5 best players the Utes will play in 2013


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SALT LAKE CITY — The football season is about six weeks away when Utah fans will get to see some of the best players in college football.

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As Robert Jackson and I discussed who to put in our list of the five best players the Utes will play, we argued and argued. And then argued some more.

We have the list at eight and still feel like we are leaving players off. There are conference players of the year, defensive players of the year, possible Butkis Award winners and future first round draft picks in the NFL. The list goes on and on.

We found this list from the Sporting News that confirmed how good some of the individual players on the Utes schedule are.

Honorable Mentions

Kyle Van Noy

  • Impossible to leave him off the list. One of the top, if not the best linebacker in the country. If trend of current play continues, he'll be a lock for a first round NFL draft pick. The only reason he is left off of this list is that every other article on ksl.com has already been written about him. Anthony Barr

  • UCLA linebacker has only played one year at that position, yet racked up 13.5 sacks and 21.5 tackles for loss, good enough for second and fourth in the nation Brett Hundley

  • UCLA quarterback is the best third and 16 first down "picker upper" on the planet (see Utah v. UCLA, 2012 edition). Top 5 Players Utes will face in 2013

1. Marqise Lee

5 best players the Utes will play in 2013

The first player on the list will be a top three pick in the 2014 NFL draft. Starting our list and at wide receiver for the USC Trojans, Marqise Lee.

The USC Trojans may have some uncertainty at who will replace Matt Barkley at quarterback, but nevertheless wide receiver Marqise Lee is set to have a monstrous 2013 campaign. Heck, Lee would even have an incredible season if I was out there chucking wobbly ducks across the field.

Lee, only a junior, holds 22 school records. A unanimous All-American in 2012, Lee caught 118 passes for 1,721 yards and 14 touchdowns. In contrast, Utah's leading receiver only had 36 catches last season (Dres Anderson), and as an entire team the Utes only had 220 receptions.

Lee is exactly what you look for in a wide receiver. He's fast , athletic, and almost impossible to cover. Just get the ball somewhere in the zip code of where he is and sit back to watch the magic unfold. It's no secret as to why Lee, the 2012 Pac-12 offensive player of the year, is a leading candidate for the 2013 Heisman Trophy.

2. Will Sutton

5 best players the Utes will play in 2013

Arizona State defensive tackle Will Sutton may be the nation's best interior defensive lineman this season. "He's a beast," Utah wide receiver Kenneth Scott told us during the UTEcast. "I was watching film and was like, ‘how does he get in the backfield so fast?'"

Sutton piled up a conference-best 23.5 tackles and 13 sacks in 2012, enough to be named Pac-12 defensive player of the year. Oh, and he was also named a consensus All-American.

The Utes may not play the Sun Devils until early November, but you can guarantee that co-offensive coordinators Brian Johnson and Dennis Erickson are already scheming up a game plan to try and at least slow down one of the best pass rushers in college football.

3. Ka'Deem Carey

5 best players the Utes will play in 2013

From UCLA's Jonathan Franklin to Utah State's Kerwynn Williams and Washington's Bishop Sankey, the Utes faced a slew of talented running backs in 2012. But none were quite as good as Arizona's Ka'Deem Carey.

Carey led the entire nation with 1,929 rushing yards, 204 of which came against the Utes in Salt Lake City. He holds an Arizona school record with 23 touchdowns in 2012, and his season average was 6.4 yards per touch.

Carey's strengths are his great vision and his ability to quickly locate an open running lane. He never stops churning his feet, and even with an undersized offensive line, led the nation in rushing yards.

4. Marcus Mariota

5 best players the Utes will play in 2013

For the first time since joining the conference Utah will travel north to Eugene and face the Oregon Ducks. If Autzen Stadium wasn't intimidating enough, the dynamic duo of Marcus Mariota and De'anthony Thomas will be there playing in a certain weird combination of green, yellow, black, white, and possibly a chrome uniform.

Marcus Mariota is coming off a first team All-Pac-12 redshirt-freshman season at Oregon where he completed 68.5% of his passes for 2,677 yards with 32 touchdowns and only six interceptions. Of course the offense is built around the quarterback being a dual-threat and that is just what Mariota is. He rushed the ball 106 times for 752 yards and five touchdowns.

5. De'anthony Thomas

5 best players the Utes will play in 2013

When Mariota is not running the ball, De'anthony Thomas is. He is widely known as one of the most exciting players in college football. Last season he had 92 rushing attempts for 701 yards and 11 touchdowns. Every time he gets the ball he averages almost eight yards. He also had 45 receptions last season for 445 yards and five touchdowns. When Mariota throws the ball to him he gets 10 yards.

He is also a terror on special teams as returns punts and kickoffs having returned a punt for a touchdown in 2012 and three career kickoff returns, one in 2012 and two in 2011.

There might be one work that describes this duo - dangerous.

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