We're going around the state of Utah piecing together a theoretical 2016 recruiting class for University of Utah men's track. Needless to say, because Utah doesn't have a men's team, they're missing out on some very high quality, home grown athletes. In our previous edition,
we filled our first recruiting slot with Provo's Chase Heiner, a record breaking sprinter. For this edition of Fantasy Track 2016, we're going to move on to some of the field events. The state of Utah has produced some of the best high school field event athletes in the nation in 2015. Among those athletes are thrower Andre James of Herriman High School and high jumper Tregan Deveraux of Orem High School.
ANDRE JAMES - Shot Put/Discus
As a junior, Andre took first in the shot put at the Utah state meet, throwing 58'-9", but 2015 proved to be Andre's best throwing year. At the state meet as a senior, he won the 5A state title in the shot-put with a throw of 59'-3" and earlier in the season, he became the only high school shot putter in the state to eclipse the 60 foot mark, tossing 60'-1". He eventually ended the outdoor season by tossing a personal best 61"-9". After capturing a state title in the shot put, Andre moved on to the discus where he won another state title with a throw of 171'-2", eclipsing his previous PR by almost 5 feet!
He also made quite an impression on the football field this past season. ESPN ranked him as the 14th best offensive tackle recruit in the country (165th overall). Andre has chosen to take his talents to PAC-12 rival UCLA. At UCLA, he will both play football and throw shot put for the Bruins. If UCLA can attract top level recruits like this because they offer both football and track to athletes, Utah should be taking the hint. Utah beat UCLA last season and it turned out to be one of the best games in the entire conference for the 2014 season. Now why would a top 200 recruit not choose the winning PAC-12 school that sits in his own backyard? Because at UCLA he can compete in both sports. Utah couldn't present him with that option.
TREGAN DEVERAUX - High Jump
Tregan is another one of those athletes that you will see blow up once he get's to the collegiate level. He won the 4A state high jump title, clearing 6'-8". Earlier in the year at an April meet at American Fork High School, Tregan hit one of the best mark of any high jumper in the state with a jump of 6'-10", 3 inches higher than the next closest competitor. If you don't know high jumping, trust me, 3 inches is quite a lot.
Now you may be asking yourself, why would I choose a high jumper that cleared 6'-10" when Brett
Matheson of Lone Peak High School cleared 6'-11"? The reason is because Tregan, aside from being the best high jumper in the state, he's also one of the best long jumpers. He cleared 21'-3" at a meet at Timpanogos High School early in the outdoor season, which would have given him 2nd place at the state meet. His dual abilities in both the high jump and long jump caused him to split time between the two at the high school level. Once he gets to college and starts focussing on high jump, it is entirely possible for him to clear 7 feet in his freshman year. Weber State got a good one when they signed him. Who knows what could have been had he been presented with the option of signing with the Utes.
Stay tuned in for out next edition of Fantasy Track '16!
"I'm a graduate of the University of Utah and self proclaimed 'biggest track fan in the state of Utah.' Since Utah is an Olympic proud state, it seems odd that Utah doesn't fully support the marquee sport of the Olympics. Let's do something about it!"
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