We sit at 11 days until the Utah football season kicks off, which brings us to today’s spotlight on Jonny Fanaika. Jonny committed back in February of 2018 before serving an LDS mission and officially signing his NLI in December 2020. If Jonny’s last name sounds familiar, it is because his older brother Jason suited up for the Utes as an All-Pac-12 linebacker from 2014-15, and his other brother Brandon played on the offensive line for the Stanford Cardinal from 2014-18.
Jonny brings a high level of pursuit when rushing the passer and plays with the physicality needed in the Pac-12. Currently, he’s 6-foot-3 and 224 pounds, so he’ll need to pack on the weight before getting consistent playing time at defensive end.
UteNation take
Before his mission, Fanaika was a slight 6-foot-3 defensive end at 200 pounds. He returned a solid 40 pounds heavier, but is currently listed at a trimmed down 224. He certainly has the frame to add more weight as he grows within the strength and conditioning program.
Jonny sits a bit further down the depth chart as he works himself back into football shape, but he has plenty of time to add his own stamp along the defensive front. If they all develop into high-level players, Ute Nation could eventually be treated to an all-legacy defensive line with Viliami Pouha, Michael Mokofisi, and Tevita “David” Fotu to go along with Fanaika.
For 2021, his impact will likely come on special teams.
Sean remembers Fanaika’s recruitment
Fanaika held offers from only Utah, BYU, and Utah State. Despite the BYU offer coming in first, Jonny knew all along that he wanted to follow in his brother Jason’s footsteps and play for the Utes. From his conversation with Rivals: ” I’ve always loved Utah, especially when I was little, because everyone else liked BYU and I was like, ‘I’m tired of all these BYU fans.’”