What we learned about Utah: 2022 Spring Game edition

With the conclusion of spring camp capped off by the annual red and white game, Utah will now transition to the summer offseason before returning to campus for preparations in the fall. While the Utes won’t officially take the field for another four months, there were several outstanding performances from the spring game which taught us a lot about how this team may look moving forward.

Choosing QB2 will take some time but is a great problem to have

While the coaching staff had hoped to see some separation between Ja’Quinden Jackson and Bryson Barnes during the spring game, both players absolutely balled out which helped provide some more insight as to why the decision has remained unsolved over the course of spring camp.

Both players were on full display during the spring game as Jackson finished 11-17 for 138 yards, two touchdowns and an interception while adding 36 yards on the ground. Meanwhile, Barnes was just as good, finishing 9-18 for 157 yards and two touchdowns as well. He also moved the chains with feet, totaling a game-high 67 yards on the ground.

At this point it really is tough to try and declare a true winner as each guy demonstrated their individual talents but it ended nearly even. While it may be frustrating for them to not have a sense of the pecking order with camp now over, this an excellent problem to have.

As we’re all well aware, Cameron Rising is the starter and it's not even close. So while Rising does his thing and leads the team to what should be another Pac-12 Championship and a New Year's Six Bowl Game, having a highly talented and incredibly deep quarterback room is one of the best issues to have. Not only do you want a formidable backup in case of emergency, but to go three or even four men deep is the sign of a highly respected and talented program. With Barnes, Jackson, Nate Johnson and Brandon Rose all vying for that backup position and the future reins, Utah is in great shape for QB2 and beyond, no matter who eventually emerges.

The freshmen class of 2022 is special and will take this program further than ever before

Over the past few weeks, the class of 2022 has lived up to all the hype as a good number of the guys enrolled early and have already asserted themselves as legit contributors. Players like Jaylon Glover, Lander Barton, Justin Medlock and Carson Tabaracci have been the talk of spring camp, and in the spring game, they showed why.

For starters, Glover doesn’t even look like a freshman as he takes the field with poise and a veteran-like demeanor every single series. Unlike a lot of young players, Glover doesn’t appear to need a transition period as he’s hit the ground running and showed a lot of promise. Whether its speed, power, agility, balance, or raw strength, Glover appears to already have it and will be an impressive contributor early on. For the day, Glover finished with a team-high 36 yards on five carries.

As for some of the other freshmen, there are few who’ve joined the linebacker room and each made a name for themselves during the spring game. Take a look at the stat sheet and you’ll see Tabaracci with a team-high six tackles while Barton was right behind him with five and Medlock finished with three. None of these kids are afraid. None of them appear to need an adjustment period and they all have demonstrated an elite ability to be able to read the game despite their age.

This class is special. Each one of these young men earned their spot on the team and are already proving that they could be significant contributors early on. Once fall camp begins, the class will only continue to get better as several other plays such as Tao Johnson and Nate Johnson join the group. Simply said, something really special is being built in Salt Lake City.

Despite the roster turnover, Utah’s defense might be better than we expected

With the NFL Draft set to take place next week, Utah will watch as the greatest linebacker in program history is selected in the first round. Alongside Devin Lloyd, a handful of other guys may hear their name called which has left the Utes in a reload situation as they look to replace some incredibly special talent.

At first glance, some may be thinking that there could be some significant drop-off as the team transitions to a different roster and a new season. While there definitely will be a learning curve and some much needed development, it might not take as long for Utah to figure things out.

If the spring game illustrated anything, not only did it prove that Utah has some remarkable young talent, but there’s a lot of talented defenders throughout the entire team. Sure, they're still fairly young but they definitely don’t play like it. With guys like Cole Bishop, Clark Phillips III, JT Broughton, Karene Reid, Van Fillinger and Junior Tafuna in addition to some of the more tenured players like Andrew Mata’afa, Devin Kaufusi, Mohamoud Diabate, Gabe Reid and RJ Hubert, Utah is going to be just fine and shouldn’t require as long of a defensive adjustment period as some may have previously thought.

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