Ute Nation Countdown to Kickoff: Britain Covey

There are 18 days left until kickoff against BYU, and the Utes are entering their final week of fall camp, starting tomorrow. After that, they will go into game-practice mode as they begin their final preparations to extend their winning streak against their rival down south to nine straight games. For several players on Utah's roster, the return to Provo will be a homecoming, including one of the most electrifying playmakers to have set foot on the field at Rice-Eccles Stadium in all of Utah football's history: wide receiver Britain Covey.

In both years that Covey has suited up for the Utes so far, he has led the team in receptions and yardage (43/519 in 2015, 60/637 in 2018), despite being a true freshman his first year and being fresh off a mission in his second. Covey has proven to be dangerous when given even just a little bit of space, and his elite agility has proven valuable both as a receiver and a return man.

Entering his third year, Covey will again be counted on as a guy who can get open quickly, catch everything thrown his way, and pick up yards after the catch. However, with the emergence of Jaylen Dixon and some of the other receivers near the end of last season, perhaps he won't have to shoulder as much of a load during his junior season.

Andrew Fronce's take

Covey has been everything the coaches hoped he would be and more, ever since they were the only P5 school to offer him a scholarship when he came out of high school in 2015. Despite being one of the smallest players on the team, Covey plays with a toughness that is nearly unrivaled. Just take last season as an example, where he led the team in catches and yards despite playing injured nearly the entire year—and that’s not an exaggeration, Covey is tough as nails.

He isn't the type of receiver that will beat you over the top too often, but he is the type that can take a three yard slant, make multiple defenders miss, and take it on the run for a touchdown. He's also one of the smartest players on the team and knows how to get the advantage over his opponent using his head, as well as his physical ability. Even with his small stature, Covey has already attracted NFL scouts' attention as one of the better slot receiver prospects in the country, and if he continues to produce as he has in previous years, he could have an NFL future ahead of him.

Alex remembers Covey's recruitment

This is a fun one—while Covey committed to the Utes right before signing day in 2015, the legacy-Cougar had been a long-time Ute lean, that was just being respectful and saying good things about BYU.

Towards the start of the summer of 2015, I had a conversation with him, in which he said it would take a miracle from other schools, for him to not sign with Utah. His family—full of Cougars, at the time—also preferred the Utes. Therefore, it didn’t matter when a BYU offer was going to come—the Utes offense, the Pac-12, and his high school success at Rice-Eccles Stadium, all played a factor. Among all of his reasons, the one that could become an eye-opener for so many of the top LDS athletes, Covey—who is a devout member of the LDS Church—said he could get the same religious experience at the school that Brigham Young, once founded.

Anyone that tells you that BYU screwed up in his recruiting process, is just flat out wrong.