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The Daily Utah Chronicle

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Football: White Defeats Red 14-7, Huntley Impresses In Spring Game

Utah+Mens+Football+freshman+Tyler+Huntley+%281%29+hands+the+ball+to+senior+Joe+Williams+%2828%29++during+the+Red+vs.+White+game+at+Rice-Eccles+Stadium+on+Saturday%2C+April+23%2C+2016
Utah Men’s Football freshman Tyler Huntley (1) hands the ball to senior Joe Williams (28) during the Red vs. White game at Rice-Eccles Stadium on Saturday, April 23, 2016

Heading into the Red-White Spring Game, head coach Kyle Whittingham thought Brandon Cox was outperforming Tyler Huntley. By the end of Saturday’s game, that didn’t seem to be the case anymore, as true freshman Huntley led the White team to a 14-7 victory.

Huntley finished the day 17-of-26 for 233 yards and threw for one touchdown. Cox was 17-of-31 for 146 yards and had one interception. Although both teams were slow at the beginning, Whittingham is happy with how things turned out in the end.

“Overall, some sloppy play at the start, but we settled in, and execution was much better in the second half,” Whittingham said. “Very pleased with Tyler Huntley, he looked poised and confident. From start to finish, he did a really nice job.”

One thing he would like to see cleaned up is the amount of dropped balls by the receivers. Caleb Repp led the White team with 96 yards on five catches, and Chad Hekking made some noise for the Red team with 63 yards on seven catches of his own.

The Red team looked as if it was going to get off to hot start, getting a first down on its opening series, but then the receivers dropped two passes and the punting unit was brought out. When the White team came out, it got off to a similar start, but Huntley came to play and hit Repp for a 33-yard pass. After that, the White team couldn’t get much else going and ended up missing a field-goal attempt.

Utah Football junior Brandon Cox (5) runs to look for an open man during the Red vs. White game at Rice-Eccles Stadium on Saturday, April 23, 2016
Utah Football junior Brandon Cox (5) runs to look for an open man during the Red vs. White game at Rice-Eccles Stadium on Saturday, April 23, 2016

Red took over once again, and as it was making its way down the field, Damian Greene (playing defense for the White team) suffered an injury and had to be carted off the field. Cox then threw an interception to Tyson Cisrow on the next play and Cisrow returned it to the 48-yard line.

Huntley continued to impress and lead his offense down the field, sliding for a first down on one occasion and passing for another to Tyler Cooperwood. The Red defense eventually halted the White offense and again, there was another missed field goal.

The Red offense failed to get anything going again and as the White team took over, Huntley continued to find open receivers for first downs. Eventually, Jordan Howard broke the plane for the first touchdown of the game, capping off an 81-yard drive. At the end of the half, the White team had a 7-0 lead.

The White squad opened up the second half with the ball and kept on moving the chains right away. Then, Huntley found Repp in the end zone for a 36-yard touchdown in tight coverage. After that, the White team was leading 14-0.

The Red offense came out with a sense of urgency. After making its way into the red zone in the second half, the Red team’s drive was capped by Marcel Manalo finding the end zone for the first score of the day for that side to make it 14-7.

Neither team was able to increase their point total, as the White team held on to win. After Saturday’s performance, Huntley is more confident than ever in his ability to lead this team, even as a true freshman. This spring was a learning experience for him, and he is happy his hard work was able to pay off at the end.

“I learned the ins and outs of college football and learned how to lead my team to victory,” Huntley said. “I’ve been doing this for so long, it comes to me naturally and by having fun out there you can lead.”

Although Huntley wasn’t competing against the first-string defense, Whittingham hopes this is a sign of good things to come for the entire offensive unit. Huntley’s play only makes the battle for quarterback that much more tight and Whittingham is looking forward to what the summer and fall hold.

“Good way to end spring — got done what we needed to get done,” Whittingham said.

[email protected]

@kbrenneisen

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