This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2014, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.

Before folks start loading up the comments section, let's acknowledge something: Kahi Neves knows there are people out there who might be a little skeptical of his commitment to the Utes.

There's some reasoning here. Neves is playing at his fifth school in three years, bouncing from California to Hawaii to Nevada before landing at Brighton High, his second school in Utah.

But Neves, a 6-foot-3, 235-pound prospect in the Class of 2016 wants Utes fans to hear him well: "I'm fully committed, no doubt."

Neves said some version of that statement to Coach Kyle Whittingham on Monday night, ending his recruiting process early and giving the Utes a weapon they could use on either side of the ball. But it's no secret where Neves' heart lies: He hopes Utah utilizes him at quarterback, where he thinks he can be a good fit for Dave Christensen's system.

"I love Utah's offense," he said. "I like being a dual threat."

This year, Neves is playing linebacker for the Bengals, last year's 5A title runner-up. He has 25 tackles this season, and he's appeared a handful of times at quarterback, throwing a pair of TD passes against Granger.

Where he'll play could depend on if he plays more reps at quarterback his senior year, Neves said. But despite that bit of uncertainty, he saw some things at Utah that he really liked. Beating No. 8 UCLA over the weekend was great, he said, but it wasn't what made him commit.

"It's just the program itself," he said. "The coaches, the education, most importantly. There's a lot it has to offer."

Proud to announce that I've decided to verbally commit to the University of Utah! Go Utes! pic.twitter.com/v3SyJeaNqw

— Kahiiii (@KAHINEVES) October 7, 2014

Just stopped by Kyle's office for a bit. He let me know It's a GREAT day to be a UTE!!! #KiYi #LightTheU #LegacyUtes

— Fred Whittingham Jr. (@FWhittinghamJr) October 7, 2014

Neves was recruited by defensive coordinator Kalani Sitake. After performing well in summer events, Neves was also drawing interest from Oregon, Washington, Colorado, Washington State and Penn State, he said.

His father, Kani Neves, was an offensive lineman at Utah. Kahi said his dad made a pitch for his old program: "He gave me a lot of feedback about why he loved it."

Kahi Neves is the second current Brighton player to be committed to the U. Senior safety Cody Barton committed over the summer, planning on joining his brother freshman Jackson Barton. The Utes are also pushing hard for other players in the program, particularly five-star linebacker Osa Masina who shaved the Utes from his top five list this summer but is believed to still be warm on them.

Neves said Brighton has been a good home for him, and he believes he'll finish his career there.

"I love Brighton, everyone there is welcoming," he said. "I came to Brighton late, but eventually I got on the field, worked hard, and now I'm just trying to help them be successful."

Utah hopes he can do the same for its program in a few years.

Here's a list of the Utah football commits the Tribune has reported on, click for details:

2015

2017

Kyle Goon

kgoon@sltrib.com

Twitter: @kylegoon