UCLA Football Early 2018 Schedule Preview: Utah Utes
Utah Defense
Utah is known for having a tough defense. But even teams that lose a lot of personnel tend to take a step back. That might be the case with Utah this season as they lose a lot of players. A lot.
Up front on the defensive line, where they are usually strong, Utah has to replace three starters in Filipo Mokofisi, Kylie Fitts, and Lowell Lutolelei. Though they have a few players that can step in and make some plays, you can’t really replace the experience from last season.
Utah 2017 Defensive Stats
| Total Defense | Passing Defense | Rushing Defense | Scoring Defense |
|---|---|---|---|
| 338.4 (3rd) | 207.1 (4th) | 131.3 (3rd) | 23.2 (3rd) |
( ) – denotes ranking in the TEAM CONFERENCE
Bradley Anae returns from their four-man front, but he will have to work with players that have experience, but not a lot. It is expected that Leki Fotu, Pita Tonga, and Caleb Repp will stand with him on the line, but they collectively only had 42 total tackles last season.
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The same thing goes for the linebacker duo (they usually work with two LBs in a nickel defense) who are also gone. Yet they do have some experience with likely starting candidates Cody Barton, Chase Hansen and Donavan Thompson.
These three have a lot of experience and should keep this position group playing at a high level. Collectively they had 168 total tackles in 2017.
The secondary seems to be the most stable position group despite the loss of a few key members. Still, the Utes return three DBs in Marquise Blair, Corrion Ballard, and Julian Blackmon, who were all in the top six on the team in total tackles and combined for six interceptions and ten pass breakups. Needless to say, teams need to think twice when throwing against this unit.
And that is something Kelly is going to be mindful of, so considering he wants his team to run, expect a full-on ground assault against this inexperienced Utah front. We should expect him to send several runners at and around the line, including a quarterback (whoever that may be). We should also expect a lot of mismatches to help the passing game progress as to keep Utah on their toes.