This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2014, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Jacoby Hale tore his ACL and Gionni Paul broke his foot in spring. A wrist injury has sidelined Jason Whittingham.
And now you can add sophomore Uaea Masina to the list of hard-luck Utah linebackers this season.
Head coach Kyle Whittingham said Wednesday that Masina, who did not appear in the last three games, will miss the remainder of the season with an arm injury.
Utah will pursue a medical redshirt for Masina.
A source told The Tribune after Whittingham's injury against Fresno State that he was expected back for the final few games of the season. Last week, Hale was dressed and practicing, and Whittingham said he was "progressing."
Paul, of course, returned against Michigan and has formed an effective tandem with fellow junior Jared Norris. The former Miami Hurricane has 23 tackles, two interceptions and a fumble recovery in just three games.
Utah's preference when not in a nickel formation has been to move senior defensive end Nate Orchard to outside linebacker. Of the backups to Norris and Paul, sophomore Marcus Sanders-Williams has played the most, recording seven tackles.
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Gustin keeping an eye on Utah • Salem Hills quarterback/linebacker Porter Gustin has told The Tribune that he is still considering Utah.
According to MaxPreps, Gustin has passed for 1,642 yards, 17 touchdowns and just four interceptions. He's carried 50 times for 548 yards and four touchdowns. He's caught a 17-yard touchdown pass. He's recorded 87 tackles, 18 for a loss, and seven sacks.
So you can see why recruiting services might think the 6'5, 237-pound Skyhawk — who is also a baseball and track star — might make a decent football player. Both Scout and Rivals rate him as four stars, and in May he told The Tribune he had 34 Division I offers.
Gustin said he likes Whittingham and what he's seen from the Utes lately.
(Sidenote: It's presumably tough to recruit guys when you can't promise you'll be around next year. At 4-1 and ranked No. 24, Utah's coaches now look a whole lot safer.)
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Another honor for Orchard • Utah's senior captain — singled out by Whittingham recently as the leader among his leaders — was awarded the Bronco Nagurski National Defensive Player of the Week honor after tying Utah's school record with four sacks in Utah's upset of UCLA.
Orchard leads the nation with 8.5 sacks overall and was also named Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Week on Monday.
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— Matthew Piper
Twitter: @matthew_piper