A 'new culture' at Utah has Landen King optimistic of increased role within offense

SALT LAKE CITY — Nobody would have blamed Utah tight end Landen King if he transferred after last season.

After a promising first season with the Utes — a season in which he had 166 yards and three touchdowns on 14 catches — following a move from Auburn, King saw a significantly diminished role a year later as Utah sputtered on offense.

As Utah's offense struggled to move the ball at a consistent rate, King was rarely even considered as a target for his junior campaign.

In fact, King's first catch of the season came in Game 10 against Colorado — a 21-yard reception — before finishing out a down season with 54 yards and one touchdown on three catches.

In the new age of collegiate sports, a transfer out of Utah was seemingly in the cards.

Not for King.

The promising talent elected to stay with the Utes for another season, with hopes that a rebound would be in order. It helped, too, that he'd be viewed as a top returning target for transfer quarterback Devon Dampier to have at his disposal in a new offense.

But for King, he was sold on Utah as a program. "Can't leave now, come on now," he joked Tuesday.

In return, Utah returns an up-and-coming tight end (who was named to the leadership council) that is making continual progress to be even better than the years before. And in just a few practices during spring camp, his head coach has been impressed.

"Landen's done a nice job," Kyle Whittingham said. "He's put some weight on; he's about 10 pounds heavier than he was last year, so that's helped him. He's kind of a hybrid, he's not really a true hand-in-the-dirt tight end, and he's not really a true H-back mover; he's a tweener. But I think we're using him in a lot of good ways and doing some different things with him."

So far, King looks to be a key piece in a new offense brought to Utah by offensive coordinator Jason Beck, who didn't utilize the tight end position as much last season at New Mexico.

Beck, though, has emphasized that he will scheme to his personnel and that the players in his "circle of trust" will be a factor in the game plan. That includes the tight ends in this Utah offense, even with a greater emphasis on the run game.

"I mean, we've got tight ends over here," King emphasized. "I don't know what they had in New Mexico, but we've got tight ends over here. The thing with coach Beck's offense, the playmakers are going to make plays, playmakers are going to get put in spots. So if you're a playmaker, you know you're going to get put in that spot."

In fact, King feels confident in all of Utah's tight ends — including Dallen Bentley and Hunter Andrews — making an impact in this year's offense, and believes the group will "all bring something different to the table."

Whittingham said Bentley has been one of the most consistent players on the offensive side of the ball in spring, while noting that Andrews will be a hybrid player that sees a lot of action in various roles within the offense.

"We feel like the tight end spot, although not as much 12 personnel and first down groups with two tight ends that we've used in the past, they're going to still be a big factor," Whittingham said.

King even sees Andrews as the next version of Brant Kuithe for Utah football with all he's able to do on the field. The talented redshirt freshman has been moved around from running back to linebacker to running back again, and now to tight end in just a short time.

But that highlights Andrews' versatile skillset that will be utilized this fall on the offensive side of the ball as a hybrid player — similar to how Kuithe was used for Utah.

"I love him in that tight end room. ... I ain't gonna lie, he's good," King said. "He's kind of like Brant Kuithe — I don't want to say it, but I mean, I have to. He's like Brant Kuithe, for real. He's fast, he can run, he runs like a 4.3. He's about 6-3, so he's a good build, and I think he's a very good addition to our room. I'm glad he's in there."

And whether it's King, Bentley or Andrews getting in on the action — or all of them together — King remains happy to be a team player. Sure, he wants to have more catches to showcase his skillset; but to him, it's about chasing a Big 12 championship and a playoff berth.

"I mean, obviously, everybody wants to catch the ball, score touchdowns; but, honestly, I'm trying to get that Big 12 championship and get a chance in this playoffs," King said. "This is my last year in college football, so, really, just taking advantage of this as a team aspect of it, like, I've never won a championship in my football career.

"So being able to come out here and work toward that goal, that's what's been keeping me going."

That's what keeps King going ... and committed to a Utah program that has had a noticeable shift in mood and mentality after back-to-back down seasons, though none more than last season.

And as such, the vibe around the team, he said, is much improved.

"Honestly, just having fun," King said. "We're not even really thinking about that. We already know what we did last year, we already know that we got that bad taste in our mouth. So right now, we're really just having fun, getting right with the new teammates, and really just seeing the new culture here at Utah."

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