Alright guys, we got to see a little bit more from the offense and defense today, as well as some very fun stuff in goal line sets. Additionally, one of the kickers has been eliminated from the kicking battle. Here are your five points:
- Hayes Hicken is not in the running for the place kicking job anymore. Coach Whitt said it is down to Johnston and Gay. We got to see both of those guys try a couple of field goals, Gay went 2/2 while Johnston went 1/2. Johnston has the stronger leg, but unless he improves his consistency, Gay just may end up winning the job.
- Of the three QBs, Bateman had the best series during the observation period. He had a couple of nice long completions to Carrington and Nacua. However, he also missed a couple of throws and had a pass broken up by Kenric Young. Tyler Huntley did some nice things running the ball but we didn't see many passes from him today. The same can be said for Troy Williams. We only saw three passes from him, one of which was completed to Troy McCormick on a tunnel screen. That play was actually really interesting, they motioned McCormick out of the backfield, which caused some confusion between Jaylon Johnson and Terrell Burgess on who to cover. That opened things up for McCormick to catch the screen pass for a nice little gain. Troy Taylor says that all three QBs continue to play well, but that there's still no rush to make a decision on a starter.
- There were some very interesting formations in goal line sets featuring several "heavy" players. I can't say who, exactly, as per the rules, but it's fun to see Taylor experimenting with the offense in order to make the red zone a friendlier place for the Utah O.
- The secondary as a whole did a pretty nice job today. Yes they gave up some completions but their coverage was tight and they are physical at the line. Josh Nurse is coming along at the free safety spot. I really like this move by Morgan Scalley, and I think it will pay good dividends down the road. I particularly loved watching Jaylon Johnson punish receivers coming off the line. It didn't matter whether it was a first or third-string receiver, he gave them all the same treatment and showed no signs of intimidation.
- The defensive line didn't go live today, but Kylie Fitts continues to look very, very good rushing the passer. He was giving the tackles trouble a lot of trouble. I also thought Maxs Tupai had a nice day. He's done very well in fall camp and has likely earned himself a lot of playing time this season. Utah's defensive ends are going to be a problem for any offense they face this year.
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