This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2011, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
The first highly rated recruit out of Texas for Utah's 2012 class can't play high school football this season because school administrators discovered he is too old, according to a report in the Beaumont Enterprise newspaper.
However, the recruit isn't in danger of losing his scholarship offer made by the Utes, who are aware of the player's situation, sources said.
Justin Thomas, a 5-foot-9, 170-pound cornerback out of West Orange-Stark High School in Orange, Texas, turns 20 on Sept. 15. Texas high school athletes are ineligible if they turn 19 before Sept. 1.
The discovery was made last week when his coach asked his secretary to go through the players' paperwork to make sure they were eligible.
Thomas, who had to repeat the sixth grade, according to the article, still plans to finish his high school requirements a semester early and enroll at Utah in the spring.
He is the 10th commitment for the Utes and is the first from Texas, a state the Utes have tabbed as recruiting priority.
Going with the North
The Utes might be one of the favorites in the South, but when it comes to deciding which division might be stronger, Utah coach Kyle Whittingham is going with the North.
When asked which division looked better on paper during Tuesday's league teleconference, Whittingham picked the North due to the presence of Oregon and Stanford. However, Whittingham acknowledged, history isn't always the best indicator.
"Every year brings special circumstances, players graduate and coaching staffs get tweaked, so only time will tell," he said. "But purely going off last year, I have to give the edge to the North."
The Utes were picked to finish third in the South behind USC and Arizona State by Pac-12 media members.
Smart group
Utah was one of nine Pac-12 schools to be recognized for academic excellence by The Center of World-Class Universities of Shanghai Jaio Tong University, which releases an annual academic ranking of world universities.
Utah ranked No. 79 among the top 100 schools worldwide. Stanford was second, followed by Cal (fourth), UCLA (12), Washington (16), Colorado (32), USC (46), Arizona State (78) and Arizona (80).
"We are extremely proud of the academic excellence represented by our universities and the recognition they have again received in this prestigious global ranking," Pac-12 commissioner Larry Scott said.