A few days after Utah running back signee Jaylon Glover won Florida’s Mr. Football prize, another future Ute has secured high honors in another football-crazy state.
Wide receiver Ryan Peppins was named Alabama Mr. Football on Thursday. The honor was voted on by the Alabama Sports Writers Association.
Peppins was a key contributor at Thompson High School, which won three straight 7A championships from 2019 to 2021.
In his senior year, Peppins had 80 receptions for 1,379 yards and 23 touchdowns as he capped off the three-peat. Peppins was named the MVP of the 2021 championship game with 203 yards and two touchdowns.
He has 2,755 receiving yards and 43 touchdowns in his career at Thompson and was key on special teams, totaling 326 return yards and a touchdown.
“We lost our quarterback and Ryan was the one guy we had, the one stability, that we could move around to different roles to try to create some offense,” Thompson coach Mark Freeman told AL.com. “We could put him at running back, at receiver, at slot receiver. He was invaluable.”
The 5-foot-8, 168-pound three-star receiver was offered by only two Power Five teams — Utah and Maryland.
Peppins is part of Utah’s 2022 signing class, alongside fellow wide receivers Chris Reed and Tao Johnson.