Utah linebacker Lander Barton was a huge recruiting win for coach Kyle Whittingham and his staff out of the 2022 recruiting class.

Yes, Barton was an in-state kid. And, yes, Barton is a Utah legacy. But when you come out of high school with the pedigree Barton had, everyone is hoping to seal a signature. The Brighton product was a top-100 recruit in the industry-generated 247 Composite. Michigan and Texas hosted him on official visits.

But the Utes won.

Whittingham said at the time the 2022 class was an indicator of what the school had been building for all these years. It was an elite class, a historic class.

And it was followed up with an even better one. The 2023 cycle was a top-25 class nationally. It features former Stanford captain Levani Damuni.

He and Barton will join Karene Reid in the starting 11, giving Utah a mix of everything — size, speed, youth, experience, coverage, playmaking. Barton was good in run support. Damuni was solid in coverage. Reid made things happen when rushing the passer.

“It’s been crazy. The talent is more than it’s ever been,” Reid said this week. “That’s forced us to all play at a high level every single day. We’re trying to push each other, and we’re also trying to find a spot on the field.”

Guys like Justin Medlock are pushing. There will be good linebackers who can’t get on the field this fall.

“We’re definitely deep,” said Damuni. “I feel great about all the positions on defense. You can look at all the positions and see that we’ve got players one, two, three-deep. Great depth on this team.”

Damuni said his decision came down to Utah’s pedigree.

“At the end of the day, I just wanted to go to a great school that had a great tradition of defense, where I would fit well into the scheme and play in back of a great defensive line,” he said. “All of that matched up at Utah.”

Reid says the former Stanford ‘backer has brought physicality to the group and a veteran presence.

Those two can do what they do and free up Barton to do what he does. Utah should have a potentially dominant crew at the second level.

“Lander is going to be even more impactful than he was last year,” Whittingham said earlier in camp. “He is 15 or 20 pounds heavier than he was and hasn’t lost a step. He is big, physical, and tough. We expect that he is going to be a very good player for us again, even better than last year.”

Probably safe to apply that sentiment across the board. Whittingham opened up camp feeling like the defense was going to be another typical, rugged Utah defense. The group certainly has the horses.