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Utah football commit had social media buzzing after insane one-handed interception in state playoff game

Kennan Pula's highlight play earned him the No. 1 spot on the "SportsCenter" top 10 plays
Cole Forsman|
Utah Utes head coach Kyle Whittingham will welcome Lone Peak High School (Utah) product Kennan Pula to the ranks next season.
Utah Utes head coach Kyle Whittingham will welcome Lone Peak High School (Utah) product Kennan Pula to the ranks next season. | Rob Gray-Imagn Images

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Kennan Pula's phone wouldn't stop going off following Friday night's 6A state playoff game between Lone Peak High School (Highland, Utah) and Skyridge High School (Lehi, Utah).

The Utah football commit and three-star prospect in the 2026 class likely woke up to several more texts and social media notifications after his insane one-handed interception earned him the No. 1 spot on ESPN's "SportsCenter" top 10 plays of the day.

Pula propelled Lone Peak to the state championship with an acrobatic play on the ball, snagging a pass intended for a Skyridge wide receiver to help the Knights survive, 13-7, in a state semifinal game from Rice-Eccles Stadium.

"[My phone's] blowing up, honestly," Pula told ESPN. "A lot [of messages]. I can't even count."

The highlight caught the attention of ESPN, notable recruiting services and even former NFL wide receiver Dez Bryant, who tagged another former NFL wideout with experience in one-handed catches.

"..look at this bruh [Odell Beckham Jr.]," Bryant wrote in a repost of Pula's play on X.

Pula's ranked by 247Sports as the No. 65 wide receiver recruit in the country and the second-highest rated senior at the position in the state, with his twin brother and Utah commit, Jaron, coming in as the state's top-ranked wideout.

"I'm a receiver so, the ball is really natural to me," Pula said. "And I practice that catch in football practice all the time."

Jaron didn't have much of a reaction to the play, Kennan told ESPN, though his phone was blown up with messages and notifications from plenty of other people, including some members of the Utah coaching staff.

"They were just congratulating me on the win and to just stay locked in, really," Kennan said of the response he got from his Utes coaches. "That's probable the best [reaction]."

Kennan's future college coaches probably wouldn't mind to see more highlight plays out of the 6-foot-2 prospect when he's suited up in Utah's red and black threads next season. The Utes were able to flip his pledge from UCLA in early July, along with his brother's, bringing the dynamic duo back closer to home for their collegiate careers.

First, the Pulas will look finish off their high school careers on a high note and avenge Lone Peak's loss in last season's championship game against Corner Canyon High School (Draper, Utah). Corner Canyon stormed back from down 27-7 to stun its rival with a 30-27 win in one of the championship' game's biggest comebacks in recent memory.

The rematch between Lone Peak and Corner Canyon is set for Thursday, 2:30 p.m. MT at Rice-Eccles Stadium.

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Cole Forsman
COLE FORSMAN

Cole Forsman has been a contributor with On SI for the past three years, covering college athletics. He holds a degree in Journalism and Sports Management from Gonzaga University.

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