Only 9 days until football. It's unbelievable that it's so close! I'll finally continue with the defensive position reviews now by doing the defensive line.
There is quite a bit of youth on the defensive line, but the two-deep at every position is a familiar face. In the middle we'll see James Aiono/Dave Kruger and Star Lotulelei. Behind Lotulelei is Tevita Finau and LT Tuipulotu. Tuipulotu hasn't yet played for the Utes but was on the team the last two years.
Dave Kruger has a lot of experience as he has played in every game the last two years for Utah. Last year he had 6 solo tackles and assisted on 21 others. Tied with him at the tackle position is James Aiono, who played in 10 games last year (was hurt for Air Force, TCU, and Notre Dame). Through the first 5 games of the season, he had 4 tackles and 4 assisted tackles. He is a senior but has only played one year with Utah. He has come a long way and is currently tied with Kruger.
Star Lotulelei has received a lot of praise this offseason and has solidified his starting position at nose tackle. He played in every game last year and came away 7 solo tackles and 14 assisted tackles. I honestly don't remember him last year but the coaches are pretty high on his for this season and I'm buying into it for some reason. Tied for the backup nose tackle role are Tevita Finau and LT Tuipulotu. Tuipulotu has not yet played for Utah, but Finau played in the final 8 regular season games last year. He didn't play very much, though, and only had 3 solo tackles and 2 assisted tackles. At 6'4", 283 lbs Finau will have to use his height and speed to make a difference. Because of his height and lower weight, I expect him to end up playing on the end, where is currently listed as the backup at right end.
On the ends the starters will be Joe Kruger and Derrick Shelby. Shelby seems to be a lock for the right end starting spot. He has played in 34 games over the past 3 seasons for the Utes and was extremely good last year. In 12 games, he had 19 solo tackles and 20 assisted tackles. Of those 19 solo tackles, 6 were for loss for a total of 34 yards. He also had 2 sacks. In addition, he forced 3 fumbles and defended 3 passes. He is one player I always love to see on the field, as he makes a lot of plays.
Joe Kruger also seems to be a lock for starter on the left end, but Nai Fotu has returned to the team and is being thrown into the mix. Fotu played in every game in the 2007-2009 seasons, but hasn't played since the 2009 Poinsettia Bowl. When he played, he was very good. Even with how good he was, it might be hard to knock Kruger out of the starting spot. Younger brother to Paul and Dave, Joe is said to be the best of the three and is a huge guy at 6'7", 270 lbs. Joe played in all 13 games last year, but didn't make much of an impact. I think he has a bright future at Utah and will have a big year.
The defensive line is deep and guys can be moved around to play a number of positions. At the end of spring a couple guys were listed at end and tackle, and Finau is still listed as that. I think we'll see a lot of subbing in and out on the line and a lot of different looks depending on who the opponent is. Hopefully they'll be able to stay fresh and get some pressure on the great quarterbacks in the Pac-12. I think they'll be able to, and there are a number of future NFL players here.
Grade: A-
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