A native of Oak Park, Illinois, Uteritz was the quarterback for the Oak Park and River Forest High School football team coached by Glenn Thistlethwaite, who later became the head football coach at Northwestern. In 1920, Uteritz enrolled at the University of Michigan where he played quarterback from 1921 to 1923, leading the Wolverines to back-to-back undefeated football seasons in 1922 and 1923. Over the three years of his football career at Michigan, the Wolverines never lost a football game in which Uteritz played. Uteritz stood five feet seven inches and weighed only 140 pounds in 1922. He was "one of the lightest 'big time' quarterbacks in American football history when he played at Michigan from 1921 to 1923." Uteritz was known for his speed and his "heady" play as the Wolverines' fie