Recent recruits have paid off for Utes, BYU, USU

It's been said many times, many ways. Recruiting is far from being an exact science.

However, that doesn't stop college football coaches from across the country from proclaiming National Letter of Intent Day a rousing success each year.

Getting the players they want is one thing. Using the guys who sign on the dotted line is quite another. Some take a couple of years to develop, while others make the transition quickly.

In their first three seasons as head coaches, Utah's Kyle Whittingham, BYU's Bronco Mendenhall and Utah State's Brent Guy have each put new or fairly new recruits into prominent positions.

And it's paid off.

Louie Sakoda, who joined the program as a preferred walk-on, was thrown right into the mix as Utah's punter. After adding placekicking to his duties as a sophomore, he went on to earn back-to-back Mountain West Conference Special Teams Player of the Year awards.

At BYU, running back Harvey Unga was named the league's top freshman in 2007 after rushing for 1,227 yards and 13 touchdowns.

In 2006, USU linebacker Paul Igboeli garnered WAC Freshman of the Year accolades for the Aggies after averaging 8.1 tackles in league games.

Newcomers, obviously, can make an impact.

"No question," Whittingham said in explaining Utah's philosophy. "The best players play. That's regardless of how long you've been in the program and whatever other factors are involved. The thing that we try to do is put the best 22 players out there."

Speed and athleticism are the name of the game.

"Those are the overriding qualities that we look for in recruits. We try to find the raw material. We have a good idea when we recruit the players where they're going to fit into the scheme," Whittingham said. "But we tend to be flexible with that if we feel a kid is going to help us out at a different position. We're not averse to position changes. Even if a guy has no background at a certain position, if we feel he's going to succeed there or has a chance to succeed there, we'll make that move."

There are two sides, he explained, to that approach when it comes to recruiting. Sometimes it's easier to attract a junior college or high-profile prep star to fill a vacancy at a specific position that is depleted.

Having a chance to step in and play right away, though, is an opportunity given to every Utah recruit.