Game day can’t come soon enough for sophomore Tyler Huntley, the newly-named starting quarterback for the University of Utah football team. Since beating out last season’s starting quarterback Troy Williams and Alabama transfer Cooper Bateman for the job, Huntley said nothing much has changed for him. He’s still living his life the same way he did before his name was called.
The Florida native is looking forward to showcasing his talents to spectators on Thursday when the Utes open their season. After making just four appearances last year as a freshman, Huntley feels ready to take command of the offense and prove why he is deserving of the starting role. He compared Thursday night’s matchup to a “performance” and he hopes everybody watching enjoys it.
While it might have come as a surprise, or maybe it was simply reassurance, that the Ute who sports No. 1 on his jersey would, in fact, be the one to take the offensive reigns into his own hands, it was never something the coaching staff overlooked.
“We’ve always thought he’s had a lot of potential since the day he got on campus,” said Utah head coach Kyle Whittingham. “[We were] impressed with his play in the Foster Farms Bowl, even though it was limited action, but what he did in that game was pretty impressive.”
But it was what Huntley showed during the spring and then rolled into fall camp that kept his name right up there with Williams.
“I just worked every day hoping that it would come at any time, not knowing when it was going to come,” Huntley said. “But I just worked my butt off and hoped for the best.”
As Huntley prepares for the Utes season opener that will showcase a new offensive look that Utah offensive coordinator Troy Taylor has implemented, he said he has three things to do before he takes the field. He will watch film, go into the game with a game plan and listen to his pregame ritual music — straight R&B and hip-hop.
The transformation the offense has undergone brings opportunities to make more plays and “just play football” according to Huntley. The dual-threat quarterback takes pride in his running and passing abilities, and he said Taylor has explained that if a read isn’t there, then he should make a play with his feet.
“To open up the pass, you got to run, to open up the run, you got to pass,” Huntley said. “It plays both ways.”
The lack of efficiency in the red zone last season is an area of focus this year. Huntley is confident Utah will make plays and “find the end zone a lot” this season because the team is trusting the plan, plays and is ready to perform.
“I’m willing to make a lot of touchdown passes in the red zone and I’m willing to make a lot of touchdown passes outside of the red zone,” Huntley said. “Whatever play coach Troy presents with us, we [are] going to run it well and we [are] going to get in the end zone.”
Whittingham describes Huntley as a confident young man who possesses qualities like charisma, leadership skills and energy — all things that will be demonstrated over the course of the season. As for their first game of the year, there is only one thing Huntley wants to really show — that he can lead his team to success.
“I just want to win the game,” Huntley said. “That’s all I want to do.”
The Utes season gets underway at home on Thursday, Aug. 31 at 5:30 p.m. MT against North Dakota.
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