With the start of the football season just one week away, the Utes’ defense is beginning to look and feel like a championship team’s should, despite a few injuries that occurred during training camp.
The majority of the team, with the exception of senior defensive end and co-captain Koa Misi, junior right guard Walter Watts and freshman defensive tackle Latu Heimuli, is healthy, excited and ready to get the season under way. To the delight of the coaching staff, physical setbacks from camp have been kept at a minimum.
The defense is preparing for the kick-off of the 2009 season and wants to be as healthy as possible come Sept. 3, when the Utes will attempt to extend their winning streak to 14-0 against Utah State.
Senior linebacker Stevenson Sylvester said he is getting antsy for the reunion.
“I’m uneasy; I want to get the season rolling,” Sylvester said. “And I’ve got a message for (USU head coach) Gary Andersen: I’m coming to you.”
Andersen’s Aggies, though definitely not Utah’s toughest nemesis of the season, will be looking to take the Sugar Bowl champs on at both ends of the field.
The matchup will better prepare the Utes’ defense for future opponents throughout the season.
Later in their schedule, the Utes will take on offensive powerhouses such as Oregon, Louisville, TCU and BYU, hoping to be completely healthy to start things off right against Oregon at Autzen Stadium.
With Jordan Wynn atop the latest depth chart, it’s looking more and more like Utah is going to have a young and inexperienced leader in the pocket. If that’s the case come game time, defense will be more critical than ever until Wynn is able to thicken that freshman skin with a few sessions of real-game action.
Defensive coaches John Pease and Kalani Sitake said camp was progressing right on schedule for the defense, but both said they were a little worried about the amount of information they were throwing at the young and newly initiated athletes.
“They’re very smart players, and they know the book,” Pease said. “It’s just taking it onto the field.”
Confident with the defensive coaching scheme, the staff doesn’t plan on any big changes and believes the system has been effective for the athletes, both new and returning.
“Only time will tell if we did a good job,” Sitake said.
The Utes’ defense is welcoming 13 new players, many of them freshmen who could see playing time this season. The defense is also adjusting to the loss of 2008 standouts Paul Kruger, Sean Smith and Brice McCain, all of who were selected in last year’s NFL draft.
Opportunities for enhancing the defense’s performance lie heavily in the hands of experienced seniors Misi and Sylvester, as well as linebackers Kepa Gaison and Mike Wright, coaches said. Sitake said he is counting on his veterans to make sure the young guys are ready to go.
“Only hard work can get us where we need to be,” Sitake said. “And the guys love to work.”