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The University of Utah Athletics
2022 Spring Football: Coordinator Corner
4/7/2022 6:41 PM | Football
SALT LAKE CITY - It was a beautiful, sunny Thursday in Salt Lake City and a perfect afternoon to be on the practice field as the Utah Football program moved into the second half of spring ball. Players on each side of the ball continue to grow through each drill and each rep, all of which will culminate with the team's annual spring game on Saturday, April 23.
The spring game is set for a 12 p.m. MT kickoff inside Rice-Eccles Stadium on April 23, with tickets available at www.UtahTickets.com. Fans can purchase two tickets for $22 in the chair seats or four tickets for $22 in the bleachers, with all proceeds going to the Ty Jordan and Aaron Lowe Memorial Scholarships.
With the Utes now past the halfway point of spring ball, it was time for offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Andy Ludwig, along with defensive coordinator and safeties coach Morgan Scalley to visit with the local media and offer an assessment of their respective groups.
Offensive Coordinator and Quarterbacks Coach Andy Ludwig
On what he's hoping to see from the wide receivers this spring…
"We need to generate more explosive plays in the perimeter. A lot of our explosive plays we generated on the interior from our tight end play, but the ability to create the one on ones- because the tight ends are going to draw the attention on the inside- taking advantage of the one on ones on the outside is a good dynamic play. I think we have the size and speed to do that, we just need to put it all together."
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On how much he has seen Cameron Rising grow and continue to be a leader…
"A lot, I mean the guy has been through it. It's his fourth year in the system, everything you are looking for and that type of experience at that position. His track record, the things that he's gone through, the injury, getting beat out, battling back, the turnaround season, the whole thing. He exudes confidence, he rallies the troops on offense and is well respected throughout the team. He's invaluable on the field in terms of tangibles, absolutely invaluable with his intangibles."
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On the young receivers and who has caught his eye…
"Money Parks and Makai Cope. We're giving them a lot of attention, a lot of work because we need that depth and those are two talented young players that are still figuring some things out but they have juice, they have ball skills and I'm anxious to see their contributions as spring continues."
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On what Ricky Parks needs to do to break through in a deep running back room…
"Keep working, he's got some work to do. He is a redshirt freshman and he is developing but he has to continue to develop. He's got a nice skillset to him but he's going to have to keep grinding his way through because it is a deep room and a competitive group."
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On what he sees from freshman running back Jaylon Glover….
"He's a dynamic kid, again much like Brandon Rose, early enrollee and these reps are going to unbelievably valuable for him when he comes back for summer workouts and fall camp. He's still learning the how's and why's, but the raw talent is there and he's got a lot of dynamic juice about him."
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On assessing the newcomers, particularly in the linebacker room…
"With a lot of these guys, [spring] is about fundamentals and technique. That's where a lot of spring ball starts. Scheme is going to be secondary to that. Schematically, there's going to be some things base-wise that they need to know. [Linebackers coach] Colton Swan is as good a teacher as they come. The linebackers are showing a lot of promise. Skillset is one thing. But you have to have the right mindset, and all these guys have the right mindset."
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On newcomer Mohamoud Diabate…
"He's performed at an elite level already in the SEC. For him, a lot of it is just getting the terminology down, understanding our scheme and understanding our culture. He loves it, and we love him."
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On the progression of Cole Bishop…
"You never know how freshmen are going to come into your program and handle everything that is new—college classes, college curriculum, just getting used to our way of doing things. He was ready to go, the one thing that limited him early on in the season was his hamstring. Otherwise I think he would've played sooner than he did…he's everything you want; you can go in the safeties room right now and he's watching film. He eats, sleeps and breathes football. He's a great kid. He's a great leader. His best days are ahead of him."
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On Junior Tafuna's development during the 2021 season and into spring…
"This is a guy that was playing linebacker and defensive end in high school…it was a matter of putting on the weight. Lisa Everhart and the rest of our nutrition staff do an unbelievable job ensuring that our players are putting on the right weight, and not too quickly. [Junior] has devoted his time in the offseason to putting on the right weight. He's another 15 pounds heavier than he was. He's striking very well. We anticipate him having a very special season."
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On depth at cornerback beyond Clark Phillips III, JaTravis Broughton and Malone Mataele…
"That's hard right now. The good thing is we're getting [reps] for some guys that haven't had the opportunity to prove it; guys like Caine Savage, Elisha Lloyd, Drew Rawls, younger guys that are getting all these reps. Clark Phillips III continues to impress and improve. We won't know until Fall camp exactly what that depth will look like…if there's one area that would keep you up at night, that would be it right now."
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The spring game is set for a 12 p.m. MT kickoff inside Rice-Eccles Stadium on April 23, with tickets available at www.UtahTickets.com. Fans can purchase two tickets for $22 in the chair seats or four tickets for $22 in the bleachers, with all proceeds going to the Ty Jordan and Aaron Lowe Memorial Scholarships.
#22forever
— Utah Athletics (@utahathletics) March 31, 2022
??: https://t.co/Pve5pYQBLO
Get your @Utah_Football Spring Game tickets today!
??: Saturday, April 23 at 12 PM pic.twitter.com/y0SgrhjJlu
With the Utes now past the halfway point of spring ball, it was time for offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Andy Ludwig, along with defensive coordinator and safeties coach Morgan Scalley to visit with the local media and offer an assessment of their respective groups.
Offensive Coordinator and Quarterbacks Coach Andy Ludwig
On what he's hoping to see from the wide receivers this spring…
"We need to generate more explosive plays in the perimeter. A lot of our explosive plays we generated on the interior from our tight end play, but the ability to create the one on ones- because the tight ends are going to draw the attention on the inside- taking advantage of the one on ones on the outside is a good dynamic play. I think we have the size and speed to do that, we just need to put it all together."
Â
On how much he has seen Cameron Rising grow and continue to be a leader…
"A lot, I mean the guy has been through it. It's his fourth year in the system, everything you are looking for and that type of experience at that position. His track record, the things that he's gone through, the injury, getting beat out, battling back, the turnaround season, the whole thing. He exudes confidence, he rallies the troops on offense and is well respected throughout the team. He's invaluable on the field in terms of tangibles, absolutely invaluable with his intangibles."
Â
On the young receivers and who has caught his eye…
"Money Parks and Makai Cope. We're giving them a lot of attention, a lot of work because we need that depth and those are two talented young players that are still figuring some things out but they have juice, they have ball skills and I'm anxious to see their contributions as spring continues."
Â
On what Ricky Parks needs to do to break through in a deep running back room…
"Keep working, he's got some work to do. He is a redshirt freshman and he is developing but he has to continue to develop. He's got a nice skillset to him but he's going to have to keep grinding his way through because it is a deep room and a competitive group."
Â
On what he sees from freshman running back Jaylon Glover….
"He's a dynamic kid, again much like Brandon Rose, early enrollee and these reps are going to unbelievably valuable for him when he comes back for summer workouts and fall camp. He's still learning the how's and why's, but the raw talent is there and he's got a lot of dynamic juice about him."
Â
Defensive Coordinator and Safeties Coach Morgan ScalleySome questionable hot takes here ?? pic.twitter.com/9QTlwZoY8b
— Utah Football (@Utah_Football) April 7, 2022
On assessing the newcomers, particularly in the linebacker room…
"With a lot of these guys, [spring] is about fundamentals and technique. That's where a lot of spring ball starts. Scheme is going to be secondary to that. Schematically, there's going to be some things base-wise that they need to know. [Linebackers coach] Colton Swan is as good a teacher as they come. The linebackers are showing a lot of promise. Skillset is one thing. But you have to have the right mindset, and all these guys have the right mindset."
Â
On newcomer Mohamoud Diabate…
"He's performed at an elite level already in the SEC. For him, a lot of it is just getting the terminology down, understanding our scheme and understanding our culture. He loves it, and we love him."
Â
On the progression of Cole Bishop…
"You never know how freshmen are going to come into your program and handle everything that is new—college classes, college curriculum, just getting used to our way of doing things. He was ready to go, the one thing that limited him early on in the season was his hamstring. Otherwise I think he would've played sooner than he did…he's everything you want; you can go in the safeties room right now and he's watching film. He eats, sleeps and breathes football. He's a great kid. He's a great leader. His best days are ahead of him."
Â
On Junior Tafuna's development during the 2021 season and into spring…
"This is a guy that was playing linebacker and defensive end in high school…it was a matter of putting on the weight. Lisa Everhart and the rest of our nutrition staff do an unbelievable job ensuring that our players are putting on the right weight, and not too quickly. [Junior] has devoted his time in the offseason to putting on the right weight. He's another 15 pounds heavier than he was. He's striking very well. We anticipate him having a very special season."
Â
On depth at cornerback beyond Clark Phillips III, JaTravis Broughton and Malone Mataele…
"That's hard right now. The good thing is we're getting [reps] for some guys that haven't had the opportunity to prove it; guys like Caine Savage, Elisha Lloyd, Drew Rawls, younger guys that are getting all these reps. Clark Phillips III continues to impress and improve. We won't know until Fall camp exactly what that depth will look like…if there's one area that would keep you up at night, that would be it right now."
Â
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