Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
SALT LAKE CITY -- "We took care of our basic needs." Head Coach Kyle Whittingham said as he addressed the media Wednesday afternoon.
So what were the needs? Lineman is the short answer but there is nothing short, nor small for that matter, about the commitments Utah picked up on National Signing Day.
16 of the 28 recruits are linemen for Whittingham's newest group. He admitted that "the Utes needed to get bigger." The tallest is Davis High School commit Zach Lindsay at 6'7". He only weighs 327 lbs. though.
Carlos Lozano from East L.A. College weighs in at a cool 385 lbs. according to Utah press release, but some say he is on the north end of 400lbs.
The obvious hope is that this will create some depth and create some very competitive battles in the spring and fall.
The defense got a boost in depth as well. Tenny Palepoi from Snow College was recruited heavily by both BYU and Utah State, but in the end, the Utes have another defensive tackle to add to one of their greatest strengths.
Whittingham also wanted to make it clear that the Utes recruit here at home. Utah signed 15 locals to this years' class highlighted by Lone Peak Quarterback Chase Hansen and late signee Moana Ofahengaue from Westlake High School.
There was also an emphasis put on defensive backs. Whittingham made a note of mentioning that Utah has had five corners drafted to the NFL in the last five years (Smith, McCain, Stanford, Burton, Weddle). That may have helped get Justin Thomas out of Texas, Reginald Porter out of Louisiana, and late Wednesday Alphonso Marsh picked Utah over Washington and Cal.
The biggest news of the day comes not in the form of a recruit perhaps, but the Utes will name Brian Johnson the new Offensive Coordinator. This is an extremely quick rise to a coordinator position for Johnson. He has the most wins in school history with a 26-7 record and the Sugar Bowl MVP. I am curious to hear what readers think about the Brian Johnson hiring.
