Today's U. scrimmage pivotal

Utah's first scrimmage could be a pivotal one, especially for starting quarterback candidates Tommy Grady, Brian Johnson and Brett Ratliff.

Coach Kyle Whittingham is hopeful this afternoon's 100-snap scrimmage at the McCarthey Practice Fields will create some separation between the contenders. Each is expected to get an equal number of plays (approximately 30 apiece with the remainder going to redshirt freshman Kevin Dunn) as the first week of camp comes to an end.

Quarterback is one of several positions that could be affected in the multi-situational scrimmage. Other battles are being waged on offense, defense and special teams.

"There will be a few tweaks to the depth chart if certain people step up," Whittingham said. "That's always the case. No one's job is safe."

The coaching staff, he explained, is looking for finishers — both veterans and newcomers. The main objective in the scrimmage is finding out who can play.

The Utes open the season Sept. 2 in the Rose Bowl against UCLA.

"We get to see what the young guys can do on Saturday," said senior safety Eric Weddle. "Hopefully some of the guys pick it up and show us that they can play, show they can make some plays for us and see some time in the fall."

The scrimmage, which is closed to the public, will cap Utah's first "two-a-day" of camp. The Utes are scheduled to practice in the morning as well — their second session in full pads.

"It's exciting to just finally get out there and hit each other," Weddle said. "We're still a family — which is good — no fights and stuff like that which will tear a team apart. "We really worked hard today."

Superior conditioning, he added, has the Utes ahead of schedule. The team's summer program is paying off.

"There's no jogging around. We are always hustling," Weddle said. "The energy is there."

Whittingham has noticed. He's very pleased with how things are progressing.

"This team knows how to work. I saw that the first four days and it carried over right into today," Whittingham said. "This football team has an excellent work ethic. They know how to stay focused, concentrate and finish a practice."

The scrimmage was originally scheduled for Rice-Eccles Stadium but was moved because of the soccer exhibition between Real Salt Lake-Real Madrid.

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E-mail: dirk@desnews.com