Utah football checks in with local 4-star QB recruit committed to Big Ten school

Utes touch base with the state's No. 1 quarterback recruit in 2027 class

Utah Utes head coach Morgan Scalley had members of his coaching staff check in on four-star quarterback recruit Kamden Lopati. | Rob Gray-Imagn Images

The Utah football program wasn't going to just let one of the top in-state recruits leave their sights without at least checking in first.

So, a couple members of the Utes coaching staff headed over to West High School (Salt Lake City) product Kamden Lopati's home for a quick visit with the four-star quarterback recruit.

Lopati, who verbally committed to Illinois in July, shared a photo to X Sunday with running backs coach Mark Atuaia and offensive coordinator Kevin McGiven at his house, presumably to see where the rising senior was at in his recruitment process. Despite his pledge to the Fighting Illini, Lopati has been fielding other offers from power conference schools over the past six months.

Utah initially joined the race for Lopati, the top-ranked quarterback in the state according to 247Sports, back in March. But his offer from the Utes came following talks with Kyle Whittingham and his staff, so it made sense for the new regime to touch base before Lopati makes his decision to join Bret Bielema and company in Champaign, Illinois, a done deal.

First-year Michigan staffers Jason Beck and Koy Detmer Jr. — previously responsible for recruiting Lopati to Utah — represented the Wolverines this time around as they paid Lopati a visit in late January.

Lopati had met with multiple coaches on Bielema's staff a few days before Atuaia and McGiven decided to drop by for a visit. Representatives from Michigan State, UCF, Cal, Duke, Notre Dame and Purdue connected with Lopati in recent days as well, cramming his schedule with several home visits in the final days of the January contact period window.

Lopati has also received offers from Washington, Oregon, Oklahoma State, Houston, Tennessee and Colorado, among others. He checks in on 247Sports composite rankings as the No. 149 player nationally and the No. 12 quarterback recruit in the 2027 class.

As a junior this past season, Lopati completed 64.8% of his passes for 2,651 yards and 33 touchdowns and tossed eight interceptions, helping West advance to the semifinal round of the 5A state playoffs where it lost to Orem High School in a 34-7 final from Rice-Eccles Stadium. He also recorded 98 rush attempts for 723 yards and nine touchdowns.

The Utes have made sure to stay relevant in the recruiting mixes for some of the top in-state prospects recently. Perhaps their most important target, Bode Sparrow, the No. 1 overall player in the state from Davis High School, listed Utah in his list of top 10 choices in late January. The Utes have also been involved with Timpview High School lineman Ian Aloisio (No. 4-ranked player) and Orem High School edge rusher Jag Ioane (No. 11).

Grateful for the home visit by @CoachAtuaia and @coachmcgiven with @Utah_Football #GOUTES @coachsolovi @westpanthersfb @Andy_Pham1 @TheUCReport @adamgorney @SWiltfong_ @BrandonHuffman @BlairAngulo @GregBiggins @TomLoy247 @Rivals @On3 @247Sports @247recruiting pic.twitter.com/DlpUObFxv4

— Kamden Lopati (@CowboyKamden) February 2, 2026