These are interesting times we're witnessing. Based on the conversations I'm having, things I'm reading, etc. in many ways it looks like the entire paradigm that the Utes had been operating in has shifted overnight. Utah football has literally grabbed the attention of the entire college football world. Because of this pretty dramatic shift in perception of the program, I expect to see a few things happening:
1) Most Utah commits are going to become really solid in their commitment. We're already seeing this. Davir Hamilton (who was as soft a commit as they come) has been REALLY active on social media talking with other Utah commits. It looks like he's bought in. I've heard rumors from a couple of Florida contacts that a lot of BIG schools are asking about Tyler Huntley, but he's telling them he's locked in with Utah. This win has made the guys already committed to Utah look like rock stars, and they know it. That doesn't mean that there won't be decommitments in the future. I still expect it. But I don't expect any to happen that won't be for good reason - even if some fans get upset because of factors that don't matter. (I know I'm speaking cryptically, but it's for good reason. I'll explain when I can, depending on how certain situations break).
2) Any kids that are really close to committing or even "silently" committed to the Utes will need to get public about their intentions really soon. That train is leaving the station, so to speak, and they risk losing a spot if they wait too long. All in or in our way doesn't begin to describe it. (I won't elaborate too much here either on who this impacts, but it definitely applies to more than one kid on my radar).
3) Utah is going to spend the first half of this week looking over A LOT of film, evaluating kids and re-evaluating their big board. I expect a few priorities to change, and I know that a few high profile kids that were lukewarm on the Utes are looking a lot harder at them now. I expect more movement on this front in Florida and Texas than California - mostly because a lot of the Cali kids still have to deal with long standing biases about what the pecking order in the Pac-12 should look like. That will still take a couple of years to change - but it is changing. A lot of the kids that are on the big boards I've done in the past will remain, but I expect to see a few more names to show up there very soon.
4) Once the film work is done, coaches will hit the road. They'll have the max amount of guys allowable on the road this weekend scouting kids in person. Look for coaches to be in a lot of different states this weekend. Most of them will hit the road on Thursday or Friday.
5) I wouldn't be surprised to see the early commits that plan on graduating early sign grant in aid agreements soon. (The three that are eligible are Huntley, Simpkins and Peck). These agreements don't bind the kid to the school, they can still sign LOIs elsewhere. However, they do remove the restrictions on how often Utah coaches can engage with them, visit them, and even allow them to send materials like workout plans and general playbooks. It makes it much, much harder for other schools to flip them.
6) I'm REALLY interested in seeing how all of this impacts the local kids. I don't see a kid like Tooley flipping from BYU or Fehoko flipping from Stanford necessarily, but there are some really good players that this win will make a difference with. And I'm not just talking about Garrett Bolles.
Now the Utes need to take advantage of the situation they've put themselves in. The first order of business will be to (obviously) beat Cal. There can be no letdown. They have to beat them, and it would be better if they can do it in convincing fashion. They still have to do the work, but you couldn't have given the Utes more of a golden opportunity. I hope they can stay focused and get it done.
1) Most Utah commits are going to become really solid in their commitment. We're already seeing this. Davir Hamilton (who was as soft a commit as they come) has been REALLY active on social media talking with other Utah commits. It looks like he's bought in. I've heard rumors from a couple of Florida contacts that a lot of BIG schools are asking about Tyler Huntley, but he's telling them he's locked in with Utah. This win has made the guys already committed to Utah look like rock stars, and they know it. That doesn't mean that there won't be decommitments in the future. I still expect it. But I don't expect any to happen that won't be for good reason - even if some fans get upset because of factors that don't matter. (I know I'm speaking cryptically, but it's for good reason. I'll explain when I can, depending on how certain situations break).
2) Any kids that are really close to committing or even "silently" committed to the Utes will need to get public about their intentions really soon. That train is leaving the station, so to speak, and they risk losing a spot if they wait too long. All in or in our way doesn't begin to describe it. (I won't elaborate too much here either on who this impacts, but it definitely applies to more than one kid on my radar).
3) Utah is going to spend the first half of this week looking over A LOT of film, evaluating kids and re-evaluating their big board. I expect a few priorities to change, and I know that a few high profile kids that were lukewarm on the Utes are looking a lot harder at them now. I expect more movement on this front in Florida and Texas than California - mostly because a lot of the Cali kids still have to deal with long standing biases about what the pecking order in the Pac-12 should look like. That will still take a couple of years to change - but it is changing. A lot of the kids that are on the big boards I've done in the past will remain, but I expect to see a few more names to show up there very soon.
4) Once the film work is done, coaches will hit the road. They'll have the max amount of guys allowable on the road this weekend scouting kids in person. Look for coaches to be in a lot of different states this weekend. Most of them will hit the road on Thursday or Friday.
5) I wouldn't be surprised to see the early commits that plan on graduating early sign grant in aid agreements soon. (The three that are eligible are Huntley, Simpkins and Peck). These agreements don't bind the kid to the school, they can still sign LOIs elsewhere. However, they do remove the restrictions on how often Utah coaches can engage with them, visit them, and even allow them to send materials like workout plans and general playbooks. It makes it much, much harder for other schools to flip them.
6) I'm REALLY interested in seeing how all of this impacts the local kids. I don't see a kid like Tooley flipping from BYU or Fehoko flipping from Stanford necessarily, but there are some really good players that this win will make a difference with. And I'm not just talking about Garrett Bolles.
Now the Utes need to take advantage of the situation they've put themselves in. The first order of business will be to (obviously) beat Cal. There can be no letdown. They have to beat them, and it would be better if they can do it in convincing fashion. They still have to do the work, but you couldn't have given the Utes more of a golden opportunity. I hope they can stay focused and get it done.
