Freshman emerges as 'biggest surprise' for Utah Utes in fall camp

JJ Buchanan has stolen the spotlight during Utah's fall camp

Utah Utes head coach Kyle Whittingham has highlighted freshman tight end JJ Buchanan during the team's fall camp practices. | Steven Bisig-Imagn Images

Kyle Whittingham and his coaching staff might need to rework Utah freshman JJ Buchanan's current position title.

Listed on the Utes' roster as a tight end, the former four-star recruit who played on both sides of the ball in high school has already started to carve out a unique role for himself in college after showcasing exceptional versatility during the team's fall camp training session.

"Maybe the biggest surprise — I don't know if he's a surprise or a big positive — is JJ Buchanan has really emerged as a playmaker on offense," Whittingham said during fanfest. "He's listed as a tight end ... but he can do a lot of different things, and [he's] really a tremendous athlete."

Perhaps the simple term "pass catcher" will suffice for Buchanan, a 6-foot-4, 225-pound athlete with experience playing several positions from his days at Coronado High School (Nevada), including safety, receiver, running back, linebacker and even kick returner on special teams.

It shouldn't be a wonder, then, how a top-10 athlete prospect in the 2025 recruiting class has managed to turn heads over the past three weeks; Buchanan's athleticism, at his size, allows him to fill almost any capacity the Utes need him to occupy, as they continue to find their offensive identity in the weeks leading up to the regular season.

"I think that there will be an opportunity to use what's traditionally called a flex tight end," Utah tight end coach Freddie Whittingham said after a previous fall camp practice. "And JJ fills that bill; he's up to 225 pounds, so he's becoming more of a tight end body."

Buchanan's minor transformation hasn't come at the cost of his speed or bounce, according to his tight ends coach, and Buchanan has the impressive vertical jump to prove it. Per his head coach, Buchanan's 40-inch vertical is tied with sophomore safety Jackson Benee for the highest mark on the team.

"His ability to go up and play the contested ball is special," Kyle Whittingham said of Buchanan.

How Utah's new-look offense under first-year coordinator Jason Beck utilizes tight ends remains to be seen, though the depth at the position allows for some creativity. Otto Tia, a 6-foot-4, 220-pound redshirt senior, will likely see opportunities in an H-back role with the Utes; redshirt freshman Hunter Andrews is another versatile threat with the ability to line up in multiple spots on the field. With senior Dallen Bentley serving as a more end-line tight end, Andrews could see time in the backfield or along the line of scrimmage — sort of like how the San Francisco 49ers use Kyle Juszczyk within their offensive philosophies.

Sep 9, 2023; Syracuse, New York, USA; Former Syracuse Orange offensive coordinator Jason Beck, now with the Utah Utes. | Rich Barnes-Imagn Images

That means Buchanan is likely to fill in the gaps where the Utes could benefit from having another multifaceted pass catcher on the field for quarterback Devon Dampier to target. On the other hand, having more experienced players ahead of him on the tight end depth chart could open up opportunities for him to get involved on special teams, an area he excelled in as a high school standout.

"I would expect him to be a big time special teams contributor, because he's got that long body," Freddie Whittingham said of Buchanan. "He's an athlete, and so there's a number of different positions we could put him out on the special teams units."

Buchanan joins Utah following a decorated high school career at Coronado, where he earned first-team all-conference recognition as a wide receiver and safety, in addition to earning second-team honors as a kick returner. He finished his senior season with 60 tackles, including three for loss and 2.0 sacks, plus a fumble recovery and two pass breakups to go with 1,023 receiving yards and 11 touchdowns on the offensive side of the ball. He was tabbed as the all-conference offensive MVP and earned the reputation as a top-five prospect from the state of Nevada in 2024.

After piling up more than 2,000 all-purpose yards over the final two years of high school, Buchanan committed to Utah over competing offers from Cal, Oregon State and UNLV, among others.