Countdown to Kickoff: No. 35 Isaac Vaha
With five weeks left until the University of Utah kicks off the season, today brings us to no. 35, true freshman Isaac Vaha. Vaha is a fascinating athlete, listed at 6-foot-6 and 272 pounds. He only played two seasons of football down in Pleasant Grove, UT, but he was a highly rated recruit for the 2021 class.
Vaha played on both sides of the ball in high school, bringing in 17 receptions for 269 yards and two touchdowns, while also recording 19 tackles (3.0 TFL, 4.0 sacks) and one pass defended his senior year. A nod to his athleticism, Isaac was also a two-time all-state, all-region, and all-valley basketball player, earning team MVP twice.
UteNation take
Vaha was an intriguing prospect coming out of high school, and he is still a fascinating prospect. His size and athleticism should make him a matchup nightmare in a number of positions. He is currently slotted at tight end, however, he is no longer the 230 pounds he was out of high school. The additional 40 pounds leads us to wonder if he will need to lose some weight to develop into a beast of a tight end, or switch positions to take advantage of his size and quickness.
In high school, Vaha showed versatility to create matchup problems all over the field. He can make people miss in the open field, shows good hands when receiving the ball, and he is physical at the point of attack when latching onto defenders at the line of scrimmage while finishing off blocks—making him also a decent run blocker. Route running will need to develop, as he is very raw, but he does a good job on the routes that allow him to put his foot in the ground and get vertical. Learning from Brant Kuithe, Cole Fotheringham, and Dalton Kincaid could unlock Vaha's potential at the position and develop the depth for years to come.
At the same time, now listed at 272 pounds, the defense is sure to try and get they’re hands on his size and athleticism. Will that happen? Stay tuned…
Alex remembers Vaha’s recruitment
A three-star prospect rated 5.7 and ranked the no. 30 overall tight end for 2021, Vaha was one of the most highly sought-after prospects from the state, holding offers from over 20 schools. Some of the names on that list included Oregon, Arizona State, Cal, Penn State, Washington, and Wisconsin. Ultimately however, he was a longtime Utah lean and his commitment on Instagram Live never really seemed in doubt.