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The University of Utah Athletics
Coaches’ Corner: Freddie Whittingham and Colton Swan
10/11/2022 8:05 PM | Football
Weekly assistant coach series features Utah tight ends and linebackers
SALT LAKE CITY – It's the halfway point of the 2022 regular season and the No. 20 Utah football team has a pivotal matchup on deck with No. 7 USC coming to town. It'll be the annual Dark Mode game at Rice-Eccles Stadium, and fans are encouraged to wear black for the 6 p.m. MT kickoff.
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Head coach Kyle Whittingham and the Utes were back out on the practice field Monday, not only to begin preparation for the Trojans but to also to identify and correct the mistakes that plagued the team in last Saturday's setback at UCLA.
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"We've got to correct them," said Whittingham on Tuesday after practice. "We played our way into this situation, we've got to play our way out of it. That's the bottom line. Nobody feels sorry for us; in fact, people are glad when you're having issues. They're happy. Nobody feels sorry for ourselves in this program. We've got to respond. That's the operative word this week: respond."
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Heading into the contest with the Trojans, UtahUtes.com took a visit to the tight ends and linebacker rooms, featuring tight ends coach Freddie Whittingham and linebackers coach Colton Swan for insight into each position group.
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Tight Ends Coach Freddie Whittingham
On how his group has responded since Brant Kuithe's injury…
"First and foremost, it's a sad day to have lost Brant to the ACL injury. He's been so much a part of what we've done, not just from an offensive scheme and catching a lot of footballs, but also leadership. He's on his way to recovery and we wish him well. Hopefully he has a fast and speedy recovery. He's been great. Future's still kind of in the air as far as what he's going to decide to do next year, whether he goes in the draft; or he has a redshirt year available if he chose to come back. The guys that are next up, we always have this saying. Next one up, you've got to fill in, do the job and have no drop off in performance. The guys that are being asked to do that are Thomas Yassmin, Munir McClain, Logan Kendall's already been part of the rotation, and Taniela Pututau has been getting some reps as well. All of those guys have been doing a nice job. They know the scheme, they're clean with their alignment and assignment, and graded out well in their assignments in this last game. We're going to keep doing what we do with our tight ends. Those guys' expectation is that they're going to step in and perform at the same level so our offense can continue to be a high-performing offense."
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On getting Dalton Kincaid more involved in the offense…
"A lot of that is scheme. Finding ways to line him up in positions and having passing concepts where he's the first read, and being able to find ways to have him be a huge part of what we do in the throw game. That's a lot that has to do with the scheme we come up with. We expect that he should catch between five and 10 balls a game, and increase his productivity as far as the number of receptions he's getting and the ways he's involved in the offense. He's already playing every single snap pretty much in the game—I think he played 79 snaps in that last game. Now it's finding more and different ways to make him the No. 1 read in the passing progression."
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On Munir McClain's transition from wide receiver to tight end…
"What Munir's strength is is those receiving skills. He's an excellent route runner, he's got great athleticism, very good ball skills. He came to the table with that. And we've just tried to take advantage of that and put him in those type of positions to be able to be that second tight end that's a move tight end. The thing he needs to adjust to is becoming a line-of-scrimmage run blocker. And he's been making progress there and coming along. The more he does that, the more time he'll see on the field as he continues to improve his run blocking."
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On this team being in a similar position to 2021 at this time…
"Of course [last week] was not the result any of us were hoping for or expecting…I believe it was five games in a row [in 2021] that we won, and then the Pac-12 Championship Game after that. So the expectation is that we go 1-0 this week. We've got a big challenge ahead, undefeated team, No. 7 in the country. We get them at home, which is a big bonus for us. We believe we have a definite advantage at home. The goal is to practice and prepare this week to take this first game and go 1-0."
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Linebackers Coach Colton Swan
On where his group goes from here after Saturday's game at UCLA…
"Resiliency. Respecting the process; that's what you're up against. You have to look back, you have to reflect, you have to learn from your process last week and improve upon things that you felt you were lacking. The process is to come and practice hard and do the things we do: lift hard, train hard, whatever it is that we do. We know how to win here. Respect that process—get it done, don't take any shortcuts, and just understand that if you do it well, you're going to play well on Saturdays."
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On replacing the leadership that former Ute Devin Lloyd provided in the room…
"[Devin's] a great leader. Always has been, always will be. Having leaders is also teaching leaders. It comes from coaches, it comes from older guys on the team. Especially with my group, I've got young players, or new players in Mohamoud. Teaching them what the expectations are teaching what leadership is about takes a lot of coaching. Holding guys accountable, that's leadership. Then they eventually know what the standard is and they're going to start holding each other accountable."
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On assessing the leadership at the position through Week 6…
"Really good. As you can tell during the actual play, [the linebackers] are the voice of the defense. They are the focal point out there, they are the quarterbacks, if you will, of the defense. Up to this point, they're doing a great job. Really focusing off the field in the film room and putting in the time, so when it comes time for that ball to be snapped, they're in the right position."
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NEXT UP
The Utes return to Rice-Eccles Stadium on Saturday, Oct. 15 when they host the USC Trojans. The Dark Mode game is set for a 6 p.m. MT kick on FOX.
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FOLLOW ALONG!
To get an inside look at the Utah Football program, follow the Utes on social media (Twitter: @Utah_Football | Instagram: @UtahFootball | Facebook: Search Utah Football), along with visiting www.UtahUtes.com for news, schedule and roster updates throughout the season.
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— Utah Athletics (@utahathletics) October 10, 2022
Head coach Kyle Whittingham and the Utes were back out on the practice field Monday, not only to begin preparation for the Trojans but to also to identify and correct the mistakes that plagued the team in last Saturday's setback at UCLA.
Â
"We've got to correct them," said Whittingham on Tuesday after practice. "We played our way into this situation, we've got to play our way out of it. That's the bottom line. Nobody feels sorry for us; in fact, people are glad when you're having issues. They're happy. Nobody feels sorry for ourselves in this program. We've got to respond. That's the operative word this week: respond."
Â
Heading into the contest with the Trojans, UtahUtes.com took a visit to the tight ends and linebacker rooms, featuring tight ends coach Freddie Whittingham and linebackers coach Colton Swan for insight into each position group.
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Tight Ends Coach Freddie Whittingham
On how his group has responded since Brant Kuithe's injury…
"First and foremost, it's a sad day to have lost Brant to the ACL injury. He's been so much a part of what we've done, not just from an offensive scheme and catching a lot of footballs, but also leadership. He's on his way to recovery and we wish him well. Hopefully he has a fast and speedy recovery. He's been great. Future's still kind of in the air as far as what he's going to decide to do next year, whether he goes in the draft; or he has a redshirt year available if he chose to come back. The guys that are next up, we always have this saying. Next one up, you've got to fill in, do the job and have no drop off in performance. The guys that are being asked to do that are Thomas Yassmin, Munir McClain, Logan Kendall's already been part of the rotation, and Taniela Pututau has been getting some reps as well. All of those guys have been doing a nice job. They know the scheme, they're clean with their alignment and assignment, and graded out well in their assignments in this last game. We're going to keep doing what we do with our tight ends. Those guys' expectation is that they're going to step in and perform at the same level so our offense can continue to be a high-performing offense."
Â
On getting Dalton Kincaid more involved in the offense…
"A lot of that is scheme. Finding ways to line him up in positions and having passing concepts where he's the first read, and being able to find ways to have him be a huge part of what we do in the throw game. That's a lot that has to do with the scheme we come up with. We expect that he should catch between five and 10 balls a game, and increase his productivity as far as the number of receptions he's getting and the ways he's involved in the offense. He's already playing every single snap pretty much in the game—I think he played 79 snaps in that last game. Now it's finding more and different ways to make him the No. 1 read in the passing progression."
Â
On Munir McClain's transition from wide receiver to tight end…
"What Munir's strength is is those receiving skills. He's an excellent route runner, he's got great athleticism, very good ball skills. He came to the table with that. And we've just tried to take advantage of that and put him in those type of positions to be able to be that second tight end that's a move tight end. The thing he needs to adjust to is becoming a line-of-scrimmage run blocker. And he's been making progress there and coming along. The more he does that, the more time he'll see on the field as he continues to improve his run blocking."
Â
On this team being in a similar position to 2021 at this time…
"Of course [last week] was not the result any of us were hoping for or expecting…I believe it was five games in a row [in 2021] that we won, and then the Pac-12 Championship Game after that. So the expectation is that we go 1-0 this week. We've got a big challenge ahead, undefeated team, No. 7 in the country. We get them at home, which is a big bonus for us. We believe we have a definite advantage at home. The goal is to practice and prepare this week to take this first game and go 1-0."
Â
Linebackers Coach Colton Swan
On where his group goes from here after Saturday's game at UCLA…
"Resiliency. Respecting the process; that's what you're up against. You have to look back, you have to reflect, you have to learn from your process last week and improve upon things that you felt you were lacking. The process is to come and practice hard and do the things we do: lift hard, train hard, whatever it is that we do. We know how to win here. Respect that process—get it done, don't take any shortcuts, and just understand that if you do it well, you're going to play well on Saturdays."
Â
On replacing the leadership that former Ute Devin Lloyd provided in the room…
"[Devin's] a great leader. Always has been, always will be. Having leaders is also teaching leaders. It comes from coaches, it comes from older guys on the team. Especially with my group, I've got young players, or new players in Mohamoud. Teaching them what the expectations are teaching what leadership is about takes a lot of coaching. Holding guys accountable, that's leadership. Then they eventually know what the standard is and they're going to start holding each other accountable."
Â
On assessing the leadership at the position through Week 6…
"Really good. As you can tell during the actual play, [the linebackers] are the voice of the defense. They are the focal point out there, they are the quarterbacks, if you will, of the defense. Up to this point, they're doing a great job. Really focusing off the field in the film room and putting in the time, so when it comes time for that ball to be snapped, they're in the right position."
Â
NEXT UP
The Utes return to Rice-Eccles Stadium on Saturday, Oct. 15 when they host the USC Trojans. The Dark Mode game is set for a 6 p.m. MT kick on FOX.
Â
FOLLOW ALONG!
To get an inside look at the Utah Football program, follow the Utes on social media (Twitter: @Utah_Football | Instagram: @UtahFootball | Facebook: Search Utah Football), along with visiting www.UtahUtes.com for news, schedule and roster updates throughout the season.
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