Utah's Sione Vaki On Track To Offensive Focus For Utes After Breakout Showings

The two-way stud for Utah may be trending towards focusing on one position

Utah's football team has had injuries up and down the roster all year, and when they lost depth at the running back spot recently they turned to a defensive standout for some help.

Former three-star safety Sione Vaki, who is a leader on the Utes' defense, was someone they called upon ahead of the Cal game, opting to see if he could provide a boost. Vaki did just that, as he accumulated 15 carries for 158 yards and two scores, which paired perfectly with Ja'Quinden Jackson who had 94 yards of his own and a score.

Vaki continued his offensive success against No. 18 USC this past weekend as he rushed for 68 yards on 7.6 yards per carry, while adding a team-high five catches for 149 yards and a team-high two touchdowns on the day. When initially asked about his role on offense, head coach Kyle Whittingham made it known that Vaki was still a defensive player helping out on offense.

However, after his latest outburst, it appears that Vaki has performed too much to not be considered an offensive play who can also be a stud safety. Whittingham himself even believes it is a likely outcome that Vaki turns into more of an offensive player as he explained to KSL Sports.

“It seems to be trending in that direction. We’ll see where it ends up,” Whittingham said. “The first thing we have to do is make sure we don’t overload him- make his workload too heavy and too much to handle. There is also a mental aspect to it too, it’s not just physical. The safety position here is a lot of adjustments. They do all of the adjustments and coverage calls. They run the show back there. There is a lot at play mentally with that. It’s analytically proven the impact of offense is greater than the impact of defense. We’re going to continue to have him be a big part of the offense and see how much he can handle.”

In just two games, Vaki has possibly proven to be the most consistent weapon for the Utes on offense, and should be pivotal down this next stretch that will pit them against two top 10 teams in the next three weeks.