When ESPN College GameDay came to the campus of Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah, to broadcast all morning before the BYU vs. Notre Dame football game on Saturday, Oct. 17, viewers learned about much more than football.
Live on the air, viewers learned about BYU head coach Kalani Sitake’s family and heard him testify of his faith in Jesus Christ; they saw host Pat McAfee open a copy of the Book of Mormon and read out loud from it; and they heard about other beliefs and attributes of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and its members.
Many of these moments were then posted on social media. The official account of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints replied with more context or information about each moment in a normal and natural way, thus giving people a chance to learn even more about the Church, its teachings and its members.
For example, the College GameDay Twitter/X account posted a video clip from the broadcast of Sitake speaking of how his upbringing impacted his journey to becoming the head coach at BYU.
The Church’s account responded to that post with a link to learn more about family history on the Church’s website and said, “Whether you dive in and learn about the lives of your ancestors or add your own stories and experiences for future generations, family history works to connect us to our families and to our Heavenly Father.”
One account posted on Twitter/X about the football game — between a Catholic university and a Latter-day Saint university — being the “Book of Mormon vs. The Bible.”
The Church’s account then replied with a link to “How the Bible and the Book of Mormon Work Together” from the Church’s website, saying, “Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints believe both books can help you draw closer to Jesus Christ and learn more about His gospel.”
The Church’s website has several ways and resources that members can answer questions about the Church and share more about the gospel in normal and natural ways. These efforts to “love, share and invite” are part of missionary work and bringing others to Jesus Christ and His restored Church on the earth today, Church leaders have said.
Find more in the Gospel Library by going to Sharing the Gospel or go online to https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/comeuntochrist/love-share-invite.
BYU beat Notre Dame 28-24, resulting in the Cougar football program being ranked No. 2 nationally in the AP poll this week. ESPN College GameDay is coming back to Utah to broadcast from the University of Utah campus on Saturday, Oct. 24, before the Utes’ game against the University of Houston.
