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The University of Utah Athletics
Photo by: Hunter Dyke/Utah Athletics
Q&A with Utah Football’s Caleb Lomu
11/5/2024 2:00 PM | Football
Plus…crunching some numbers before Utah host BYU
SALT LAKE CITY – It's officially rivalry week for the University of Utah football team and the Utes are preparing to square off against the No. 9 BYU Cougars inside Rice-Eccles Stadium on Saturday, with kick-off set for 8:15 p.m. MT on ESPN.
One of the players who will be experiencing the rivalry for the first time on Saturday is redshirt freshman offensive lineman Caleb Lomu. Lomu has started all eight games for the Utes in 2024 and his work in the trenches has already garnered him national recognition in the form of a spot on The Athletic's 2024 Midseason Freshman All-American Team.
UtahUtes.com talked with Lomu about his journey to Utah, his desire to continue improving and his reaction to earning All-American recognition.
What's the journey been like for you from someone who didn't take football super seriously early in high school to now being a starter here and a mid-season All-American?
I always loved the sport, but I always felt like I didn't have as much as these other guys, I don't know why. My mindset just wasn't there when I was younger and I didn't take it as serious. I was focused on school and football was just there. Sophomore year in the summer, I started going all over for camps and that's when I realized I wanted to do this even if I don't get a chance until my senior year, I still want to chase it. Then that summer, I got my first offer and it hit me that its legit now and I can play at the next level, which I always wanted to do. That's when it kicked in. I took it so seriously my junior and senior year knowing every snap was being watched by scouts. That's how my mindset is now. It was high school, college and now the NFL is next. Now my mindset is completely locked on getting to the next level, focusing on what I need to do right now.
Have there been any people who've been particularly supportive during that process?
Always, my parents. Playing pop warner, both my parents always knew what I could do and I wasn't putting in all my effort, so those car rides home weren't the best with my dad, telling me I can be way better than I was. Then going home talking to my mom, but they always knew where I could be and it was perfect with my dad pushing me and my mom pushed me, both pushing me in different ways, my dad in more of an aggressive way, then my mom would calm me down and clear my mind. There's so many more I could name, but my parents were the main source who pushed me and wanted me to be better for myself to get me where I am now.
How meaningful has that support been?
I can't imagine going through this process on my own and not having anyone by my side. Along the way, you gain more and more encouragement from people and supporters. It's the biggest difference because I really don't know if I'd be where I am today without being pushed and having that courage and encouragement with me throughout this whole journey.
Do you feel like the support and coaching you've received from your parents has helped you become a coachable player?
Yeah, 100%. Whenever my dad would talk to me, I'd be in a bad mood after a game knowing I didn't play my best and sometimes I would tend to just ignore him, but once I was done talking to him and I calmed down and realized what he was saying, it wasn't him being mean. He saw what I could do and saw how good of a player I could be. It taught me to just listen and don't think you know everything, because you don't. Once I got into actual practices and listened to my coaches, even when I'm so far into the program like I was in high school, I didn't know everything that I could, so I just listened to my coaches and every tip they told me was so important. Now, being in college, being coachable and listening to every little detail, even if it's the smallest things, that can make the biggest difference. It definitely helped me, learning young how to take that teaching and apply it to how to play.
Is there anything specific your coaches here constantly talk to you about?
There are specific things for every player. Everyone has their own playing type and how they go about things. One thing coach Harding is big on is if you're comfortable with your stance, if your stance works, he won't touch it, but if he sees something he can fix or something that's causing someone to get out of their stance slow, then he'll teach. You have to think of every little detail. You might try something and see if it works and if it doesn't, then keep trying things. There are so many things I came in needing to fix and coach Harding harped on all those throughout my first year.
What was your reaction to being named a Midseason Freshman All-American?
It was awesome. It's an honor to have one of those titles, but I'm not letting it go to my head. It's only midseason. I'd love to have that at the end of the season, so I'm not trying to worry too much about. I'm just trying to keep what I was doing at the beginning of the season to earn that and get better every single week. We have a lot of good opponents we're going to play, so just doing the same thing I was doing from week one and do it all the way through the end of the season.
Crunchin' The Numbers
Stats to pass around with the pigskin during Saturday's tailgate...
114 – First downs allowed by Utah's defense in 2024, the lowest total in the Big 12.
101 – Number of times Utah and BYU have met on the gridiron.
16 – Total points scored in the first matchup between Utah and BYU, a 12-4 win by the Utes in 1896.
14 – Number of catches Brant Kuithe needs to become Utah's all-time leader in that statistic. His current total of 179 trails only Britain Covey (184) and Kevin Dyson (192).
12 – Total tackles by Lander Barton against Houston, the most by a Ute in 2024 and a new career-high for the Cottonwood Heights native.
FOLLOW UTAH FOOTBALL ON SOCIAL MEDIA!
Follow along with behind-the-scenes content and coverage throughout the season on social media through Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and TikTok along with visiting www.UtahUtes.com.
OFFICIAL MOBILE APP OF UTAH ATHLETICS – UTAH 360
The official mobile app of Utah Athletics is Utah 360. Download it today to unlock a refreshed game-day experience that offers access to news and information, schedules, rosters, stats and behind-the-scenes videos, and allows fans to buy and manage game tickets and order concessions straight from their mobile device. The app is available in both the Apple Store (download) and Google Play (download). Add it today, access your game tickets and download them to your smartphone's wallet to make yourself game-day ready!
One of the players who will be experiencing the rivalry for the first time on Saturday is redshirt freshman offensive lineman Caleb Lomu. Lomu has started all eight games for the Utes in 2024 and his work in the trenches has already garnered him national recognition in the form of a spot on The Athletic's 2024 Midseason Freshman All-American Team.
UtahUtes.com talked with Lomu about his journey to Utah, his desire to continue improving and his reaction to earning All-American recognition.
What's the journey been like for you from someone who didn't take football super seriously early in high school to now being a starter here and a mid-season All-American?
I always loved the sport, but I always felt like I didn't have as much as these other guys, I don't know why. My mindset just wasn't there when I was younger and I didn't take it as serious. I was focused on school and football was just there. Sophomore year in the summer, I started going all over for camps and that's when I realized I wanted to do this even if I don't get a chance until my senior year, I still want to chase it. Then that summer, I got my first offer and it hit me that its legit now and I can play at the next level, which I always wanted to do. That's when it kicked in. I took it so seriously my junior and senior year knowing every snap was being watched by scouts. That's how my mindset is now. It was high school, college and now the NFL is next. Now my mindset is completely locked on getting to the next level, focusing on what I need to do right now.
Have there been any people who've been particularly supportive during that process?
Always, my parents. Playing pop warner, both my parents always knew what I could do and I wasn't putting in all my effort, so those car rides home weren't the best with my dad, telling me I can be way better than I was. Then going home talking to my mom, but they always knew where I could be and it was perfect with my dad pushing me and my mom pushed me, both pushing me in different ways, my dad in more of an aggressive way, then my mom would calm me down and clear my mind. There's so many more I could name, but my parents were the main source who pushed me and wanted me to be better for myself to get me where I am now.
How meaningful has that support been?
I can't imagine going through this process on my own and not having anyone by my side. Along the way, you gain more and more encouragement from people and supporters. It's the biggest difference because I really don't know if I'd be where I am today without being pushed and having that courage and encouragement with me throughout this whole journey.
Do you feel like the support and coaching you've received from your parents has helped you become a coachable player?
Yeah, 100%. Whenever my dad would talk to me, I'd be in a bad mood after a game knowing I didn't play my best and sometimes I would tend to just ignore him, but once I was done talking to him and I calmed down and realized what he was saying, it wasn't him being mean. He saw what I could do and saw how good of a player I could be. It taught me to just listen and don't think you know everything, because you don't. Once I got into actual practices and listened to my coaches, even when I'm so far into the program like I was in high school, I didn't know everything that I could, so I just listened to my coaches and every tip they told me was so important. Now, being in college, being coachable and listening to every little detail, even if it's the smallest things, that can make the biggest difference. It definitely helped me, learning young how to take that teaching and apply it to how to play.
Is there anything specific your coaches here constantly talk to you about?
There are specific things for every player. Everyone has their own playing type and how they go about things. One thing coach Harding is big on is if you're comfortable with your stance, if your stance works, he won't touch it, but if he sees something he can fix or something that's causing someone to get out of their stance slow, then he'll teach. You have to think of every little detail. You might try something and see if it works and if it doesn't, then keep trying things. There are so many things I came in needing to fix and coach Harding harped on all those throughout my first year.
What was your reaction to being named a Midseason Freshman All-American?
It was awesome. It's an honor to have one of those titles, but I'm not letting it go to my head. It's only midseason. I'd love to have that at the end of the season, so I'm not trying to worry too much about. I'm just trying to keep what I was doing at the beginning of the season to earn that and get better every single week. We have a lot of good opponents we're going to play, so just doing the same thing I was doing from week one and do it all the way through the end of the season.
Crunchin' The Numbers
Stats to pass around with the pigskin during Saturday's tailgate...
114 – First downs allowed by Utah's defense in 2024, the lowest total in the Big 12.
101 – Number of times Utah and BYU have met on the gridiron.
16 – Total points scored in the first matchup between Utah and BYU, a 12-4 win by the Utes in 1896.
14 – Number of catches Brant Kuithe needs to become Utah's all-time leader in that statistic. His current total of 179 trails only Britain Covey (184) and Kevin Dyson (192).
12 – Total tackles by Lander Barton against Houston, the most by a Ute in 2024 and a new career-high for the Cottonwood Heights native.
FOLLOW UTAH FOOTBALL ON SOCIAL MEDIA!
Follow along with behind-the-scenes content and coverage throughout the season on social media through Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and TikTok along with visiting www.UtahUtes.com.
OFFICIAL MOBILE APP OF UTAH ATHLETICS – UTAH 360
The official mobile app of Utah Athletics is Utah 360. Download it today to unlock a refreshed game-day experience that offers access to news and information, schedules, rosters, stats and behind-the-scenes videos, and allows fans to buy and manage game tickets and order concessions straight from their mobile device. The app is available in both the Apple Store (download) and Google Play (download). Add it today, access your game tickets and download them to your smartphone's wallet to make yourself game-day ready!
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