Though it was a late start, the first week of fall camp for the Utah football team is in the books, and according to head coach Kyle Whittingham, there’s a lot to be excited about.
“Put the pads on, which livened things up a little bit, a little more physicality through the practice, but otherwise it was a good practice overall,” Whittingham said following Saturday’s practice. “Taking a step forward every day, that’s the objective.”
While most of the attention has focused on the ongoing quarterback carousel (Whittingham put to rest any talks of an open QB competition on Saturday by saying Travis Wilson is the “clear-cut” starter), the receiving core has stepped up its game. As one of the weaker units of the 2014 squad, the Ute receivers are out to prove themselves as a reliable option in this offense.
“One of the biggest surprises is probably the improvement of the receiver group right out of the gate,” Whittingham said. “They’ve got a ways to go, but it’s a whole different look than we had last spring. That’s the most pleasant surprise we’ve had so far.”
Senior wideout Kenneth Scott remains on the sideline thus far in fall camp, but one newcomer who has made a name for himself is Britain Covey. The former Timpview standout has moved back to a receiver position (he played receiver his sophomore year) after playing quarterback his final two seasons in high school, and so far, the transition has been seamless.
In the twenty-minute media session at the end of Saturday’s practice, Covey’s 5-foot-8 frame could be seen making plays by juking his way through the Ute defense. The freshman still has a long road in front of him if he wants to see meaningful minutes as a receiver, but you might just see Covey line up where former Utes have been so great in the past as a punt returner.
“If we had to [choose] tomorrow, it would be Britain Covey,” Whittingham said when asked about the position. “Kickoffs is more of a work in progress, but right now Britain is doing the best job in the punt return.”
Safeties duking it out for starting spots
On the other side of the ball, one group that has been impressing the coaching staff has been the safeties. Led by coach Morgan Scalley, the group consisting of Tevin Carter, Marcus Williams and Andre Godfrey, to name a few, has not only been battling the Utah offense, but also themselves.
In addition to the previously mentioned Carter, Williams and Godfrey, Scalley also has Justin Thomas, Jason Thompson and Boobie Hobbs at his disposal, all of whom are playing well thus far in camp. Come Opening Day, the coaches might have a difficult time deciding just who should be the starters.
“We’ve got a good group, probably more depth than we’ve ever had at the position,” Scalley said. “We’re fired up about that.”
Though having too much talent can sometimes be an issue for teams, the players see it as only a positive.
“It makes us drive harder,” Thomas said. “It’s going to make everybody better.”
Status unchanged on Hatfield
Utah fans went crazy on Friday night went suspended cornerback Dominique Hatfield tweeted from his personal Twitter account potentially regarding his status with the team. No stranger to social media, Hatfield, under his official name @_HattyF, tweeted the following within minutes of each other.
The messages were construed by fans to believe that this could potentially mean that Hatfield was reinstated with the Utes, but according to Whittingham, that’s not the case. The head coach was unaware of the tweets that Hatfield had sent out, but was firm in his stance that nothing has changed, yet.
“No, not right now he’s not [with the team],” Whittingham said.
@GriffDoug