Chase Kennedy: A Utah freshman to keep an eye on
With the 2022 Utah football season now less than two weeks away, the Utes are making their final preparations and have shifted their focus to Florida. While Utah will mostly be led by a majority of returning veterans, the class of 2022 will also be relied upon in order to help the Utes repeat as Pac-12 Champions.
Over the past few months, fans have come to know quite a few names from this promising freshmen class. Players like Jaylon Glover, Lander Barton, Tao Johnson and a few others have quickly stepped into the spotlight and expectations are high. But one name fans should keep an eye on in addition to those already mentioned, is defensive end Chase Kennedy.
A three-star recruit out of The Episcopal School of Dallas, TX, Kennedy is a promising defender who was mentioned multiple times throughout fall camp. For those unfamiliar with Kennedy, he is an explosive end with great length, athleticism and speed. During his senior season, Kennedy excelled at causing havoc in the backfield, recording 18 tackles for loss, six forced fumbles and two defensive touchdowns. For the year, Kennedy helped his high school squad reach a 10-1 record and was named Southwest Preparatory All-Conference.
Early on in fall camp, Kennedy was a name mentioned by Utah defensive coordinator Morgan Scalley. Without even being asked, Scalley was quick to praise Kennedy and commented on his promising future.
"We have a little bit more speed off the edge than we've had in the past," Scalley said. "Chase Kennedy is a freshman that geez, he's got a bright future."
Following Scalley's comments, defensive end's coach Lewis Powell was then asked about Kennedy, after he mentioned the young freshman as likely to travel with the team. In response, Powell also highlighted his potential.
"[He's] explosive. His raw talent and he's getting a bunch of reps. We're trying to see what we could do, how he could fit and mold him to fit our scheme. But he has a bright future," Powell said.
Even though Kennedy won't be leading the room this season, he should see some notable reps and will be able to give everyone a taste of what he can do. Given his skills, attributes and what he was known for in high school, Kennedy has a promising future and should become a household name moving forward.
For now, Kennedy is simply focused on remaining humble and getting better but make no mistake, he's a name to watch out for in 2022 and beyond.
"Im grateful for it. I've just been trying to put my head down and work. Seeing that Coach Scalley notices and other people notice, I'm grateful for it. But at the end of the day, I just try to stay humble, keep working so I can help the defense, help the team however I need to and in the future keep getting better and better so I can live up to that," Kennedy said.
As for this season, be on the look out for Kennedy in certain third-down pass-rush situations and some special teams.
Facebook - @FanNationAllUtes
Twitter - @FN_AllUtes
Instagram - @fannation_allutes
