The University of Utah landed a promising prospect on Monday with the addition of linebacker Mason Tufaga. The standout from St. Louis HS in Hawaii is the son of former Ute Wes Tufaga. His father’s recruiting class is one that former Ute coach Ron McBride largely credits for turning the tide between Utah and BYU when it came to Polynesian recruiting.

Both Lewis Powell and Colton Swan were Tufaga’s lead recruiters.

Mason’s final three came down to Utah, Oregon, and Nebraska. He had offers from eight Pac-12 schools and one SEC program. The three-star no. 19 rated inside linebacker announced his decision with a Twitter video.

What Utah is getting

The Utes have landed a tough and instinctual linebacker in Tufaga who certainly projects best as an inside linebacker at 6-1 210 pounds. He does a terrific job of having no false steps when reading the flow of the play then immediately reacting to find the football. Tufaga also brings a solid level of athletic ability to the linebacker position and does a nice job of keeping his pad level low at the point of contact.

Another intriguing quality that Tufaga brings to his game is his patience at the linebacker position. He shows how instinctual he truly is by taking his read step and watching the flow in which the play is going. With the combination of solid athletic ability, physicality, and discipline at the linebacker position, expect Tufaga’s name to be called in Rice-Eccles stadium sooner than later for the Utes.

What this means for the class

Tufaga is the third linebacker commit for the Utes’ 2021 class and ninth overall. Loading up at the backer position was a crucial need for Utah in this class and they’ve accomplished just that. Any other additions to this position group will be because a player is just too good to say no to, like four-star Ethan Calvert.