The first scoring attempt of Saturday’s Red-White Game involving the U football team went awry when the White squad, despite the lack of a disallowed rush, still botched a field goal try.
The snap went high, the hold was fumbled, freshman kicker Bryan Borreson ran on by without a kick, as the timing was all screwed up?
And action stopped.
Quizzical players stood around wondering what to do, until some opportunistic Red athlete rushed in, sent the holder careening with a hit, started a scrum in pursuit of the loose ball, and finally sent the carrier out of bounds.
So?Red ball then? Uhh, coaches’ conference. Hmmm…never done this before; what to do? Retry the kick? Sounds good.
Second time was the charm, as Borreson nailed the 31 yarder for a 3-0 lead.
Believe it or not, things only got weirder after that.
But then, what else was to be expected for such an occasion?
The environment was a bit unusual for the Utes to begin with, as they took to East High School’s tiny field in the midst of a veritable downpour to compete in front of maybe 500 fans against?
Each other.
The intra-squad game held to conclude the U’s spring practice session was the first of its kind in the tenure of long-time coach Ron McBride.
It showed.
Beyond the mere novelty of 12-minute quarters with virtually no time stoppages, a lack of both kickoffs and returns, previously cohesive units broken up in a “draft” held last Thursday, and rampant gimmick plays thrown into the mix by the assortment of “celebrities” included on the respective coaching staffs, the Utes also seemed a tad confused by facing each other in live, non-scripted scenarios.
But then, the faces on the opposing sidelines provided about the only familiar facet of the exhibition event.
The positions they played and the responsibilities they had, however, reverted back to the bizarre.
Converted halfback Morgan Scalley, between rushing eight times for 66 yards, found time for a couple pass attempts. Wideout Anthony Arceneaux also contributed a throw, then registered a 7-yard sack after coming in on defense for a corner blitz. And a pair of DBs, Cody Weight and Bo Nagahi, combined for a 94-yard fumble return and what proved to be the game-winning touchdown, with the former scooping up running back J.R. Peroulis’ fumble (after he was inserted as QB and attempting to pass to signal-caller Lance Rice) at the 6 and racing 54 yards before pitching it to Nagahi, who took it the final 40 yards into the end zone.
When it was all said and done, the die-hards in attendance saw the White team emerge with a 10-6 victory, with Borreson?who played for both sides?contributing a pair of second-half field goals for the Red to prevent the shutout.