What could Utah’s defense and special teams look like in 2026?

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For the first time since 2015, there will be a new face calling Utah’s defense.

After Morgan Scalley’s promotion to head coach, he’s turning his defensive coordinator responsibilities over to linebackers coach Colton Swan, who has been with the program since 2019.

While Scalley won’t be radioing in the defensive calls anymore, don’t expect any kind of drastic change with Swan in charge — it’ll still be the same familiar defense that dates back to when Kyle Whittingham was the defensive coordinator in Salt Lake City.

“That’s one thing that’s made Utah defense so good is there’s been this foundation from a schematic standpoint, from recruiting personnel that fits this defense,” Swan said.

“So that’s definitely been a staple and a foundation of what Utah defense has been about over the years, and that’s, to be quite honest, the defense that I’ve actually grown up in and developed in and been very close to.

“So my beliefs are very similar to the men that you mentioned earlier, and you definitely want to have the ability to put your own stamp on things. … So being able to put a new little wrinkle on a few things, but the foundation and the schematics of everything that’s taken place thus far is very similar to what we’ll be doing.”

What will Utah’s defense look like in Swan’s first year as coordinator?

It will look a lot different personnel-wise, as is the case with most college football programs in the transfer portal era. In all, the Utes will be replacing nine defensive starters or rotation players that played heavy snaps, including the entire starting defensive line.

For the first time in a long while, there may be more questions surrounding the defensive side of the ball than the offensive side.

Can the Utes’ run defense, which was a concern in the final third of the season, improve? How will the pass rush fare without star John Henry Daley? Which cornerbacks will win camp battles and replace Smith Snowden and Blake Cotton?

Here’s a position-by-position look at what Utah’s defense and special teams units could look like in 2026.

Defensive line

Much like last season, the 2026 season will feature a revamp of the starters along the defensive line.

The three main rotation defensive tackles for Utah — Aliki Vimahi, Dallas Vakalahi and Jonah Lea’ea — all either graduated or transferred, giving the Utes somewhat of a clean slate at a position group that didn’t live up to the usual standard in 2025.

One returning candidate for a starting job at defensive tackle is Karson Kaufusi, who played 177 snaps at the position as a freshman and totaled 13 tackles and half of a sack. With his experience at Utah, he could take the next step this spring and fall and be a consistent presence in the starting lineup.

Pupu Sepulona is another name to keep an eye on — he had 137 snaps with 13 tackles for the Utes last year as a freshman

Defensive tackle was a position of focus for the Utes in the transfer portal, as Scalley picked up Wyoming sophomore Lucas Samsula, Tennessee redshirt junior Jamal Wallace and San Jose State defensive tackle Jireh Moe.

Time will tell which of those transfers will earn a possible starting role, but Samsula (15 tackles and 1.5 sacks while starting in seven games) and Moe (28 tackles and 1.5 sacks while starting for SJSU) are two early candidates.

On the ends, Utah will be replacing the very productive Daley, who grew into one of the nation’s top pass rushers with 11.5 sacks, and veteran Logan Fano.

The Utes have capable players ready to fill in, but Utah is losing a lot of talent at defensive end, and the new group will have a lot to prove.

Kash Dillon and Lance Holtzclaw each played over 340 snaps last season, with Holtzclaw finishing the season with 26 tackles, four tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks and Dillon 35 tackles, 4.5 tackles for loss and 3.5 sacks.

Both players could wind up being starters, but another player that should at least figure into the rotation is North Texas transfer Ethan Day. Day started every game for North Texas and totaled 53 tackles, seven tackles for loss and 4.5 sacks in his junior season.

Linebackers

Linebacker is a crucial position in Scalley’s defense and there’s no reason to expect that to change under Swan. Due to the responsibility put on the linebackers to be the “quarterbacks” of the defense, it was critical for Utah to retain junior Johnathan Hall after Lander Barton and Levani Damuni graduated.

Hall gives the Utes a solid foundation at the spot, but who will start alongside him?

Swan is confident in the guys he has in the room, as Utah did not pick up a linebacker in the transfer portal.

Junior Trey Reynolds, who started four games at linebacker and totaled 28 tackles, 1.5 sacks and two interceptions, is ready for his full-time starting spot.

Another player that could see significant time is Elijah Elliss (18 tackles, two sacks in 2025).

With a returning starter and a returning rotation player, can Utah’s linebackers take a needed step forward in 2026?

Cornerbacks

Two key cornerbacks — Snowden and Cotton — will need to be replaced in 2026, making the position yet another on Utah’s defense that will see significant change.

Scooby Davis started at cornerback and totaled 34 tackles, two interceptions and two pass breakups last season. He gives Utah something to build around in the cornerback room as the Utes bring in some new players.

In total, Utah added four new cornerbacks in the transfer portal — Lamar sophomore Nicholas Brown, Akron redshirt junior Elijah Reed, Hutchinson Community College redshirt freshman Earl Parker and USF sophomore James Chenault.

Reed (77.3 PFF grade, 47 tackles, two interceptions, a sack and four breakups) and Chenault (66.2 PFF grade, 32 tackles, two interceptions and four pass breakups) both have starting experience and are expected to slot into starting spots at outside corner and nickel.

Safeties

Depending on where Swan wants to play Jackson Bennee this season, Utah could have two returning starters playing safety, making it the highest-floor position on Utah’s defense.

Starter Rabbit Evans, who suffered a season-ending injury against Wyoming early in the year, will be back for his senior season. Bennee, who started out playing cornerback but mostly played safety after injuries to Evans and Nate Ritchie, totaled 64 tackles and had four interceptions and five pass breakups.

Despite losing starter Tao Johnson, the trio of Evans, Bennee and Ritchie should make safety a solid position, if not the best on the team, for the Utes in 2026.

Special teams

Utah is set on special teams heading into the 2026 season. The Utes return kicker Dillon Curtis, who had a few freshman mistakes but settled in nicely to the tune of 11 for 15 field goals and 96% on PATs.

He also had 63 touchbacks on 91 attempts — an improvement over past kickers for Utah.

Orion Phillips punted just 38 times for 1,609 yards, with 15 of those punts pinning the opposing team inside the 20-yard line.

In terms of punt returns, Mana Carvalho, who scored a punt return touchdown last season, should assume the same role, while speedy running back Daniel Bray should be the main kick returner.

In case you missed it

Here’s my look at what Utah’s offense could look like in 2026. Utes return a solid foundation, including a pair of good QBs, but had to replace an offensive coordinator, key receivers and the entire starting offensive line

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