BYU basketball star Richie Saunders has a unique family tie that is feeding fans with every Cougars’ NCAA Tournament win. The program had now made it to its first Sweet 16 since 2011 after wins over VCU and Wisconsin. The Cougars have devastated opponents with a versatile offensive attack that has included elite three-point shooting. Saunders has been one of the key cogs of this approach, averaging 20.5 points and 5.5 rebounds per game. And if this continues, more people are going to get the benefit out of a creative NIL deal between Saunders and a tater tot empire.
Richie Saunders is having a moment
He’s got his BYU Cougars in the Sweet 16, and he’s finding new fame and fortune as the Tot King.
As ESPN reported during March Madness coverage, Saunders is the great-grandson of F. “Nephi” Griggs – the founder of potato behemoth Ore-Ida… pic.twitter.com/5BMuESVS3i
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) March 25, 2025
Richie Saunders will look to continue giving out free tater tots with a win on Thursday
The Cougars are now set to face another offensive juggernaut in second-seeded Alabama for the right to go to the Elite Eight. This game might be a first-to-90-points affair like it was for BYU basketball when it played Wisconsin in the second round. What gives this matchup a twist is that while both teams are two of the most offensively efficient squads in the nation, the Cougars like to play at a much slower pace than the Crimson Tide. Therefore, it will be crucial to see whose terms this game is being played on.
Nevertheless, this is a dangerous matchup for Alabama. BYU basketball has been one of the hottest programs in the country for a while now. The Cougars have now won eleven of their past twelve games and are drowning opponents from the perimeter. There are several players that, on any given night, can take over a game, giving this team an unpredictability that past ones lacked. Richie Saunders is, of course, one of those stars, and the junior’s recent form suggests he will be the head of snake going into this affair.
Should the Cougars win on Thursday night, this program will reach its first Elite Eight since 1981. This would be happening in head coach Kevin Young’s first year and with the No. 1 recruit in the country, AJ Dybantsa, set to arrive in Provo this offseason. It’s a good time to be a Cougars fan and a fan of tater tots.
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