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SALT LAKE CITY — The bar was set high for Utah’s Darren Carrington entering the season, as the former Oregon Duck and second-team all Pac-12 wideout was billed to be one of several impact players for the Utes’ new-look offense from the moment he announced his decision to transfer to Utah in late July.
Suffice it to say that, so far, he’s been better than advertised.
When the season began in late August, Carrington wasted little time in announcing himself on the field as he racked up 127 yards on 10 catches and added a touchdown in his debut against North Dakota. Since, he’s posted consecutive strong performances against Brigham Young University and San Jose State in which he combined for 16 catches, 282 yards and three touchdowns.
Taken together, those numbers have put him in rarefied air. At present, he leads the country in catches over 10 yards (21), and according to sports-reference.com’s play index (whose receiving database dates to the 2000 season), Carrington is the first Utah receiver to have at least 400 yards receiving in the first three games.
The closest precedent? According to sports-reference.com, the next best three-game start by a Utes receiver came in 2000, when Cliff Russell amassed 317 yards on 21 receptions to go along with a pair of touchdowns. Just below Russell was Tim Patrick’s 2016 season, wherein he caught 14 balls for 285 yards and four of his five touchdowns on the season.
When asked about the specific reasons for his increased production last week, Carrington spoke about his comfort level at Utah and gave credit to his coaches, mentioning multiple members on Utah’s staff as sources of empowerment.
“I would say, I mean, I don't know about the coaching staff over there (at Oregon) right now but the old coaching staff compared to where I'm at right now, I just know coach (Troy) Taylor put so much confidence in me,” Carrington said. “Like everything he says to me is a positive, even if it's negative. I just take it and I'm on to the next thing. Just listen to him and all the trust he and coach (Kyle Whittingham) and coach Guy (Holliday) have in me. I mean, I just go out there and make plays.
"I don't even think about making a mistake or if they're going to yell at me, so that's great to have your coach just being so confident where you could just play, just go out there and let it hang.”
In his college career, Carrington has been a model of efficiency. The 6-foot-2, 205-pound senior was one of the best big-play receivers in the country in each of his first two seasons at Oregon, averaging 19 yards per reception as something of a secondary and tertiary option in the receiving corps.
The exception came last season, when Carrington’s yards per reception fell to 14.1 amid a disappointing campaign that saw the Ducks swap quarterbacks en route to a 4-8 finish, the school’s worst since 1991.
Still, Carrington has often shined in big moments if not always in the box score, as he famously hauled in the game-winning touchdown — with his toes narrowly avoiding the sideline —against Utah last season.
This year, Carrington says he is enjoying football again, crediting his renewed enthusiasm to the infrastructure in place at Utah.
“I think I'm just out there playing this year” Carrington said. “There's just — I feel like I'm back in high school here at Utah. I mean, high school was some of my best days where I was just out there having fun and that's kind of what it is now. I mean, it is always a business and you just got to be with your coaches. But I mean, when someone takes the fun out of the game it's terrible.
"Back over here I feel like I got my mojo back. I love the game. I'm just happy to be out there.”
