It’s time we talk about the budding gem that the University of Utah received last year from BYU, no. 90 Devin Kaufusi. When it comes to the Kaufusi family, dominance runs through their blood when they’re on the football field. That’s what’s all the more interesting when Utah received a commitment from Devin in 2020, who was yet to break out.

Heading into his junior year, he hadn’t really sniffed success at the NCAA level. All that had changed however, and that success is starting to come from an obvious level up from where he used to play.

This isn’t a slight on BYU. Kalani Sitake is a bright mind who can see talent and translate it elsewhere. The thing is, he’s only one man. The Utah defensive staff has a special eye for that among all position coaches. If you want to battle me on it, the results speak for themselves.

Once Devin transferred to Utah, he immediately began putting on weight. Initially a 6-foot-7 270 defensive end, he’s now 6-foot-7 and pushing 300 pounds as a defensive tackle.

While the defensive tackle position at Utah is as deep as anyone had come to expect from a Whittingham coached team, Kaufusi is about to become an absolute nightmare for Pac-12 offenses.

UteNation take

If he somehow doesn’t start, that’s not a bad thing for Utah. It should be a frightening thing for their opponents. After putting the 40+ excess pounds, Kaufusi has barely lost any athleticism, in fact his athleticism plays better to his current size.

At this point in time, unless Tennessee Pututau regresses, we’re looking at a battle for the other tackle spot between Hauati Pututau, Viane Moala, and Kaufusi. As mentioned above, this is likely going to be a position that has a heavy rotation, not because they have to but because they can. That is, unless someone steps up and completely rises above the rest. Kaufusi is some capable of that, thanks to Utah’s keen eye for position changes, as well as their elite player development.

Alex remembers Kaufusi’s recruitment

Kaufusi was a lightly-recruited 6-foot-6 outside linebacker who committed to BYU’s 2015 class in 2013. I’ll be completely honest—no offense, Devin—when he announced he was transferring, I reached out to my contacts and assumed with his previous production that it was as a preferred walkon. However, Utah offered a scholarship by gambling on the Kaufusi genes and their own well-respected scouting and it looks to have paid off.