Utah's offense got an instant boost with the signing of Jake Bentley, a graduate transfer quarterback from South Carolina, who brings three years of starting experience with him. With the graduation of Tyler Huntley, Utah's quarterback position will be an open competition in spring ball, as Bentley, Cam Rising, Jason Shelley, and Drew Lisk battle it out to see who will lead the Utah offense in 2020.

Bentley, who was originally a four-star prospect out of Opelika H.S. in Opelika, AL, signed with the Gamecocks in 2016 and won the starting job as a true freshman. He started 32 games for South Carolina in his career, before his senior year was cut short by an injury in the first game of the 2019 season. Bentley went 19-13 as a starter, and accumulated 7527 yards, while throwing for 55 touchdowns and 32 interceptions. Bentley is more of a pure pocket passer than Utah's starting quarterbacks have been during most of their time in the Pac-12 and only recorded 143 net rushing yards in his time with South Carolina. He did, however, find the end zone eight times on the ground.

EVALUATION

Transfers that choose Utah seem to find immediate success, and Mr. Bentley who has thrown for over 7,500 yards and 55 TDs in the SEC may just continue that success for the UTES! Stepping into a great situation with Huntley graduating and with some young weapons at his disposal, whoever is under center will reap the benefits. A seasoned veteran with BIG TIME game experience is hard to come by - Jake Bentley may be just what the doctor ordered.

-Anthony White, Utah defensive back, 2000-03

WHAT THIS SIGNING MEANS

While Utah would have been able to find a quality starting quarterback between Shelley, Rising, and Lisk, adding Bentley to the mix means more competition, and having a talented, experienced quarterback on the roster can only be a good thing as the Utes try to replace the production that Huntley gave them in 2019.

Bentley has a big arm and good deep ball accuracy that could be valuable with the big play threats that Utah has, such as Bryan Thompson, Britain Covey, Jaylen Dixon, and Brant Kuithe. Though he's far from assured to win the starting job, Bentley's addition will be a good thing for Utah, and gives them experience and poise at the position, whether he's starting or providing depth.

FORMER UTE PLAYER COMPARISON: Tommy Grady