Ex-Utah WR gets do-over

Wide receiver Quinton Pedroza was sorry. 

He was sorry for letting down University of Utah teammates and coaches, sorry for worrying his family, sorry for disappointing the image in the mirror. 

Pedroza seemingly had it all — respect, popularity and, if things went as expected, starting jobs as a Utah receiver and return specialist. 

All that changed on a spring night in 2013 when a police officer stopped Pedroza for driving a car with a burned-out headlight. During questioning, the officer requested administering a breath-analysis test. 

Pedroza, who admittedly had a beer hours earlier, showed a .01 reading, the equivalent of a mouthwash gargle. At issue was not the blood-alcohol level — .08 is the legal limit while driving — but that there was a trace at all. Pedroza, who was 20 at the time, was charged with a misdemeanor count of under-aged drinking. 

He received a fine, was required to attend a "life" class, and faced a stern judge  — Deanna Pedroza, his mother. 

"She was disappointed in me," Quinton Pedroza said. "I had to man up and tell her it was a mistake I made."

That mistake cost him a spot on the team. "I was upset because I was leaving the family I was part of," Pedroza said. 

Social media, nourished by speculation, was not kind. 

Back in Ontario, Calif., Pedroza faced an uncertain future. The dismissal did not remove the NCAA requirement of redshirting for a year at his next school. If he had to do the time, he preferred Fresno State, a 31/2-hour drive from Ontario. 

Utah declined to release Pedroza to Fresno State. Without a release, Pedroza would have to wait a year to be on scholarship.

He found comfort in his faith — "I left it in God’s hands," he said — and the faith from his mother.

"She knows me best," Pedroza said. "She knows my potential. She knows what I can do and how I can bounce back from things."

Of the Utah dismissal, Pedroza said: "She had great faith in me."

Pedroza decided to call Luke Matthews, a former Utah teammate who was hired as a graduate-assistant coach at UH in 2013. It could be somewhat of a reunion, Matthews said. Former Utah quarterback Jordan Wynn was on the UH staff. Norm Chow, UH’s head coach, was the Utes’ offensive coordinator in 2011. 

"If Chow wanted me," Pedroza told Matthews, "I was more than willing to come."

Utah coach Kyle Whittingham agreed to sign the release to UH, allowing Pedroza to accept a scholarship. 

Pedroza still had to redshirt in 2013. This time, he used that restless energy to get into better shape. He lost 20 pounds, dropping his body fat to 10 percent, and ascended the depth chart the past spring. 

He was projected to play slotback, but with injuries and transfers, he now is the No. 1 Z receiver. 

"Q is doing a good job," said Matthews, who was promoted to full-time assistant coach in charge of receivers this past spring. 

Chow said Pedroza is proving he was deserving of a second chance. 

"I’m thankful for this opportunity," Pedroza said. "I’ve thought about my actions, and now I double-think everything I do."