Meanwhile, an older brother, Richard, is in his final six months of a mission in Moscow, Russia, and also plans to walk on to BYU's football team upon his return. He also earned All-CIF honors at Canyon High. Both are wide receiver/defensive back candidates.

The Wirthlin brothers have careers that sandwich that of DiLuigi. Richard played and graduated before DiLuigi had his breakout year, leading Canyon to a win in the 2006 California Bowl. Stephen came after.

The Wirthlin family follows a similar path of many families with Utah roots where loyalties are split and passions run high. Joseph Wirthlin, the LDS general authority, played for the University of Utah and is a well-documented Ute fan who got close to Urban Meyer during his short stay in Salt Lake City. Joseph Wirthlin's brother, Richard, father to Richard and grandfather to the accident victim Stephen, was a professor of economics at BYU before going into private practice. That side of the family is die-hard blue.

While it remains to be seen if the Wirthlin sons will make BYU's roster in years to come, their father sees any and all opportunities as a blessing.

"I appreciate, in a way you can only imagine, that I have sons whose top priority is to serve missions, then attend the greatest university in the world, BYU, and if it works out, to strap it on and play football. Playing for BYU would be a dream come true," said Richard.

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E-mail: dharmon@desnews.com