Las Vegas Bowl foes Northwestern and Utah battled for recruits, too

Northwestern and Utah have only played each other three times in history, in 1927 (a 13-6 Northwestern win), 1981 (42-0 Utah) and in the 2018 Holiday Bowl (31-20 Northwestern).

But the Wildcats and Utes have clashed consistently on the recruiting trail in recent years to build the teams that earned them both a trip to the Las Vegas Bowl. Maybe more often than you think for two campuses that are some 1,400 miles apart.

The two programs have battled for six players who had offers from the other school, and are dead-even, landing three apiece. Four of the six players were in the three most recent recruiting cycles.

Northwestern won three of the battles and will have three Wildcats on the Las Vegas Bowl roster who were also courted by the Utes. And Utah has three players who were pursued by the Wildcats.

Here's a look at each of them, and their recruiting processes.

S Coco Azema

Coco Azema is the best player on this list. A three-year starter for the Wildcats, Azema was named a captain for this, his senior season. The leader of the secondary, he finished fifth on the team with 47 tackles despite missing two games, and also returned kicks for the Wildcats.

Azema, a member of the 2019 class from Houston, got an offer from Utah but was focused on Northwestern early. He took an official visit in May of 2018 and committed a week later. The Wildcats are glad he did.

OL Zachary Franks

Zachary Franks, a high three-star in the 2019 class, was a big-time get for the Wildcats out of Baltimore Gilman. He first committed to Penn State but flipped to the Wildcats a week later. He also took an official visit to Cal. Utah was never really in the running.

Unfortunately, Franks hasn't lived up to his recruiting potential at Northwestern. He was a backup offensive lineman for the first four years of his career. He won the starting job at right tackle and started the opener against Rutgers this season but was replaced by Josh Thompson in the second half of the UTEP game in Week 2. Thompson has had the job since.

OL Alex Doost

Doost had great size coming out of Arizona last year. Once again, Northwestern focused on the big tackle early in the process. He took an official visit to Evanston in early May and committed the following week. Utah was not a factor in his recruitment.

Doost, a true freshman, has yet to appear in a game for the Wildcats.

WR Makai Cope

A three-star prospect from California in the 2021 class, Makai Cope had an impressive offer list that included the likes of Michigan and USC. Northwestern offered him early but could never get him on campus. He ultimately picked the Utes.

Cope has appeared in 26 games as a backup receiver for Itah. He had seven catches and a touchdown in 2022 but didn't record any statistics this season. He entered the transfer portal and likely will not play in the Las Vegas Bowl.

QB Brandon Rose

This one was a real battle. Three-star Calif. quarterback Brandon Rose took an official visit to Utah on the weekend of June 11, 2021, and then went to Northwestern a week later. While his initial comments about Northwestern were positive, things reportedly soured on both sides of the relationship. He picked the Utes at the end of the month.

Rose has yet to see action in two years with the Utes.

CB Smith Snowden

Northwestern couldn't pull the four-star prospect out of Utah last year. A BYU legacy, Snowden took an official visit to NU last May and raved about it. He then took officials to both Colorado and Utah in June. He didn't make up his mind and pick the Utes until December; the Wildcats' 1-11 2022 season certainly didn't help matters.

A true freshman, Snowden appeared in 10 games and made 10 tackles this season for the Utes.