Early Signing Day hits Cleveland: Sparks officially a Utah Ute

RIO RANCHO — Christmas has come early for the University of Utah: this year, they are getting the top-ranked player in New Mexico.

On Wednesday morning, Cleveland High School senior Moses Sparks officially signed his letter of intent to play football for the Utah Utes next year.

“Thank you to my grandma; I have no idea what I’d do without her right now. Thanks to my coaches for building me into the man I am today,” Sparks said. “Football is my life, and you guys helped me continue that for four more years.”

Sparks, committed to the Utes since July, wasted no time putting pen to paper as Dec. 3, which marks the start of the early signing period for high school football recruits. Family, friends and teammates accompanied him in a packed “Thunderdome” gymnasium.

“Moses has worked hard the last four years in the classroom and on the football field,” Cleveland Athletic Director Matt Martinez said. “Congratulations to Moses, his grandma, family members, coaches, teammates, teachers, staff and friends who are here today, on behalf of Cleveland High School, congratulations.”

Of course, signing day in 2025 doesn’t just mean in-person celebrations for recruits but showing off their new team colors on social media as well. Sparks collaborated with the official Utah football Instagram account for a signing day post, along with the team posting the Storm lineman on X/Twitter.

𝑺𝒊𝒈𝒏𝒆𝒅 ✍️ @mosessparks77 🗒️ Offensive Line📍 Rio Rancho, New Mexico🏫 Cleveland HS#GoUtes | #UBOYZ26 pic.twitter.com/71HOqqK97H

— Utah Football (@Utah_Football) December 3, 2025

Sparks joins a signing class of 13 high school recruits (so far) as the third offensive lineman in the bunch, the only player coming from the Land of Enchantment.

Joining a Utah team that needs offensive line help, Sparks is ranked as a top-50 interior lineman across several recruiting sites, sporting a three-star rating.

Anchoring offensive lines is something Sparks is comfortable with, being the backbone of the Storm’s front seven in back-to-back state title seasons.

“Statistics aren't going to show what Moses did for Cleveland football,” Storm football head coach Robert Garza said. “Moses just got after it, day after day, made life really hard on other teams. As far as our program goes, he's one of the best to ever come through.”

Before shutting down his recruitment this past summer, Sparks received nine different official offers on top of taking official visits at big-name schools. Some of these institutions include Texas Tech, Houston and Nebraska, with the Storm lineman posting his visits at Oregon State and Boise State before choosing the Utes.

“Power-four school after power-four school would come in and want to sit down,” Garza said. “Watching him grow, see what he was looking for, and watching him make the decision that was right for him. He had some of the best schools in the country looking for him, and he did what was right for him.”

While Cleveland is used to sending talent to the collegiate level, it is not every day that a player makes their way to a power-four school. Sparks is joining an exclusive club that includes former Storm stars such as Luke Wysong, currently playing with Moses’ future conference opponent, the University of Arizona Wildcats, and Tre Watson, who played at Texas A&M in the SEC before signing with the Kansas City Chiefs.

Some college recruiting analysts believe Sparks has enough talent to be thrown into the Utah rotation as a freshman, but whatever is next for the all-state talent, he will be bringing that signature smile with him.

“Thank you guys, love all of y’all, thank you for showing out,” Sparks said. “Go Utes!”