Utah 2012 Recruiting

2012 Utah Utes ... Head Coach: Kyle Whittingham

Utah Utes

2011 Record: 8-5

Sep. 1 Montana State W 27-10
Sep. 10 at USC L 23-14
Sep. 17 at BYU W 54-10
Sep. 24 OPEN DATE
Oct. 1 Washington L 31-14
Oct. 8 Arizona State L 35-14
Oct. 15 at Pitt W 26-14
Oct. 22 at California L 34-10
Oct. 29 Oregon State W 27-8
Nov. 5 at Arizona W 34-21
Nov. 12 UCLA W 31-6
Nov. 19 at Wash St W 30-27 OT
Nov. 26 Colorado L 17-14
Sun Bowl
Dec. 31 Georgia Tech W 30-27 OT

2010 CFN Prediction: 10-2
2010 Record: 10-3

Sept. 2 Pitt W 27-24 OT
Sept. 11 UNLV W 38-10
Sept. 18 at New Mexico  W 56-14
Sept. 25 San Jose St W 56-3
Oct. 2 OPEN DATE
Oct. 9 at Iowa State L 68-27
Oct. 16 at Wyoming W 30-6
Oct. 23 Colorado State W 59-6
Oct. 30 at Air Force W 28-23
Nov. 6 TCU L 47-7
Nov. 13 at Notre Dame L 28-3
Nov. 20 at San Diego St W 38-34
Nov. 27 BYU W 17-16
LAS VEGAS BOWL
Dec. 23 Boise St L 26-3
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The Entire 2012 Recruiting Class

Top 5 Utah Recruits To Care About
Player writeups by Scout.com

1. DE Sione Tupouata
6-5, 255, Scout.com four-star JUCO transfer. A tall, lean defensive end with a huge frame and a terrific wing-span, Tupouata has the speed to chase down plays from the back side. An athletic mis-match against most offensive linemen, Tupouata will demand a double team once he refines his craft as a pass rusher. Athletic enough to play an OLB in a 3-4. He's capable of holding his own against bigger tackles, but still needs to get stronger to hold up against 300 pound OTs.

2. C Hivo Lutui
6-1, 270, Scout.com 3rd ranked, four-star center. Lutui is the heart and soul of an offensive line that cleared the way for massive numbers on the ground. He can pull with ease and is super strong at the point of attack. He has all the moves and is plays flat out nasty. He relishes turfing his man. He always keeps his feet moving and plays with good leverage which allows him to control his man and work him down the field. He could play offensive guard or center in college.

3. QB Travis Wilson
6-6, 210, Scout.com 27th ranked, three-star quarterback. Wilson has a terrific frame and he gets rid of the ball quickly. A sidearm delivery negates some of his size advantage. He is a good athlete who puts up decent rushing numbers on the high school level, but not much of a running threat on the college level. He shows good touch on the deep ball and is accurate underneath, but his accuracy breaks down on the intermediate passes in which he needs to muscle up on a throw.

4. OT Jeremiah Poutasi
6-6, 330, Scout.com 25th ranked, four-star tackle.

5. OT Zach Lindsay
6-7, 327, Scout.com 41st ranked, three-star tackle.

The 2012 Class Was Heavy On... The offensive line is the target, even though only one player is gone off the 2011 two-deep depth chart. The Utes are building up for three years from now, and this is the class to do it. However, a few JUCO transfers like Junior Salt and Marc Pouvave are massive-bodied blockers who’ll push for time in the rotation right away. The offense isn’t exactly ignored, but there isn’t a big need for prospects with the 2011 class so strong on receivers.

Team Concerns For 2012: It’s all about getting QB Jordan Wynn healthy. Jon Hays proved he could get the job done as a fill-in, but Wynn is the star with the ability to take the program to a Pac-12 title. Defensive end is the team’s biggest hole with three players in the rotation done, meaning JUCO transfer Sione Tupouata will have the spotlight n from the start.

Looking Ahead To The 2012 Season: Utah closed out strong – one stunning hiccup against Colorado aside – and now it should be ready to be the team everyone was expecting. A lot depends on the health of QB Jordan Wynn, who’s expected to be back for spring ball after missing most of last year with a shoulder problem. But even if he’s 100%, can he show he’s better than he was after getting banged up the first time around? RB John White will be the focal point of the attack with three good starters back up front to pave the way. Eight starters return on offense including all the top targets. Defensively, the excellent run defense will work around tackles Dave Kruger and Star Lotulelei, but leading tacklers Chaz Walker and Matt Martinez are gone from the linebacking corps. Three starters are back to a secondary that wasn’t good enough considering the pass rush was strong all year long.

The 2011 Class Was Heavy On … Receivers. The move to the Pac 12 was a big, BIG boost for a strong class. The running backs are the stars of the class with Harvey Langi a 215-pound workhorse of a prospect and JUCO transfer John White a sub-4.4 speedster to bring some flash to the equation. The bulk, through, is at receiver where the hope is for 6-6 JUCO transfer Anthony Denham to become Jordan Wynn’s go-to receiver as soon as possible. Quinton Pedroza, Travis Still, and Nate Fakahafua are big, physical targets.

2010 CFN Recruiting Ranking: 58. That Class Was Heavy On ... The defensive back seven. The Utes got plenty of help for the passing game over the last two recruiting classes, and the shelves should remain stocked for the next five years with the addition of solid receiver prospects Drew Anderson and Kenneth Scott. JUCO transfer John Cullen should be in the rotation at offensive tackle right away, and fellow JUCOer Star Lotulelei will make a difference on the defensive front, but the bulk of the class is in the defensive back seven with DBs Damian Payne, Lucky Radley, and Terrell Reese all fast and all good enough to have gone somewhere else. Brian Blechen leads a strong linebacking haul.

2009 CFN Recruiting Ranking: 54. That Class Was Heavy On ... The passing game. The Utes loaded up on receivers big-time last year, but apparently that wasn’t enough with even more targets coming in this year, including JUCO transfers Antoine Smithson and Ray Magee, to help an offense that loses all the starting receivers. Jamal Smith should be the best of the bunch, but he might not emerge for a few years. Meanwhile, JUCO transfer Terrance Cain will make a push for Brian Johnson’s open quarterback spot.

Sun Bowl
Utah 30 … Georgia Tech 27 OT
- CFN Thoughts on the Sun

Utah: The Utes averagd 43.2 yards per punt. Georgia Tech averaged 37.4. … Jon Hays completed 15-of-31 passes for 193 yards and three scores with a pick … John White ran 26 times for 115 yards and a score …. Shaun Asiata ran five times for 57 yards and a score. … Chaz Walker made 15 tackels with a tackle for loss. … DT Tevita Finau made ten stops.

Georgia Tech: The Yellow Jackets ran for 312 yards … Tevin Washington completed 11-of-15 passes for 137 yards and a score. … Preston Lyons ran 18 times for 138 yards and a score, while Washington ran 20 times for 96 yards. … Daniel Drummond made 12 tackles with a tackles for loss.

EL PASO, Texas (AP) -- John White plowed into the end zone from 8 yards out to give Utah a 30-27 overtime victory against Georgia Tech in the Sun Bowl on Saturday.

Justin Moore kicked a 34-yard field goal in Georgia Tech's overtime possession to take a three-point lead, but White finished a 115-yard rushing day with the game-winning score on his 26th carry.

The Utes (8-5) tied it in regulation when Jon Hays hit DeVonte Christopher with a 28-yard touchdown pass on fourth-and-14 with 1:32 left in the fourth quarter.

The Yellow Jackets (8-5) drove to the Utah 31 with 2 seconds left, but David Scully missed a 48-yard field-goal attempt as time expired. Justin Moore had earlier missed two 42-yard tries for Tech.

Georgia Tech lost its seventh straight bowl appearance and Utah improved to 7-1 in bowls under coach Kyle Whittingham.

Georgia Tech's Preston Lyons, who came in with only 39 carries, rushed for a career-best 140 yards on 18 carries and Tevin Washington passed for 137 yards and ran for 97.

Utah grabbed a 7-0 lead on Shawn Asiata capped the game-opening drive with a 1-yard run.

With David Sims out of with an injury and Orwin Smith also ailing, Georgia Tech relied heavily on Lyons, who put the Yellow Jackets on the board with a 36-yard run up the middle tie the game at 7.

Lyons finished the first half with 129 yards on 12 carries.

Coleman Peterson banked in a 25-yard field goal with 14 seconds left in the first half to give the Utes a 10-7 lead.

A 27-yard punt by Utah set up Moore's 32-yard field goal to tie it in the third quarter.

The Yellow Jackets scored again on their next possession. Washington hit Embry Peeples with a 58-yard pass, then found Stephen Hill for a 31-yard touchdown to make it 17-10.

Moments later, Quayshawn Nealy picked off a pass by Hays and returned it down the sideline 74 yards for a touchdown with 4:14 left in the third quarter

Hays hit Kendrick Moeai with a 3-yard touchdown pass with 6:50 left in the fourth quarter to make it 24-17.

Hays went 15 for 31 for 193 yards.

Nov. 25 Colorado 17 … at Utah 14  

Nov. 19 Utah 30 … at Washington State 27 OT
CFN Analysis: If there was any team in the Pac-12 that could handle the wintery conditions, other than Colorado, it’s Utah. It showed as the team didn’t panic in the cold and snow, keeping up in the shootout in the fourth quarter. … John White continues to carry the offense, running for 186 yards and two scores on a whopping 42 carries. Despite being keyed on all game long, he still produced and helped take all the pressure off of Jon Hays and a passing game that sputtered in the bad weather. … There were too man penalties, committing 11, and the two fumbles were a problem, but the defense made up for the errors with key takeaways led by Mo Lee’s two picks including the game-changer in overtime. … The Utes are still alive for the Pac-12 title. They need to beat Colorado, and they need UCLA to lose to USC and for Arizona State to lose to Cal.  

Nov. 12 at Utah 31 … UCLA 6
CFN Analysis: This might not be quite the season Utah was hoping for, but after some rocky parts early, the wins are coming and it’s yet another bowl season and there’s still a chance to tie for the Pac-12 South title. With Washington State and Colorado to go, an 8-4 regular season is a must considering the offense is starting to work. … John White needs to be a First Team All-Pac-12 performer. If nothing else, he deserves to be an MVP with the way he’s carrying an offense that’s not doing much of anything with the passing game. Jon Hays completed 5-of-13 passes for 67 yards and a score. … This might have been the team’s best overall defensive performance of the year. UCLA had one decent running play, and that was about it.   

Nov. 5 Utah 34 … at Arizona 21
CFN Analysis: Every time it seemed like Arizona was going to make it a game, Utah turned the defensive pressure up a few notches and forced mistakes and came up with pop after pop. John White ran for 109 yards and two scores, and Jon Hays wasn’t bad completing 12-of-21 passes for 199 yards and a score, but it was the timely play from the defense that changed things around. Reggie Topps came up with a sack and two tackles for loss, and Conroy Black came up with the big pick leading the way to the game-sealing score. Punter Sean Sellwood did a nice job of keeping the Cats pinned deep, averaging 50.5 yards per kick, and then the defense did the rest. Winners of three of their last four, Utah can get a nice bowl bid with a strong close to the season with winnable games against UCLA, Washington State, and Colorado to close. 

Oct. 29 at Utah 27 … Oregon State 8
CFN Analysis: The offense keeps on sputtering and struggling, but after scoring 14 points or fewer in three of the four previous games, the 27 put up against Oregon State was an explosion. It was the offensive line’s best game in a long, long time, maybe the season, paving the way for 205 yards from John White, who came up with a workhorse-like 35 carries. The passing game is a different story with Jon Hays having problems with his accuracy, but he didn’t turn the ball over and threw two touchdown passes. The defense was dominant, with the line controlling the game and keeping the Oregon State running game to just 32 yards thanks to play after play in the backfield. The Utes finally have a Pac-12 win, and there’s still time to come up with a nice finishing kick with winnable games against Arizona, UCLA, Washington State, and Colorado to close.  

Oct. 22 at California 34 … Utah 10
CFN Analysis: There’s no consistency whatsoever. After playing well against Pitt, the defense went bye-bye against Cal, while the offense didn’t work at all with four turnovers, 13 yards rushing, and little production to keep up with the Bear offense. Jon Hays struggled, completing 11-of-22 passes with three picks, and John White was held to 39 yards on 15 carries. Trevor Reilly came up with two sacks and seven tackles, but that’s about all the defense did right. After losing three of their last four games and with an 0-4 Pac-12 start, there can’t be any misses against an easy stretch against Oregon State, Arizona, UCLA, Washington State and Colorado to close. There’s time to make a run, but the worst offense in the league has to work. 

Oct. 15 Utah 26 … at Pitt 14
CFN Analysis: The Utah offensive line couldn’t keep Jon Hays from getting popped, but it was able to pave the way for a huge day from John White to go along with a great day from the defense. White ran for 171 yards on 36 carries to make up for the problems in the passing game, but both teams have problems with the wind, as well as the big pass rushes. The Utes didn’t turn the ball over and did a great job at hanging on to the ball, keeping it for close to 38 minutes, but the ten penalties were a bit too many and the offense settled for too many field goals. Even so, the D didn’t allow any points after getting down 14-3 late in the first quarter, and Coleman Petersen came through with a great game hitting four field goals. After the blowout losses against Arizona State and Washington, and after scoring just 14 points in each of the first three Pac-12 games, this was exactly what the team needed going into the road trip to Cal.  

Oct. 8 Arizona State 35 … at Utah 14
CFN Analysis: It’s not fair to blame the collapse fully on the loss of Jordan Wynn, but Jon Hays threw three picks and the offense couldn’t overcome the mistakes. ASU’s passing game worked too well against the Ute secondary that continues to have problems, while the Ute attack couldn’t keep up the pace once the game started to slip away. The Utes have scored 14 points in each of the first three Pac-12 games, and now they have to go on the road for three of the next four games starting with a non-conference date at Pitt. The running game has to suddenly show up to make up for the quarterback issues, and the defense has to be far better, but more than anything else there can’t be another five turnover game. 

Oct. 1 Washington 31 ... at Utah 14
CFN Analysis: Utah couldn’t have had a more disastrous start to the Pac-12 era. Not only is the team 0-2, it still has four road games to deal with after next week’s game against Arizona State. The offense ranks dead last among all league teams with the passing game not clicking, and now it might be without leader Jordan Wynn. The franchise quarterback suffered a shoulder injury, and while Jon Hays stepped in and completed 10-of-16 passes for 156 yards and a score, the offense couldn’t keep up the pace in the second half. The defense isn’t playing up to snuff so far with the front line needing to get into the backfield far more and the secondary needing tighten up on the dink and dinks. 

Sept. 17 Utah 54 ... at BYU 10
CFN Analysis: Utah came in with a bad attitude and a desire to kickstart its season. After blowing the USC game late on the failed field goal attempt, everything worked against the Cougars with a swarming defense and great special teams, while the offense clicked with almost perfect balance. The seven takeaways were the different in making it a blowout, but the play of the defense, holding the Cougars to 11 yards on the ground, was the tone-setter. Jordan Wynn might not have been razor sharp, only hitting on 16-of-30 passes, but he didn’t have a problem handing it off to John White, who ran for 174 yards and three scores. This has to be used as a confidence builder with key Pac-12 games against Washington and Arizona State ahead.  

Sept. 10 at USC 23 … Utah 14
CFN Analysis: Welcome to the Pac-12, Utah. It’s not that easy. USC isn’t the USC of the past, but Utah still couldn’t get much of anything going on the ground a struggled all game long to find anything that consistently worked other than the Jordan Wynn-to-DeVonte Christopher combination that hooked up for 136 yards and a touchdown on 11 catches. Utah became a power by blasting away with the running game, but it only came up with 81 yards with John White having a hard time getting free. Now the Utes have to get ready for another grinding, emotional game with a trip to BYU coming up, and to win, the pass rush has to be better and more active. Utah has just three sacks and six tackles for loss in two games. 

Sept. 1 at Utah 27 … Montana State 10
CFN Analysis: Utah got out to an early lead against Montana State and didn’t seem able to do much more after the first 24 points. The offense didn’t have any sense of urgency, and it showed. However, it’s not like the Utes were taking any chances, and it became obvious that they weren’t going to show anything to USC. Jordan Wynn completed 15-of-23 passes, but he didn’t go down the field at all throwing for just 101 yards with two scores. John White was the revelation with 150 yards and a score, and he was the key to putting the game away early; the offense will revolve around him, not Wynn, for now. This wasn’t a sharp game, but that’s what Montana State is for. Now the Utes have to be far better and mistake-free to have a shot at USC. 

The 2011 Class Is Heavy On … Receivers. The move to the Pac 12 was a big, BIG boost for a strong class. The running backs are the stars of the class with Harvey Langi a 215-pound workhorse of a prospect and JUCO transfer John White a sub-4.4 speedster to bring some flash to the equation. The bulk, through, is at receiver where the hope is for 6-6 JUCO transfer Anthony Denham to become Jordan Wynn’s go-to receiver as soon as possible. Quinton Pedroza, Travis Still, and Nate Fakahafua are big, physical targets.

Five Utah Recruits You Should Care About
Player writeups by Scout.com

1. WR Anthony Denham
6-6, 215, four-star JUCO transfer.

2. RB Harvey Langi
6-2, 215, Scout.com’s 13th ranked running back. Langi is a powerful running back with excellent balance, and he does a good job of keeping his feet clear of traffic on the ground, whether it's by a quick hop or a cut around diving arm tackles. He is a big back that smaller defenders have trouble wrapping up with the combination of his size and balance as they tend to slip off of him. Is more likely to knock a defender down than out run one, but can avoid traffic with good vision.

3. RB John White
5-9, 185, three-star JUCO transfer.

4. LB Jared Norris
6-2, 228, Scout.com’s 29th ranked middle linebacker.

5. RB Jarrell Oliver
5-9, 185, Scout.com’s 40th ranked running back. Good initial burst out of the blocks, he can shed the first tackle and keep going for yards. He likes to use a spin move to break away and does it effectively. He has solid speed, but not breakaway speed and is not your quick scat back type but more of a player who has some speed and some good tackle breaking moves. Also very good at cutting back on plays.

2011 Entire Recruiting Class
Siaosi Aiono OL 6-2 290 Fr. HS West Covina, Calif./South Hills HS
Isaac Asiata OL 6-3 318 Fr. HS Spanish Fork, Utah/Spanish Fork HS
Tevita Bloomfi eld LB 6-0 230 Fr. HS West Valley City, Utah/Hunter HS
Joseph Bryant DB 6-4 194 Fr. HS Bryan, Texas/Bryan HS
Anthony Denham WR 6-4 231 Jr. JC Monterey Park, Calif./East L.A. College
Nate Fakahafua DL 6-3 196 Fr. HS Salt Lake City/Highland HS
Seni Fauonuku .DL 6-0 290 Fr. HS West Jordan, Utah/Bingham HS
Charles Henderson WR 5-9 172 Fr. HS New Orleans, La./McDonogh 35 HS
Daniel Kristensen OL 6-5 257 Fr. HS Salt Lake City/Cottonwood HS
Harvey Langi RB 6-1 216 Fr. HS South Jordan, Utah/Bingham HS
Keith McGill DB 6-3 200 Jr. JC La Mirada, Calif./Cerritos College
Daniel Nielson OL 6-6 321 Fr. HS Hurricane, Utah/Hurricane HS
Jared Norris LB 6-1 232 Fr. HS Bakersfi eld, Calif./Centennial HS
Jarrell Oliver RB 5-9 210 Fr. HS Sugar Land, Texas/Dulles HS
Quinton Pedroza WR/DB 6-2 211 Fr. HS Chino, Calif./Chino HS
Jordan Robles OL 6-5 257 Fr. HS Woodland Hills, Utah/Salem Hills HS
Eric Rowe DB 6-1 177 Fr. HS Spring, Texas/Klein HS
Travis Still WR 6-1 194 Fr. HS Spanish Fork, Utah/Spanish Fork HS
John White IV RB 5-9 190 Jr. JC Torrance, Calif./L.A. Harbor College