Local Recruits at The Opening

There are four prospects who play high school football in the state of Utah that are competing at The Opening in Beaverton, Ore. at Nike headquarters. Below is what our colleague Richard Johnson of SBNation said about the event:

This will be the seventh year of the competition, and it’s technically a few different events rolled into one. In order to score an invite, recruits must qualify by attending and performing well in one of the numerous regional Nike recruiting camps throughout the spring. The component containing the players’ testing numbers is now done in an app.

In total, 166 players made the cut in 2017 and get to go to Nike’s massive Beaverton, Ore. campus with expenses paid by the apparel giant. They’ll receive instruction and guidance from an experienced group of trainers.

The four Beehive State players in Oregon are Lehi (Utah) Lehi three-star quarterback Cammon Cooper, Salt Lake City (Utah) Olympus four-star defensive end Cameron Latu, Saint George (Utah) Desert Hills four-star offensive tackle Penei Sewell, and Salt Lake City (Utah) East four-star offensive guard Sam Taimani.

Cooper is committed to Washington State. He has not been recruited by Utah because the Utes are all-in on their commit San Marcos (Calif.) Mission Hills four-star quarterback Jack Tuttle, who was excellent at The Opening day one. Cooper is a very good quarterback, but I think Tuttle is a better fit for the Utah offense and the better passer overall, while Cooper is a perfect fit for WSU. He has a quick release and is accurate on short and intermediate throws but can struggle on deep throws.

Latu is uncommitted and is a player Utah is really targeting. The No. 2 player in the state of Utah, Latu released a top five of Alabama, Nebraska, USC, Utah, and Washington. Latu is the kind of defensive end who could shine in Utah’s defensive scheme. He is explosive off the edge. Latu was formerly committed to BYU before opening things up and subsequently blew up as a recruit. He could make a decision this summer. Tuttle is apparently in his ear recruiting him to Utah.

Sewell is the top recruit in the Beehive State. He has offers from all over the country with double-digit Power Five offers, including Alabama, Arizona State, Arkansas, Cal, Florida, Michigan, Mississippi State, Nebraska, Notre Dame, Oklahoma, Ole Miss, Oregon State, Tennessee, UCLA, USC, Utah, Washington, and Washington State among others. He has not released any top lists of schools. Sewell is huge at 6’5” nearly 350 pounds. With his huge size, Sewell mauls defenders and has the nastiness that Utah loves in their offensive linemen.

Taimani is the best player on the loaded East offensive line. His top seven is Alabama, Notre Dame, Oregon, Tennessee, UCLA, Utah, and Washington. He is not huge at 6’2” 280, but he has no trouble pancaking defenders. He is a quick guard who can get up field to run block for the East option attack. Taimani is one of three four-star offensive linemen in Utah in the 2018 class along with Sewell and teammate Sione Angilau Jr.