What to expect from Utah’s early signing day

High school recruiting is still the lifeblood of college football, but as the sport’s landscape shifts, so too does recruiting.

Case in point: Utah’s 2024 commit list, as of Tuesday afternoon, has only 13 high school players on it. For the 2023 class, that number was 19 and for the 2022 class it was 18.

Utah hasn’t been shy about going to the transfer portal to fulfill needs, and that will continue this offseason.

Since the transfer portal opened Dec. 4, Utah has received commitments from four transfer players — Georgia Tech cornerback Kenan Johnson, BYU defensive end John Henry Daley, UCLA tight end Carsen Ryan and Blinn College safety Maurice Evans.

“Just trying to plug the holes and fill the gaps where you got guys that you thought were probably going to come back or maybe are going to come back and now are not, and the young guys that are behind them are not quite ready,” Utah coach Kyle Whittingham said. “So that’s when you go to the portal and try and get ready players.”

Other areas of need that Utah could address in the transfer portal are at wide receiver, safety, cornerback and filling out the quarterback room behind Cam Rising.

December has become the busiest month for college football coaches as they juggle finalizing their high school class and offer players in the transfer portal, all while players transfer out and declare for the NFL draft. Roster management skills are put to the test.

And don’t forget, Utah is also preparing to face Northwestern in the Las Vegas Bowl on Saturday night.

“It’s busy,” Utah receivers coach Alvis Whitted said. “Busy, but fun, because that’s what it’s all about nowadays. This game is changing quite often and quite a bit, so you just got to be able to adapt and go with the flow and just be ready at all times.”

Related

• The latest on the Utah Utes’ 2024 recruiting class

• Who’s staying, who’s leaving, who’s incoming for Utah football? Tracking 2024 decisions

• After breaking state records, Isaac Wilson is ready for his next role: Utah QB

High school recruits still play a huge part in the makeup of the team, and Utah will welcome at least 13 in this class.

With early signing day — now the primary signing day for Power Five schools — being in December, it creates a schedule crunch for coaches and can be beneficial for recruits that want to graduate high school early and enroll at by Jan. 8, when classes begin for the 2024 spring semester. It also allows them to get a jump on their football career by participating in spring football.

Corner Canyon quarterback Isaac Wilson, the centerpiece of Utah’s 2024 class, will be enrolling early at the U.

“I can’t wait to learn from Cam Rising. He’s been killing it. Getting up there early, that’s really been my focus because I get to see the difference between high school and college and their different aspects, but I’m just excited to learn from Cam Rising when I get up there,” Wilson told the Deseret News.

Defending home turf is always important in recruiting, and that’s what Utah has done in 2024. The Utes are set to sign four of the top six players from the Beehive State, per 247Sports rankings, and are in the hunt for Bountiful High athlete Faletau Satuala, the No. 2-ranked player in the state. Satuala will announce his decision during the 2024 All-American Bowl on Jan. 6.

Four-star Wilson (No. 1-ranked recruit in Utah by Rivals and On3), four-star Corner Canyon offensive lineman Isaiah Garcia (No. 1-ranked recruit in Utah by 247Sports and ESPN), three-star American Fork safety Davis Andrews (No. 4-ranked recruit in Utah by 247Sports) and three-star Corner Canyon edge rusher Kash Dillon (No. 6-ranked recruit in Utah by 247Sports) are all staying home and attending Utah.

The Utes also added a commitment from three-star Olympus safety Luke Bryant, raising their total from the state of Utah to five players.

Utah is shoring up the defensive backfield — an area of need — with commits from Andrews, Bryant, three-star safety Jeilani Davis, three-star cornerback Sammie Hunter, three-star cornerback Quimari Shemwell and three-star cornerback LaTrsitan Thompson.

Elsewhere on defense are commitments from three-star linebacker Hunter Andrews and three-star linebacker Ashtin Kekahuna-Lopes.

Elsewhere on offense, Utah will add three-star wide receiver David Washington and three-star wide receiver Zacharyus Williams.

All star ratings mentioned above are 247Sports composite ratings, which factor in ratings by all major recruiting services.

After landing the No. 20 class in the nation in 2023, Utah’s best-ever on record, the Utes’ ranking for the 2024 class has slid.

Utah signed eight 247Sports composite four-star athletes a year ago, but have just two in this year’s class. That, combined with the smaller class size, has Utah ranked No. 59 in the 247Sports team composite rankings — one spot below rival BYU and No. 12 in the 16-team Big 12.

Rivals paints a similar picture, with BYU at No. 54 and Utah at No. 55 in their rankings. On3 puts the Utes at No. 48, one spot ahead of Arizona at No. 49.

Sorting by average recruit ranking, Utah fares better, with an average 247Sports Composite rating of 87.41, but still trails Colorado, Texas Tech, UCF, TCU and is tied with Kansas in that metric in the Big 12 rankings.

It’s clear that Utah is holding back more scholarship spots than usual to try and get instant help from the transfer portal in their first year in the Big 12 Conference, but that overall class ranking has the chance to grow if Satuala and other Utah targets, plus junior college transfers (which count for the class ranking) sign with the school during February’s signing day.

Here’s a look at Utah’s 2024 commits, sorted by their 247Sports composite rating.

Utah’s 2024 high school recruiting class (as of Dec. 19)

• Isaiah Garcia, OT, 247Sports composite four-star, 6-foot-5, 280 pounds, Corner Canyon High, Draper, Utah.

• Isaac Wilson, QB, 247Sports composite four-star, 6-foot, 190 pounds, Corner Canyon High, Draper, Utah.

• David Washington, WR, 247Sports composite three-star, 6-foot, 185 pounds, Las Vegas Academy High, Las Vegas, Nevada.

• Davis Andrews, S, 247Sports composite three-star, 6-foot-2, 200 pounds, American Fork High, American Fork, Utah.

• Jeilani Davis, S, 247Sports composite three-star, 6-foot-1, 190 pounds, Mater Dei High, Santa Ana, California.

• Zacharyus Williams, WR, 247Sports composite three-star, 6-foot-2, 195 pounds, Junipero Serra High, Gardena, California.

• Hunter Andrews, LB, 247Sports composite three-star, 6-foot-2, 215 pounds, Magnolia High, Magnolia, Texas.

• Kash Dillon, edge, 247Sports composite three-star, 6-foot-5, 220 pounds, Corner Canyon High, Draper, Utah.

• Ashtin Kekahuna-Lopes, LB, 247Sports composite three-star, 6-foot-3, 215 pounds, St. John Bosco High, Bellflower, California.

• Sammie Hunter, CB, 247Sports composite three-star, 5-foot-11, 175 pounds, 6-foot, 175 pounds, Chandler High, Chandler, Arizona.

• Quimari Shemwell, CB, 247Sports composite three-star, 6-foot, 175 pounds, Long Beach Poly High, Long Beach, California.

• LaTristan Thompson, CB, 247Sports composite three-star, 6-foot, 180 pounds, Mount Pleasant High, Mount Pleasant, Texas.

• Luke Bryant, S, 247Sports three-star (no composite ranking), 6-foot-2, 195 pounds, Olympus High, Salt Lake City, Utah.

Transferring to Utah

• Kenan Johnson, CB, redshirt junior, 6-foot-1, 183 pounds, Georgia Tech.

• John Henry Daley, DE, freshman, 6-foot-5, 225 pounds, BYU.

• Carsen Ryan, TE, sophomore, 6-foot-4, 255 pounds, UCLA.

• Maurice Evans, S, sophomore, 6-foot-2, 190 pounds, Blinn College.