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SALT LAKE CITY — As fall camp draws near an end, big changes are fewer and far between.
On Tuesday, Utah continued its fall camp and the offense saw some progress. Offensive coordinator Troy Taylor said the offense has learned about 95 percent of the playbook and is picking up the schemes well. In the media observation period, it was obvious the offense is feeling more comfortable and confident running Taylor’s schemes.
The offense made the defense, which couldn’t pursue offensive players in a live-like setting, work hard to stop a fast-moving attack. Most notably, quarterbacks Tyler Huntley and Cooper Bateman threw touchdowns to open receivers and ran the system well. To be fair to the defense, they were at a disadvantage in that they weren’t allowed to pursue or tackle an offensive player.
Huntley and Bateman saw most of the reps in the media observation period, but head coach Kyle Whittingham said that was not indicative of a starter being identified. Both Whittingham and Taylor maintain their desire to wait to name a starter.
With the starting quarterback question yet to be answered, Taylor addressed his offensive scheme, saying he was not a fan of his quarterback switching a play at the line of scrimmage. His quarterback, whoever it may be, will have little autonomy at the line. However, the quarterback will operate in a system where several reads are made as part of his progression, so options are not limited.
Following yesterday’s announcement that Troy McCormick would be splitting reps at running back and receiver, Whittingham said McCormick would stay at running back full time. Whittingham added that McCormick would battle it out for the No. 3 spot with Jordan Howard. Ahead of McCormick remains Zack Moss and Devonta’e Henry-Cole, who have had strong practices.
Secondary continues to make progress
Coming into fall camp, the secondary was a big question mark due to its inexperience. But the secondary has been a stable force throughout camp and has been able to hold its own against receivers that have a new life. Cornerback coach Sharrieff Shah, however, is quick to point out that no one has earned a starting spot, but that several have earned a spot in his rotation at corner. This is not new for Shah, who tends to rotate guys out to give fresh legs and to identify key matchups.
Shah said his secondary is “smarter” than its predecessors and is quicker at picking up what he expects of them. He said many of those things may be subtle and hardly noticeable to an outside eye, but he’s encouraged by how quickly his players are picking up the schemes and quickly correcting their behaviors. Inexperience is unavoidable, but Shah said practicing against Taylor’s offense is helping his players get more reps and experience than in the past.
“It’s great to go against. Coach Taylor is really good in his pass concepts," Shah said. "He knows exactly what he wants to do and it’s been different in the way that we’ve seen route combinations develop. He does everything to a defense that is unbelievably hard. You have a running quarterback, you put that running quarterback back into position to pull defenders out of certain help positions and puts solo matchups on guys. He does everything you hate all in one practice. That helps you, it makes you better.”
Kicking game
The place-kicking game continues to be an open battle between Chayden Johnston and Matt Gay. Both have gotten equal opportunities to separate themselves in the kicking game but have been equally consistent. In media observation, there are times when Johnston is better from the longer kicks, but then worse in the short game and vice versa with Gay.
Although the kicking game may not be as consistent as when Andy Phillips was at Utah, it’s not necessarily in a world of hurt. Both kickers are capable of shots from long and short distances, it’s just a matter of consistency.
Whittingham said Tuesday that if the kicking game struggles with its consistency, there is room for the offense to be more aggressive to pursue first downs in fourth-down situations.
Notes: Whittingham said injuries have been fewer than at the start of fall camp, but that there was no update to Chase Hansen or Lo Falemaka's return.
