Shaky start, smooth finish for new Ute QB

Brian Johnson admits he was shaky early in Utah's 27-24 win over Arizona. The 18-year-old quarterback's first collegiate start began with a lost-yardage handoff to Quinton Ganther and three consecutive incompletions. Later in the first quarter, Johnson fumbled a snap.

Things, however, eventually turned positive for the sophomore. Johnson wound up completing 19-of-30 passes for 220 yards and a touchdown in guiding the Utes to a school-record 17th consecutive victory. He also rushed for 18 yards on five carries.

"I'm not quite where I want to be. But I can improve," Johnson said. "I started out shaky, but after those first couple of series I was able to settle down."

After netting just 66 yards on their first 23 plays, the Utes racked up 246 on their next 23.

"We have faith in him," Ganther said. "He held his composure tonight."

Johnson, who was top NFL draft pick Alex Smith's understudy last season, earned strong praise from Arizona coach Mike Stoops.

"Utah looks similar to last year," he said. "Brian Johnson is a much better runner and throws the ball almost as well as Smith."

Johnson saw extremely limited action as a freshman. With 13:05 remaining in the second quarter Friday, he had already posted career highs in completions, passing attempts and yardage in a game.

Before leaving the field, Johnson had surpassed all of his totals from last season.

"Brian Johnson played well along with the rest of the team," said Utah coach Kyle Whittingham, who also made a successful debut.

Whittingham is the fifth consecutive Ute football coach — joining Urban Meyer, Ron McBride, Jim Fassel and Chuck Stobart — to win his first game at the helm.

Like Johnson, though, Whittingham is far from satisfied.

"It's great to get this first win under our belt," He said. "But we have a lot of work to do."

The Utes resume practice Monday in preparation for Saturday's home game against Utah State (6 p.m., KJZZ, Ch. 14).

RUNNIN' UTE: Ganther's bid to become Utah's first 1,000-yard rusher since Dameon Hunter in 2001 is off to a good start. After his game-high 127-yard performance against Arizona, the senior needs to average just 87.3 yards over the next 10 games to reach the milestone — a figure lessened by the addition of a bowl game.