SALT LAKE CITY — The long saga about former BYU linebacker Francis Barnard has come to an end.

Bernard, who was held out of the 2017 season at BYU for “personal reasons,” has officially joined the University of Utah football program, Utah announced Monday morning. Bernard was waiting to qualify academically before his transfer was official, and Utah was unable to talk about him because he was still technically a recruit.

He joins the program with two years of eligibility and is able to play immediately; however, he is required to go through a five-day NCAA-mandated acclimation period before he can fully join the team in full pads. Bernard watched practice last week prior to officially joining the program, and started practicing with the team Monday.

Utah head coach Kyle Whittingham said he hasn’t had an opportunity to sit down with Bernard, but has been impressed by the “real great effort on his part to get himself eligible and where he needed to be to be able to join us.” He added that at Utah, it’s “all about earning your way” and that it will take some time to see where Bernard fits into the rotation.

Defensive coordinator Morgan Scalley said he’s “very familiar with his skill set” but not with how he learns, so it’s going to take some time before they understand how he works into the system.

“Schematically, I think there is some carryover from what he was doing down south, but bottom line is they were a two high and we're a single high, so we'll see. We think he should be fine,” Scalley said. “We've got to be smart with him, and the reps that we give him, and make sure that he's not pulling anything. The main thing is just to get him to learn our scheme.”

Scalley added that the coaches will know “fairly quickly” about where Bernard will stand and how he’ll acclimate to the program. “He looks to be in good shape; we'll see,” he said. “You're never as in good a shape as you think you are.”

Adding Bernard to the linebacker group adds more veteran leadership and depth to an already loaded group. Utah is led by Cody Barton, Chase Hansen and Donovan Thompson at linebacker, according to the latest press release from Utah, with Bryant Pirtle and Devin Lloyd as backups.

Although Bernard is now officially part of the team, he will not be available to media “until further notice,” Utah officials said.

Bernard was granted a full release from BYU on Oct. 23, 2017, after previously saying he would take a redshirt season.

“I’m happy for Francis," BYU coach Kalani Sitake said after Monday's practice in Provo. "He has an opportunity to get a degree and play for great coaches. I’m really excited for him and his future.”

The linebacker originally played running back at BYU his freshman season before switching to the defense. He finished his sophomore season with 80 tackles, 5.5 tackles for loss and three interceptions.

Recap from Saturday’s scrimmage

Media was not invited to watch Utah’s first scrimmage Saturday, but Whittingham said the team had a “clean” scrimmage, that showcased positives on both sides of the ball.

“Receivers made plays — we had a bunch of receivers make plays, some spectacular catches,” Whittingham said. “Defense tackled very well for the first live tackling of fall camp. It was very clean in that regard.”

Whittingham said the highlight of the scrimmage was a made 62-yard field goal by placekicker Matt Gay. Offensive coordinator Troy Taylor added the kick was easily good for 70 yards. It’s not the first time Gay has hit from 60+ yards in a practice setting as he hit one in practice last week and two more again Monday.

“We hope not to have to attempt a bunch of those,” Whittingham said. “But it’s a great weapon to have.”

Although the scrimmage was “clean” in Whittingham’s eyes, Scalley said the red zone defense was not where it needs to be. He said the approach Saturday was just a base defense so guys could play “assignment sound.” Scalley, though, said he loves what he’s getting out of the defense and is encouraged by the progress made so far.

NOTES: Whittingham said there has been no decision made about the backup quarterback spot. Both Jack Tuttle and Jason Shelley have done good things throughout camp and are each making a case for the backup role. … Utah is holding out a few key players throughout camp to ensure their safety. The depth at each position is affording them that opportunity. … Bapa Falemaka has been temporarily moved over to played defensive end. The depth at tight end allows for Falemaka to make the change as Utah looks to add more depth at defensive end.

Contributing: Sean Walker

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