Seattle • When one Utah County wideout hauled in a touchdown, the other felt the need to follow suit.
Probably a byproduct of the Timpview-Provo dynamic, sure, but Samson Nacua admitted this week that seeing Ty Jones and his lengthy 6-foot-4 frame only added to his motivation.
“Me and him had a little rivalry back in high school,” Nacua said this week.
Nacua, a redshirt freshman receiver at Utah, and Jones, a freshman wideout at Washington reunited on the turf inside Husky Stadium Saturday evening as the Utes took on the No. 16 Huskies in their final Pac-12 road game of 2017. Jones is a one-time Utah commit who eventually chose the purple and gold over the crimson red.
Chris Detrick | The Salt Lake Tribune Provo wide receiver Ty Jones poses for a portrait Friday December 9, 2016.
“The kid was a good athlete down in Provo,” Nacua said. “I was expecting him to go to a good college. He made his decision, and I hear he’s doing pretty good.”
Jones’ role in the Washington offense is progressing as injuries have hit the Huskies this year. Down star receiver Chico McClatcher for the season, the freshman from Provo is one of many young playmakers asked to rise to the occasion. As a senior with the Bulldogs, Jones caught 63 passes for 1,523 yards and 20 touchdowns. He joined the Huskies in March.
In his weekly press conference this week, Washington coach Chris Petersen singled out the Utahn’s development in a short amount of time.
“Ty Jones works his tail off in practice,” Petersen said. “You know good days are ahead for him.”
Carrington, Agasiva, Tauteoli in uniform
Leading wideout Darren Carrington II and guard Jordan Agasiva returned against the Huskies. Carrington, who has 830 yards and six touchdowns in 2017, missed last week’s game due to a lower leg injury suffered in the win over UCLA on November 3. Agasiva returned to the offensive line after missing the last three games due to a lower leg injury suffered in the loss to Arizona State on October 22.
Senior linebacker Sunia Tauteoli, who missed last week’s game against Washington State, was also in uniform. Tauteoli was second on the team in total tackles with 58 entering Saturday’s game.
Defense thinned once more
Earlier in the week, Utah coach Kyle Whittingham estimated as many as six injured players who would be game-time decisions against the Huskies.
For a second straight week, the Utes were without starting safety Chase Hansen, who ranked fourth on the team with 45 total tackles. Hansen made the trip to Seattle, but was unable to play. Also absent were defensive end Kylie Fitts and cornerback Casey Hughes, both of whom left last week’s loss to Washington State due to injuries. Neither made the trip.
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