Is Utah losing out on top in-state recruits a big deal or not?

Utah has only been a "Power 5" program over the past decade, and what it's accomplished in the short period of time is nothing short of remarkable.

The Utes have won back-to-back Pac-12 south division titles — three in total — have been to two conference championship games and are 5-2 in bowl games since joining the 'Conference of Champions' in 2011.

And not to mention, the Utes have done all of that while recently claiming its best recruiting class in program history last year when they finished fifth in the conference and 29th in the nation.

"We feel really good about this class," Whittingham said after the singing of the 2020 class. "Our net has been cast fairly wide now and we have guys from all over the country. More than anything though, we are now able to stand toe-to-toe and win some of these battles with high profile schools. If you look at our recruits and their offers, we are beating some really good schools - schools we couldn't even be in the conversation with six or seven years ago."

But now a disturbing trend is beginning to take place within Utah recruiting circles — and that has been the Utes' inability to keep home the top in-state prospects.

The last time Utah signed the state's top prospect was back in 2011 when it inked Harvey Langi.

Since then, the Utes have seen the state's top prospects flourish at other programs. And even more recently, those top prospects have been going to some of Utah's top rivals in the Pac-12.

Over the past five years, USC and Washington have each secured the top prospect from the state while Oregon has signed the top prospect three times. And these aren't just any old prospects, there are players who have bright futures in the NFL or are shining for their respective colleges.

Top Prospects

*Jay Tufele (2017) = signed with USC and after three dominating seasons with the Trojans, is listed as a first-round draft pick in the upcoming NFL draft.

*Penei Sewell (2018) = signed with Oregon and has since come on to be one of the top offensive lineman prospects in the past 20 years. He's the youngest winner of the Outland trophy and expected top-3 pick in the upcoming NFL draft.

*Puka Nacua (2019) = signed with Washington and showed big-play ability with three starts as a true freshman. But an injury caused him to miss the final five games of the year. However, he's expected to be a major part of the offense moving forward.

*Noah Sewell (2020) = followed his big brother and signed with Oregon. A 5-star linebacker, Sewell is expected to play a prominent role moving forward with the Ducks.

*Kingsley Suamataia (2021) = just verbally committed to the Ducks and is the best offensive line prospect since from the state of Utah since Penei. He's an anchor and a phenomenal athlete who should find himself playing on Sundays.

USC has been Utah's biggest rival in the South Division while the Huskies are probably the Utes' most-hated rival in the conference. Finally Oregon is trending up the most of any conference team and took down the Utes last season in the conference title game.

Imagine how different the Utes would be, or would've been, with those five players on the roster.

Last year's defense would've been the best in the country with somebody like Tufele while Penei would've anchored the offensive line. Nacua would be an instant game-changer at receiver (something Utah desperately needs), while Noah and Suamataia are massive building blocks for the future.

Still, it can't be understated how well the Utes have adjusted to play in the Pac-12. But to take that next step forward, they must do a better job at keeping the top in-state prospects home.

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