How Dallen Bentley went from playing five snaps in high school to starting at tight end for Utah

By his own admission, during much of his time at Taylorsville High, Dallen Bentley was “pretty small, kind of short and chubby, and pretty slow,” leading to him standing on the sideline during Friday nights.

Then, before his senior year, Bentley had a physical transformation. He experienced a huge growth spurt, gained more speed and was feeling confident in his game. His coaches were feeling confident in him, too, and drew up the first play of the 2018 season for him.

Bentley hauled in a 40-yard pass in Taylorsville’s opening game at Snow Canyon — his first-ever high school reception — but snapped his tibia and fibula on the play, and with that, his high school football career was finished.

It was a heartbreaking end for Bentley, who played less than five total snaps in high school.

After graduating from Taylorsville, Bentley served a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Colorado, and while college football wasn’t on Bentley’s radar after graduation, during his mission, he decided he wanted to give it a try after returning home.

With such limited high school experience, there were no schools calling to offer him a scholarship, and he walked on at Snow College. By the next semester, he had impressed his coaches so much that they put him on scholarship. Bentley may not have had the high school experience some of the other players at Snow College had, but was a natural at the position and a quick learner.

At the time, Snow College didn’t have a tight ends coach, so Bentley was coached by both offensive line coach Trever McFalls and wide receivers coach James Dye.

“The coaches are great. They really care about the kids … the development was vital at Snow,” Bentley said.

During the Badgers’ 2022 season, the 6-foot-4 Bentley had eight receptions for 114 yards and two touchdowns, beefed up to 250 pounds, and earned NJCAA All-America second-team honors.

While those stats weren’t eye-popping, Division I coaches turned on the tape and saw the potential, then the calls came pouring in — Colorado, Washington, Louisville and Utah all wanted to add Bentley to their roster.

For Bentley, the Utah offer was intriguing. He grew up a Ute fan, and the chance to stay close by his family was important. But the biggest selling point was the staff and its ability to develop him as a football player.

“Given its offense that is run, and the tight ends that have come out of here, I felt like Utah was the best place for me to go,” Bentley said.

Though a hamstring injury kept him from seeing the field as often as he wanted to — Bentley played in six games (31 snaps) at tight end in the second half of last season — the development gained was valuable for him.

“I progressed a ton. I got my technique down, I got my confidence levels up so that halfway through the season when I was healed up a little more, I could start to see the field a little bit,” Bentley said.

The majority of his snaps were spent blocking, but in Utah’s Las Vegas Bowl loss to Northwestern, he hauled in his first-ever catch in a Ute uniform.

“It was really exciting to be able to get in there that last game and get my first catch, which was really fun,” Bentley said.

With a healthy offseason under his belt, Bentley has taken his game to the next level and has started to reach some of that potential Utah’s coaches saw in him when they offered him. Bentley has ideal size at “Y” tight end and is an athletic and smooth route runner with good speed for his size, while also having the frame and skillset to be an effective blocker.

“I feel like I’ve really improved in every area, whether that’s my blocking, the footwork or my aggression or my route running, just knowing the offense, being able to read the defense. I feel like in all of these areas I’ve really taken a big step forward,” Bentley said.

His coaches agree.

“Bentley’s the guy that’s really coming on,” head coach Kyle Whittingham said.

“He had a really good spring ball. He followed that up with a very good fall camp. And so his opportunities have grown because he’s earned it on the field and he’s got that prototypical tight end size,” tight ends coach Freddie Whittingham said. “He’s a good athlete. He catches the ball well. He’s got good speed.”

Utah’s tight end room — which Kyle Whittingham called “maybe as good as it’s ever been in Utah” — is crowded, with six players listed on the depth chart.

The headliner is Brant Kuithe , who returns after missing the 2023 season with knee rehab. In his last fully healthy season, 2021, he had 611 yards on 50 receptions with six touchdowns to lead the Utes.

Landen King, Caleb Lohner, Carsen Ryan and Miki Suguturaga should all see the field this season, depending on the situation and play call.

“Their work ethic is amazing. Just when we’re in the film room, I’m watching everything that they’re doing, seeing how I can do similar things, and I’m just taking every little thing that I see from them and trying to apply it into my game so I can be a better player,” Bentley said.

But even with all the talent in the room, Bentley has emerged as the starting “Y” tight end, which speaks to how impressive he’s been in offseason work.

This season, he’ll go from an under-the-radar player to someone who could have a huge impact on Utah’s 2024 campaign.

“I’m excited for it. I’ve been dreaming of this moment, and last year was a great prep year for me. Honestly, I’m ready to go. I’m ready to do what it takes. I’m ready to get out there and fly around,” Bentley said.