The state semifinals are here for the 4A, 5A and 6A Utah high school football classifications, with games scheduled to be played on Thursday and Friday.
Those six games will feature 11 players who are either considered among the top 15 recruits in the state for the class of 2021 by 247 Sports or are committed to Utah, BYU or Utah State.
Here’s a look at each of those 11 players and their matchups this week as they aim for a spot in a state championship game.
6A semifinals
Corner Canyon vs. East
Thursday, Nov. 12, 2 p.m., Cedar Valley High School
Prospects featured:
Corner Canyon: Jackson Light, OL (No. 2 prospect in state, committed to Oregon), Jaxson Dart, QB (No. 3 prospect in state, uncommitted)
East: Voi Tunuufi, DL (No. 4 prospect in state, committed to Washington)
The skinny: These two programs regularly produce top college recruits, and this year is no exception. Light and Tunuufi have long been committed to Pac-12 schools Oregon and Washington, respectively, while Dart is one of the hottest prospects in the entire nation. Rather lightly recruited heading into this season after transferring from Roy, Dart now has scholarship offers from numerous Power Five schools, along with BYU.
Skyridge vs. Lone Peak
Thursday, Nov. 12, 7 p.m. at Cedar Valley High School
Prospects featured:
Lone Peak: John Henry Daley, LB (No. 14 prospect in state, uncommitted)
The skinny: This matchup might not have the quantity of top recruits as the other 6A semifinal, but Daley is worth tuning in for. He’s by far the state leader in sacks at 20.5 on the year, and holds a six-sack cushion on second place. According to 247 Sports, he holds scholarship offers from Stanford, BYU, Colorado State, San Diego State and UNLV.
5A semifinals
Salem Hills vs. Timpview
Friday, Nov. 13, 2 p.m. at Cedar Valley High School
Prospects featured:
Timpview: Logan Fano, DE (No. 6 prospect in state, uncommitted), Raider Damuni, ATH (No. 8 prospect in state, committed to BYU)
The skinny: Salem Hills is the higher seed, but Timpview has more in terms of high-level college prospects, led by Fano and Damuni. Both were once committed to the BYU Cougars, and while Damuni still is, Fano is considering the Cougars, Utah Utes, Washington Huskies and Oklahoma Sooners.
Maple Mountain vs. Orem
Friday, Nov. 13, 7 p.m. at Cedar Valley High School
Prospects featured:
Maple Mountain: Kyson Hall, WR (committed to BYU)
Orem: Kingsley Suamataia, OL (No. 1 prospect in state, committed to Oregon)
The skinny: Both sides have a high-level prospect worth watching, headlined by Suamataia, the top prospect in Utah in the class of 2021 and one of the best offensive linemen in the entire country. BYU fans will certainly have their eyes on Hall, who comes from a long family line of Cougar players, with his brother Jaren currently a backup quarterback.
4A semifinals
Sky View vs. Ridgeline
Friday, Nov. 13, 3 p.m. at Sky View High School
Prospects featured:
Sky View: Isaac Larsen, CB (committed to Utah State)
Ridgeline: Jovesa Damuni, ATH (committed to BYU)
The skinny: Larsen and Damuni might not be on the elite level that some of the other prospects in the state are, but they’ve both been highly productive as their teams have had success this season. Larsen has been committed to Utah State for almost exactly a year, while Damuni made his pledge over the summer.
Pine View vs. Snow Canyon
Friday, Nov. 13, 5 p.m. at Pine View High School
Prospects featured:
Pine View: Rick Mua’e, DE (committed to Utah State)
The skinny: Mua’e is the lone prospect in this game who has committed to an FBS school as part of the class of 2021, having pledged to the Aggies over the summer. The 6-foot-3, 250-pounder has tallied 31 tackles this season.