How Utah became 'somewhere I can see myself thriving at' for Utes commit Shelton Fuller

SALT LAKE CITY — In college football recruiting, sometimes things happen that aren't expected.

For three-star safety Shelton Fuller, that was exactly the case.

On April 8, Utah extended an offer to Fuller, who plays at Del Valle High in El Paso, Texas. Before then, Utah was nothing more than another state in the country to him — one he never thought he'd go to, let alone commit to a school in the state.

"I didn't really pay any attention to Utah because they were in Utah. I had never been there before. I was like, 'I don't know about this place,'" Fuller said. "We went out there, I saw the city, met all the staff, met all the players, and I was like, 'Man, this is somewhere I can see myself thriving at.'"

After taking an official visit to Utah on June 1, he committed to the Utes exactly one month later. But it was never a guarantee.

Along with Utah, Fuller took official visits to Oregon State, Texas Tech, and, ironically, BYU. Getting Fuller out of Texas was a feat in and of itself, but his decision ultimately came down to Utah and Oregon State.

The Beavers earned his first official visit trip, and the visit surpassed his expectations. He entertained committing to Oregon State, but Fuller wanted to take the trip to Utah to see what the Utes had to offer first.

His relationship with defensive coordinator Morgan Scalley made the trip to Utah intriguing to Fuller.

"He came out to El Paso to see me and my dad, talk with us," Fuller said. "I went out there and met more of the staff. You can tell they've been working together for a long time."

But a takeaway from his visit that he didn't expect was his enjoyment being in Salt Lake City. Similar to Utah itself, Fuller didn't know much about the city before, or even while, Utah was recruiting him. It took him seeing the city in person for him to realize how much he could see himself being there.

"The biggest thing that caught my eye was Salt Lake," Fuller said. "Coming from Texas, before having the offer, Utah was a random school to me. You want to pick a place where you can do the best at football, but you also have to live there, so I was like, 'I don't know if I can live here just being in Utah.' But just going to Salt Lake I was like, this is a good city."

Overall, the Utes did what they had to do while Fuller was in town for his official visit. They rolled out the red carpet and it was enough to match his trip to Corvallis — if not exceeded it.

From there, it was decision time — and it was anything but an easy decision.

"I was stressing. … I was losing my mind." Fuller said. "If Utah was 100%, Oregon State was 98%."

When weighing the pros and cons, Fuller was confident that football at both schools would be a good fit for him, and that both programs coul help him achieve his goals. But with the thought of being a student-athlete, the academic side of things ended up being the tiebreaker.

"It had nothing to do with football," Fuller said. "It ultimately came down to what school, what major — I want to go into the medical field — and Utah, they're known for their hospital."

Fuller is one of two Utah commitments from Texas; Utah also secured the commitment from three-star cornerback Jason Stokes Jr. on June 26.

Of Utah's 16 members of its current 2025 recruiting class, 14 are from out of state. In the effort for the Utes staff to recruit outside the region, Fuller's recruitment is a testament to the success they've had over the years.

Before Fuller gets to campus, he looks to thrive in his senior season at Del Valle High. Last season, the Conquistadores finished with a 9-2 record, in which they fell in the first round of the 5A Division 1 state playoffs.

This season, while leading his team to a potential playoff run, he hopes to show Utah fans his energy and personality on the field before he gets to campus.

"I've got a good personality. I'm really energetic, I like to have fun, I'm really outgoing," Fuller said. "After I make a play, I'm screaming, doing something."

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