Oregon Rivals Publisher, AJ Jacobson, was kind enough to give me his thoughts on Darren Carrington:
What are the Utes getting in Darren Carrington, the person?
Darren Carrington left the Oregon program under troubled circumstances, one strike too many, all of the same variety. But while it would be easy to dismiss him as a bad person or a troublemaker, this is not necessarily the case. Yes, he did make bad decisions several times while in Eugene. But this does not take away from the fact that he is an intelligent and engaging young man who on a day-to-day basis treats those around him well, whether it be a teammate or media member.
How big of a risk could this be for the Utes?
To me there is not a lot of downside to having DC transfer in. Yes, he could make another mistake. But certainly the Utah staff will have him on a short leash in that respect and certainly with his NFL aspirations, he will likely have himself on a leash of similar length. So what the Utes are getting is a player of Pac-12 starting quality, with the risk being that he would be unavailable at some point in the future.
What kind of player can the Utes expect to see on the field? Strengths? Weaknesses?
Darren is a dynamic playmaker who runs good routes, has good hands with Pac-12 level speed. He has better size than most college corners. His weaknesses would be that he does not have breakaway speed and has been injured a couple times in his years at Oregon.
Can you fill us in on any of your experiences being around him?
I first started interviewing Darren at the Opening Finals four years ago. Since then we have interacted several dozen times. I have always found him to be respectful and well-spoken, though somewhat media-shy. My prediction is that he takes care of his business off the field and is successful on the field for Utah this next year.
What are the Utes getting in Darren Carrington, the person?
Darren Carrington left the Oregon program under troubled circumstances, one strike too many, all of the same variety. But while it would be easy to dismiss him as a bad person or a troublemaker, this is not necessarily the case. Yes, he did make bad decisions several times while in Eugene. But this does not take away from the fact that he is an intelligent and engaging young man who on a day-to-day basis treats those around him well, whether it be a teammate or media member.
How big of a risk could this be for the Utes?
To me there is not a lot of downside to having DC transfer in. Yes, he could make another mistake. But certainly the Utah staff will have him on a short leash in that respect and certainly with his NFL aspirations, he will likely have himself on a leash of similar length. So what the Utes are getting is a player of Pac-12 starting quality, with the risk being that he would be unavailable at some point in the future.
What kind of player can the Utes expect to see on the field? Strengths? Weaknesses?
Darren is a dynamic playmaker who runs good routes, has good hands with Pac-12 level speed. He has better size than most college corners. His weaknesses would be that he does not have breakaway speed and has been injured a couple times in his years at Oregon.
Can you fill us in on any of your experiences being around him?
I first started interviewing Darren at the Opening Finals four years ago. Since then we have interacted several dozen times. I have always found him to be respectful and well-spoken, though somewhat media-shy. My prediction is that he takes care of his business off the field and is successful on the field for Utah this next year.
