My subjective pre-season grades by position group

It does not work to simply give all As. However, I think there may not be any let up when QB2 comes in. We may have the best QB2 that we have had in years. The OL may not be an A but I don’t expect them to hold us back. We will be happier with the RBs mid season than we are currently. The LBer group will be A+ when Damuni returns at some point. This group will have everyone’s attention coming down the home stretch. CBs will be fine and will benefit from the DL rush, we have 3 DEs that I am waiting to see rotate. Could we see 3 DEs on passing downs some times? Without any information to go on, I still can’t see our Safeties being anything but very effective. If the slot corner works out well the defense will click. But then, I am an optimist.

Fun game. From my perspective an “A” is a nationally elite group, and an A- is an elite group in conference. It goes down from there. I kind of think an “I” is a copout so I’m gonna take a stab at each group even with incomplete information. Here goes.

QB A- for the same reason you gave. Let’s see how he comes off two major surgeries. If he stays healthy and his head is right, he has A potential for sure.

WR B+. They have the potential to be an A- group but don’t see how they’d become a nationally elite group.

TE A. Kuithe alone would put us in the A/A- range, but, the depth here is staggering.

OLine B. But I predict they’ll gel into a B+ group. Harding is just a solid OL coach. Perhaps one of the best around.

RB B-. If Mitchell can have a breakout year I can see us in the B+ range with the help of a healthy Cam. Otherwise, I’m not sure we get any better than B-.

DLine A. Year after year after year after year. Our DLine is truly impressive in it’s ability to reload, and this year, there isn’t a lot of reloading to do.

LB A. I just think Lander Barton is special. When it’s all over, if he stays healthy, his name will be uttered in the same breath as Stevenson Sylvester, Devin Lloyd, Chase Hansen. I think he’s that good, and that consequential when he’s on the field.

CB B-. Get the sense we’re a little bit down this year. If we put the nickel in the CB group I think we climb to a B. Snowden is very good

Safety B. Have no heartburn with Johnson & Snowden. If Ritchie plays like he did the last quarter of his freshman year we’ll be fine. If not, we have a couple of good backups in Hall and Gilman. Plus safety pride, Scalley, and all that. Somehow, the safety/CB group will come together during the year, hopefully by the OSU game.

ST B-. Certainly the hype is not up to what we’ve come to expect with national award winning kickers/punters. Plus, we got used to Covey. Those were generational ST groups.

So overall IMO you’re just a tad high, but gave a solid preseason assessment of this team.

Why do so many people wonder if Cam will be able to come back from his injury? Has there ever been a QB who has NOT come back from a knee injury like this?

Cam is NOT a running QB. He can run, but he doesn’t need to. He is a pocket passer who can hurt you with his legs. If he can’t run anymore, our offense will be just fine. We don’t need his legs to be an efficient offense.

As for our CB’s, look at who will start:

Kenan Johnson. A multi-year starter in the SEC.
Zemaiah Vaughn – might be the best CB in the Big 12.
Snowden Smith – Four star kid who played for us last year.

Anyone who doubts our CB’s…I feel bad for ya. Our CB’s are really, really good.

Do you mean “likely” or unlikely we will experience injuries to the LB group? Yes, I don’t want to say likely, but the LB job is being in on tackles a high percentage of plays.
Since there is still a question mark for many new players, I can’t give the group an A-, just a solid B, based on what we know right now without seeing a live game.

I want to think Cam can be as effective if he doesn’t have 100% of his pre-injury quick first step, and open running ability, but it is actually what set him apart, and allowed him to make plays that helped the Utes win championships. I really want him to be as quick and fast, but it remains to be seen.

Also, I agree Wilson seems to be a very good choice at No. 2, so probably the best position the Utes have been in at the QB position (pre-season).

I guess I’m just a little gun shy of giving very high grade to groups we actually have to see play some live snaps. But, I am excited to get to that first game! Go Utes!

I see things very differently on the offensive line. This UNIT has been set since Spring ball and have been working together as a UNIT all Fall Camp. The offensive tackles are probably the best pair Utah has ever had. You aren’t going to have the typical slow start as they figure out the best 5 and learn to play together. I expect them to be good right out of the gate and by conference play they will impose their will. And the cherry on top of it all is a QB who can audible out of trouble and running backs who can help in pass protection.