relationships and make everyone around him better.
“My coaches taught me at an early age, as a point guard, that it’s better to have an assist than to score the basket,” he said. “I just love to see other people, make people better, make them feel loved, that they have a purpose on this planet earth.”
Whatever the role he’s held, that’s been his focus. It’s always been about the assist.