Local athletes filling college rosters

Utah's prep coaches used to complain that the local colleges were not giving enough credit or spending enough time recruiting the local kids. Too many of the scholarships were going to out-of-state athletes.

Utah's high school coaches really can't make that argument any more.

The local boys and girls either have a lot more natural talent these days, or they're just a lot more dedicated to their sport, or mom and dad are just spending a lot more money on their training, or high school coaching is just a lot better. Most likely, it's all of the above.

For whatever reason, many more high school players from Utah are finding a spot on the rosters of local colleges like Utah, BYU, Utah State, Dixie State, Weber State, Southern Utah and Utah Valley. Even junior colleges Snow, Salt Lake Community and Eastern Utah are loaded with local kids.

If you get bored some day, or just a little curious, spend some time on the Web browsing the athletic rosters of these schools. You'll see a nice variety of athletes who went to high school in Utah on almost every roster, for every sport, at every school.

A few years ago when it came time for Division I football players to sign letters of intent, there wasn't one big name recruit from Utah. I really had nothing to do on signing day, but listen to the local prep coaches grumble. A couple years later I went to a signing-day event where five kids from one school were signing to play D-I football. Where there were once one or two big signings, now there are close to a dozen each February.

Look at basketball alone. There is more basketball talent in Utah than ever. How can you argue with that when looking at how many local high school players are the subject of intense recruiting battles and getting national recruiting attention?

Lone Peak's Tyler Haws was our Mr. Basketball last season, and deservedly so. But there were several others who didn't get the award who are more talented and had better seasons than half of those who won the award in previous years. Sorry, former Mr. Basketballs, or at least many of you, had you been playing last year you might have just been another name on the list of candidates.

Bracken Funk, C.J. Wilcox, Kyle Collinsworth, Jace Tavita, Josh Sharp, Justin Hamilton and Brandon Davies are as good as any players to ever come through Utah preps. But while they might not earn a Mr. Basketball award, they will get their college education paid for at a very nice and respected school. Honestly, I can't think of a higher honor.

If my research is accurate, every D-I school in Utah, in the major sports, will have a former Utah prep standout on its roster this season. Some will have several and some will have only one or two.

But if I was a local college coach, I'd try to have as many as possible. For one, it helps fill the stands and generate a bigger following. Second, it results in more wins.

It's really quite simple. More and more Utah athletes are getting college scholarships these days because they deserve them.

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E-mail: jimr@desnews.com

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