If you follow me on Twitter @thesingleleaf, you may have already heard that the starting lineup for Family Discovery Day includes Vai Sikahema, Kalani Sitake, and Hank Smith! Family Discovery Day is held in conjunction with RootsTech and will be held on Saturday, February 11, 2017 at the Salt Palace Convention Center.

Vai Sikahema is a former BYU and NFL player who was drafted by the 1986 St. Louis Cardinals and later played for the Green Bay Packers and the Philadelphia Eagles. Kalani Sitake is also a former BYU player and has recently been appointed as the new head coach at BYU. So far the Cougars are 3-3, but in all have produced some very exciting games, including one that went into double overtime against Mississippi State University (MSU)! Hank Smith is a popular LDS youth speaker. I found one of his excellent talks on YouTube, The Power of One: Becoming an Exceptional Teenager, where he advocates for giving up Sunday football. So, does that make him part of this year’s opposing team?

Here are some further details, with emphasis added, from the media room at FamilySearch.org:

Family Discovery Day to Feature BYU’s Kalani Sitake and Hank Smith

(SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH, 24 October 2016)–RootsTech 2017 announces that BYU football head coach Kalani Sitake, popular LDS youth speaker Hank Smith, and former NFL football player, now Philadelphia TV news anchor, Vai Sikahema, will join the lineup of speakers for its popular Family Discovery Day. This exciting, free, one-day celebration of families is designed for families and members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Family Discovery Day will take place on Saturday, February 11, 2017, at the Salt Palace Convention Center in Salt Lake City, Utah, and is part of the annual RootsTech conference. Individuals and families can register online at RootsTech.org.

There’s something for everyone at Family Discovery Day. Attendees are invited to come and hear inspiring speakers, entertaining performers, engage in interactive activities for all ages, and discover the latest technology, products, and services in the family history industry in an expansive expo hall. It’s the perfect place to discover fun new ideas, hear helpful solutions, watch new concept demonstrations, get personal research help, experience innovative family history technology, and mingle with hundreds of exhibitors from around the globe.

Young single adults and other interested youth are invited to attend a special session with Kalani Sitake, BYU’s head football coach. Sitake played collegiately at BYU as a fullback, and he served as an assistant coach for the Oregon State Beavers and Utah Utes before taking the head coaching position at BYU in December 2015.

Hank Smith is a BYU professor of religion and popular public youth speaker. Hank’s life has been touched by family history work, and he plans on sharing some of that experience at Family Discovery Day. Joining the speaker lineup is Vai Sikahema, a former NFL football player and current television personality. He is well-known for his diverse skills as both an anchor and sports reporter and can be seen co-anchoring NBC10 News Today weekday mornings in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Family Discovery Day will engage and inspire families, youth, and single adults to discover connections and share family stories together. Family Discovery Day is also a popular venue for Latter-day Saints to hear gospel messages from Church leaders. These speakers will be announced in the coming weeks.

Families with children and youth are invited to discover the fun of family history together by playing games such as Family Feud and Twisted Family History. Young single adults are invited to bring friends and participate in fun sessions and activities like #Myfabfamily Photography Contest, Family History in Emoji, Record Your Story, and Replace a Face.

Family Discovery Day also offers relevant sessions with the latest information for those with Church callings and responsibilities related to family history and the temple. Individuals will be able to get answers to questions, discover new tools, and learn best practices.

Family Discovery Day is free, but registration is required. Visit RootsTech.org to learn more and to register.

RootsTech is a genealogy conference of epic proportions. As the largest family history conference in the world, it provides extensive networking opportunities to a broad and diverse group of attendees. The conference showcases a vast array of modern resources and technology that aims to inspire and enable individuals to discover, preserve, and share their family stories.

I’m only teasing about Hank Smith being part of this year’s opposing team! I am interested in your thoughts on football and the Sabbath day. If you are willing to share them with me for my future post, Faith, Family & Football: an American Tradition, contact me. Thank you!