Utah has not had a wide receiver finish among the Pac-12’s top 10 in receiving yardage any season since Darren Carrington II left town.

In 2017, Carrington had 980 yards on 70 receptions to rank fourth in the league. He and Dres Anderson (2013) are the only receivers to finish top 10 in yardage during Utah’s time in the Pac-12. Of course, Utah has had some of the best receiving tight ends in the country in recent years in Dalton Kincaid and Brant Kuithe, but the production at receiver has been a topic of interest. Concern?

Devaughn Vele was said to have taken a major step last offseason. He had 55 receptions for 695 yards and five scores last year. That was the best season by a Utah receiver since Carrington. And separation in crucial contests was still a question.

Utah needs more from its receivers. That’s been the case for multiple years now.

Vele returns in 2023, as does Money Parks. The 2023 signing class also brought Mikey Matthews into the program — a 4-star recruit and an Under Armour All-America Game selection.

But as spring ball wraps up, both head coach Kyle Whittingham and offensive coordinator Andy Ludwig have said in recent days they need to see more from the wideouts on the roster.

Matthews and Daidren Zipperer are the freshman newcomers this offseason. (Zipperer is not yet on campus.) Emery Simmons committed to transfer from Indiana to Utah after catching 37 balls for 408 yards last fall. He’ll arrive later this year as well.

In the interim, it sounds as if the Utes are going to take a long, hard look at the receiver landscape in the portal. The spring window is currently open until April 30; as spring games wrap up around the country, the receiver market could get a little more robust between now and the end of the month.

This figures to be where new receiver coach Alvis Whitted can put his imprint on the team in Year 1. Whitted was hired in late January, at which point Matthews and Zipperer had already signed with the program. The 6-foot-1, 188-pound Simmons committed to Utah days after Whitted was announced as the team’s new wideout coach.

What kind of receiver type does Whitted prioritize in the portal?

With a star quarterback in place in Cameron Rising, a clear need, and a pair of Pac-12 championship rings to flash on the trail, Utah has an attractive pitch to make to whichever wideout it chooses to target.