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The University of Utah Athletics
Peroulis, First-String Defense Shine In Football Scrimmage Saturday
4/14/2001 12:00 AM | Football
April 14, 2001
SALT LAKE CITY -
First-year Ute running back J.R. Peroulis dazzled in his first scrimmage of the spring and the first string defense was stifling on Saturday in a 70-play scrimmage held in Rice-Eccles Stadium.
Peroulis, a transfer from Arizona State who sat out last year under NCAA transfer rules, rushed 16 times for 126 yards and 2 touchdowns. The team's third fastest player and its fastest running back, Peroulis showed his 4.47 40 speed on a 66 yard touchdown dash late in the scrimmage. He broke two tackles, then out sprinted the defense to the end zone. Peroulis missed last Saturday's scrimmage due to a concussion.
Immediately after Peroulis' long run, senior-to-be Dameon Hunter busted loose for a 70-yard touchdown run. Hunter finished the day with 13 carries for 121 yards and a touchdown. Starting halfback Adam Tate watched from the sidelines with a sprained ankle, suffered in last Saturday's scrimmage.
Neither of the long runs by Peroulis and Hunter could be blamed on the No. 1 defense, as both came at the expense of backup players. The first string defense pretty much controlled things when it was on the field and the defensive highlight of the day was an interception and 30-yard return by 309-pound nose tackle Ma'ake Kemoeatu. Garrett Smith and Lauvale Sape each recorded sacks and Marcus Jones and Arnold Parker chipped in a pass breakup apiece.
Defensive coordinator Kyle Whittingham continued to experiment with his line. Kemoeautu, who spent most of the spring learning to play end, was moved back to nose guard, where he will likely stay. The move had a domino effect, pushing Lavuale Sape to 3-technique tackle, which displaced Garrett Smith. Smith tried his luck at the 5-technique end and did a nice job.
Three quarterbacks took turns for the offense. Redshirt freshman Brett Elliott showed some promise filling in at No. 2 quarterback for Ryan Breska, who was injured late in Thursday's practice. Breska hurt his shoulder diving for a loose ball and underwent an MRI Friday. Results of the MRI won't be known until at least Monday, when Breska will be re-evaluated by the team's doctors. Regardless of the results, he will not play for the remaining week of spring drills.
Elliott completed 5 of 11 passes for 59 yards and directed the first scoring drive of the day, which culminated with a physical 7-yard run by Peroulis. Starting quarterback Lance Rice was also effective, completing 7 of 13 passes for 93 yards (1 interception). Two of the best plays of the day were Rice to Morgan Scalley passes. Scalley, who will be a freshman in the fall, continues to impress with his pass catching abilities and speed. The first time Rice hit Scalley, the rookie broke three tackles and sprinted 38 yards. A couple of plays later, the two connected for an 18 yard play. Incoming freshman quarterback J.D. Jorgensen completed 2 of 4 pass attempts for 24 yards, both to No. 1 fullback Thomas Fortune.
Oklahoma transfer Brian Lewis gave the special teams a big boost. Lewis, listed in the two deep at both punter and kicker, handled all of the field goal kicking chores in the absence of Ryan Kaneshiro, who was attending to family business. The big 6-2, 250-pounder showed a strong leg, easily making 45 and 47 yard field goals, before letting a pair of 42-yard attempts sail wide of the goal posts. He made all three PATs.
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