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Barton, Pepa Named CFN Freshman All-America
12/6/2022 8:00 AM | Football
SALT LAKE CITY – The future is bright for the University of Utah Football program with two Ute freshmen earning College Football News Freshman All-America in linebacker Lander Barton and defensive tackle Simote Pepa.
Barton, a freshman out of Cottonwood Heights, Utah, earned second-team honors with Pepa, a redshirt freshman out of South Jordan, Utah, being named to the honorable mention squad.
Barton has played in all 13 games with three starts this season, leading all freshmen on the team with 42 total tackles (5.0 TFL, 3.5 sacks) along with three quarterback hurries, one pass breakup, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery.
He has had four or more tackles in seven of Utah's 13 games this season, including in just his second game as a Ute where he racked up four stops with his first collegiate sack against Southern Utah. He was also key in Utah's Pac-12 Championship victory over USC, recording a career-high six tackles while also notching a fumble recovery and a pass breakup.
Pepa has 26 total tackles through 13 games this season, which includes 6.0 tackles for loss and 4.0 sacks. His 4.0 sacks leads all Pac-12 freshmen this season with all four coming in three of the last four games.
Against Stanford, Pepa notched a career-high six stops with 3.0 tackles for loss and a career-best 2.0 sacks, also recording a sack at Oregon and against USC in the Pac-12 Championship game. He was also key in Utah's first game against the Trojans, putting up three tackles and his second pass breakup of the season.
UP NEXT
The Utes are set to appear in their second straight Rose Bowl, taking on the Penn State Nittany Lions on Monday, Jan. 2 in Pasadena, Calif. The game is set to kick off at 2 p.m. PT/3 p.m. MT.
FOLLOW ALONG!
To get an inside look at the Utah Football program and its journey to another Rose Bowl, follow the Utes on social media (Twitter: @Utah_Football | Instagram: @UtahFootball | Facebook: Search Utah Football), along with visiting www.UtahUtes.com.
Barton, a freshman out of Cottonwood Heights, Utah, earned second-team honors with Pepa, a redshirt freshman out of South Jordan, Utah, being named to the honorable mention squad.
Barton has played in all 13 games with three starts this season, leading all freshmen on the team with 42 total tackles (5.0 TFL, 3.5 sacks) along with three quarterback hurries, one pass breakup, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery.
He has had four or more tackles in seven of Utah's 13 games this season, including in just his second game as a Ute where he racked up four stops with his first collegiate sack against Southern Utah. He was also key in Utah's Pac-12 Championship victory over USC, recording a career-high six tackles while also notching a fumble recovery and a pass breakup.
Pepa has 26 total tackles through 13 games this season, which includes 6.0 tackles for loss and 4.0 sacks. His 4.0 sacks leads all Pac-12 freshmen this season with all four coming in three of the last four games.
Against Stanford, Pepa notched a career-high six stops with 3.0 tackles for loss and a career-best 2.0 sacks, also recording a sack at Oregon and against USC in the Pac-12 Championship game. He was also key in Utah's first game against the Trojans, putting up three tackles and his second pass breakup of the season.
UP NEXT
The Utes are set to appear in their second straight Rose Bowl, taking on the Penn State Nittany Lions on Monday, Jan. 2 in Pasadena, Calif. The game is set to kick off at 2 p.m. PT/3 p.m. MT.
FOLLOW ALONG!
To get an inside look at the Utah Football program and its journey to another Rose Bowl, follow the Utes on social media (Twitter: @Utah_Football | Instagram: @UtahFootball | Facebook: Search Utah Football), along with visiting www.UtahUtes.com.
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