Everyone's calling it a lean year for in-state college football recruits, who could begin signing their national letters of intent Wednesday morning.
No blue-chippers are being signed by out-of-state schools and fewer Utah players are being signed by major colleges than in recent years. One local college coach even said, "It might be as lean a year as I've seen in Utah." Nevertheless, several top prep players are being signed, and many may eventually make an impact on the college scene.The University of Utah appears to be signing more locals than any other school, with as many as eight players being ticketed for the U. Timpview twins Howard and Kimball Christianson committed early to sign with Utah, along with two players from state champion Clearfield, Kevin Dyson and David Tovey, Park City's Josh Cochran and American Fork's Jared Ostler. Others expected to sign with Utah: Brighton's Sean Hagen and Uintah's Danny Reynolds.
BYU, which has often led the way with in-state signings, is likely to sign just two Utah players - West Jordan offensive lineman Jim Richards and Box Elder tight end Ryan Shaw - among their 24 recruits.
Utah State apparently will sign just one Utah prep, Springville's Chad Lyman, a 6-3, 220-pound defensive lineman who had 64 tackles and six sacks for the Red Devils this year.
Weber State is expected to sign about 25 players this week, with as many as one-third of the total having Utah ties. The strongest possibilities include Mountain View's Santiago Gale, Cyprus' Vaughn Ayala and Delta's Chris Jackson. All three are lineman, a position the Wildcats are recruiting heavily this year.
Southern Utah, a Division II NCAA school, will likely take the most in-state players, with 10 to 15 players signed by the end of the week. The top players expected to sign Wednesday include Alta lineman Joel Templeton, Lehi lineman Adam Black, Woods Cross running back Beau Etling, Bountiful kicker Cory Beynon, Taylorsville fullback/kicker Mike Jones, Tooele wide receiver Robert Cisco and Murray lineman Greg Schor.
Being a Division II school, the T-Birds are allowed to sign players in person beginning Wednesday morning. Athletes signing with Division I schools can send their letters of intent beginning Wednesday, but schools can't officially release names of signees until they receive them. Saturday is the first day Division I schools can sign players in person.
The Utes' total might be deceiving because several of the signed players will go on LDS missions before playing a down. The Christianson brothers, who played both ways for the T-Birds, will likely play defense for the Utes. Dyson and Tovey are also likely to play defensive back, along with Hagen, who was a top option quarterback, recruited by Air Force. Cochran and Reynolds are big linemen and Ostler played running back for American Fork.
Richards is a 6-31/2, 275-pounder who is being pegged for an offensive guard position for the Cougars. The 6-5, 210-pound Shaw caught 10 touchdown passes and is considered a great blocker.
Some high school coaches feel that college coaches are overlooking some top prospects. "It might be a lean year, but I think they're missing the boat on some good players," said West Jordan's Rick Bojak.
Among the top players likely heading to junior colleges are Bingham's Barry Fullmer and Kevin Allred, Mountain Crest's Ryan Pond and Kory Kohler, West Jordan's Matt Doman and Jason Nelson, Springville's Jeremiah Dallamas, Lehi's Cole Cooper and Bonneville's Ryan Webber.