Utah's Dallen Bentley nominated for esteemed college football award

Utes tight end has enjoyed a breakout season in 2025

Utah Utes tight end Dallen Bentley (88) scores a touchdown against the UCLA Bruins during the second half at Rose Bowl. | Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

Dallen Bentley had a right to feel frustrated through his first two seasons with Utah.

Whether it was because of injuries or other names in front of him on the depth chart, the 6-foot-4 Snow College product wasn't heavily involved in what the Utes were doing on the offensive side of the ball, catching just three passes for a total of 20 yards across his first 19 games at the Division I level.

Now, Bentley's emergence as one of the top pass-catchers on a nationally-ranked Utah squad has thrusted the Taylorsville, Utah, native into the conversation for the nation's top tight end in the latter half of his senior season.

What a difference time and health made for Bentley, who was revealed as one of eight semifinalists for the John Mackey Award on Tuesday. The prestigious award is presented annually to college football's top tight end, honoring the legacy of NFL Hall of Fame tight end, John Mackey.

Half of the list of semifinalists were Big 12 players, including Baylor's Michael Trigg, Houston's Tanner Koziol, Iowa State's Benjamin Brahmer and Bentley.

The Utes will get a closer look at Trigg during their upcoming tilt with the Bears on Saturday in Waco, Texas. The 6-foot-4 senior headed into Week 12 with the second-most receiving yards (607) among Football Bowl Subdivision tight ends.

Bentley wasn't featured on the award's preseason watch list back in August, though his productivity through the first two months of the season warranted a spot on the semifinalist list ahead. He had 32 catches for 383 yards and 3 touchdowns through the Utes' first nine games, ranking No. 17 among FBS tight ends in receiving yards and No. 14 in receptions. He was Utah's second-leading receiver behind Ryan Davis (650 yards) going into Week 12.

Bentley's unconventional journey to being a pivotal piece of Utah's offense began after he snapped his tibia and fibula in high school, directing him toward a mission trip with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Colorado instead of a career in college football.

Upon returning home, Bentley walked on at Snow College and in 2022, earned NJCAA All-America second-team honors with 8 receptions for 114 yards and 2 touchdowns. He transferred to Utah ahead of the 2023 campaign, serving in a special teams-orientated role before suffering an injury.

Bentley transitioned to tight end in 2024, but was used sparingly behind Brant Kuithe. A path to TE1 opened for Bentley heading into the 2025, and he hasn't looked back since.

The three finalists for the John Mackey Award will be announced Nov. 26. The winner will be revealed Dec. 12 on ESPN. The winner is decided by a selection committee comprised of sportswriters and former players.

The award is a member of the National College Football Awards Association, which encompasses some of the sport's most prestigious awards like the Heisman Trophy, Chuck Bednarik Award and the Maxwell Award.

Utah defensive end John Henry Daley was recently nominated as a semifinalist for the Chuck Bednarik Award, college football's de facto defensive player of the year award. The redshirt sophomore was tied for No. 6 in the country with 9.5 sacks and tied for No. 8 with 14.0 tackles for loss on the season heading into Week 12.

John Mackey Semifinalists

Player	School
Michael Trigg	Baylor
Eli Stowers	Vanderbilt
Tanner Koziol	Houston
Justin Joly	NC State
Dae'Quan Wright	Ole Miss
Kenyon Sadiq	Oregon
Dallen Bentley	Utah
Benjamin Brahmer	Iowa State

𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟱 𝗠𝗮𝗰𝗸𝗲𝘆 𝗔𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗱 𝑺𝒆𝒎𝒊𝒇𝒊𝒏𝒂𝒍𝒊𝒔𝒕

Bentley is 1 of 8 semifinalists for the John Mackey Award. This award is presented annually to the best Tight End in college football. #GoUtes | @dallenbentley pic.twitter.com/7tD8nlWkzF

— Utah Football (@Utah_Football) November 11, 2025