U. coach pleased with defense in scrimmage

Utah coach Kyle Whittingham has reviewed the film of last Saturday's scrimmage.

Thumbs up for the defense.

"I like the way that the secondary flew around. They made some plays," he said before tempering his comments a bit. "It was one day. One day does not mean you have arrived and have got all the answers.

"But it was good to see them making the plays that were there to be made," he added. "We hadn't done that to this point in spring. It seemed like we did make plays on Saturday, which needed to happen."

The Utes will hold their second scrimmage of the spring Saturday morning at Rice-Eccles Stadium.

JOHNSON HURT: Utah quarterback Brian Johnson left Tuesday's practice with an ice pack on his left wrist. Johnson, who reportedly suffered a sprain when he got stepped on late in practice, insists it's not a big deal.

"I'm good," he said. "I just got hit."

Whittingham didn't have much to say about the injury, either — opting to see what the team doctors say first.

A team spokesperson, however, said Johnson's status will likely be day-to-day.

SPECIAL ASSIGNMENT: Whittingham is pleased with the progress Utah's special teams are showing under coordinator Jay Hill, who was promoted to the post when Jay Boulware left the Utes for a staff position at Iowa State.

Hill and Boulware were co-special teams coordinators last season.

"I think it worked out for us just fine," said Whittingham. "But I think in the final analysis, we're going to be better off this way."

The transition, he said, has been smooth.

"Jay Hill is doing a nice job with the special teams," Whittingham noted. "I think it's a plus to have the special teams all under one guy."

NFL EUROPE UTES: Three former Utes are on opening-day rosters in NFL Europe, which kicks off its season later this week. Defensive tackle Steve Fifita is on the Frankfurt Galaxy; center Jesse Boone is playing for the Rhein Fire; and defensive tackle Lauvale Sape will line up for the Berlin Thunder.

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E-mail: dirk@desnews.com