New Year, New Team for Brent Brennan & UA WR Kris Hutson

Washington State transfer Kris Hutson is taking on the challenge of making a name for himself in a stacked Arizona wide receiver room for coach Brent Brennan.

Jul 29, 2022; Los Angeles, CA, USA; An Arizona Wildcats helmet on display during Pac-12 Media Day at Novo Theater. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Washington State transfer Kris Hutson was a huge pick-up out of the portal for an Arizona Wildcats wide receiver room that desperately needed to add speed and depth to the room after the departure of Tetairoa McMillan to the first round of the NFL Draft this past April.

"Speed was something we needed to address this offseason, especially in the receiver room," wide receiver coach Bobby Wde said. "We felt like the direction we were moving in offensively was gonna require guys that can really stretch the football field, something we failed to do last year. I think a lot of it had to do with the personnel that we had."

Wade added that they hit the portal for guys "That could run, guys with experience." Among the list of wide receivers that were mentioned by Wade, Kris Hutson was brought up as one of the players with "Experience, but also have speed and the ability to to turn it on and off when necessary."

Hutson, who could very well be one of the keys to reinvigorating a depleted offense and becoming a weapon for quarterback Noah Fifita.

What convinced Hutson to join the Wildcats for his final year of collegiate football was the experience that Wade has in the game of football.

"Coach Bobby was a big factor in me coming here," Hutson said. "Just the overall characteristic about him. Obviously, he played in the league for eight years, so he has the knowledge on what it takes to be in the NFL. I just want ot be a sponge and soak it all in so I can be prepared."

Hutson began his collegiate career at the university of Oregon. He then transferred to Washington State in 2024 before ending up in Tucson.

In his last year with the Cougars, Hutson caught 54 receptions for 683 yards and two touchdowns. His most notable game of the 2024 season came against the Boise State Broncos, where he caught nine reception for 126 yards. The journey all the way to the desert was anything but easy.

"It's been a mountain, up and down," Hutson said. "Coming from Oregon to Washington State to here, obviously that's three schools. A lot of people ask 'How do you feel about transferring three schools,' Well, my vision is you've got to do what makes you happy. At the end of the day, you've got to move where you're needed."

As a former track star, the 5-foot-11, 175-pound Compton, CA native brings speed to the wide receiver room that will need plenty of it.

"The transition going from track to football, it helps you when you're out in the open field, you gotta open up your stride and everything like that," Hutson said. "So it does translate a lot to football. It gives you a different type of exposure."

Hutson has used his opportunity of transferring to three different schools to make connections off of the field in order to better his life outside of football.

"It's been great so far," Hutson said when asked about his integration to Tucson. "Meeting new people, different connections. Even after football, when we're done with football, it's certain connections you make with certain people throughout your lifetime that you can go off of and you can be very successful in life just based off the connections. That's what I really wanted to take advantage of, was the connections."

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