Utah Spring Ball Day 3: Defense Dominates

About a hundred fans showed for Utah's third session of Spring Ball. As to be expected at this time of the year, the defense was the highlight of the morning. It was intense from the beginning. As Metallica blared in the background, the initial 11 on 11 session was fast and physical. In this article, we touch on the defense. Make sure to also check out the article breaking down the offense as well.

Thoughts from Daniel

First and foremost, defensive coordinator John Pease is an absolute joy to watch. Fun, engaging, and knowledgeable beyond belief. The highlight of the day for me was after an interception returned for a touchdown by Masina, Pease yelled at his unit, instructing them to never let someone who makes a "big" play celebrate by himself.

This D-Line is flat out nasty. Full of swagger and talking trash every chance they get. Jason Fanaika is unblockable at this point, and he is going to be an absolute headache for opposing O-line's.

Overall the flow of practice was great. Fast and detail oriented, business like. Which we have come to know is par for the course for Whittingham's Utes. Practice resumes on Tuesday.

Thoughts from Alex

The defensive line was dominant today and was consistently getting pressure and beating the offensive line. Hunter Dimick, Fanaika, and Kylie Fitts are all terrors off the edge, and Lowell Lotulelei (with older brother Star watching from the stands) was dominant inside. He looks like he could have a very special season this year. Players like Filipo Mokofisi and Stevie Tu'ikolovatu both looked stout in the middle as well.

The linebackers performed well, even with Gionni Paul still out. Jared Norris made his debut in spring (ahead of schedule). He played aggressive and had several hard hits, one breaking up a pass. Uaea Masina had an interception he returned for a touchdown (a very nice return) off a tipped Cox pass.

The defensive backs are looking like they could be scary good this year. Domo Hatfield is turning into a lockdown cornerback. Reggie Porter, Boobie Hobbs, and Justin Thomas all looked good as well. Hobbs and Thomas both had interceptions. At safety, Jason Thompson and Tevin Carter both looked good. Thompson has good size and speed and made some nice tackles. Carter had a great interception. Whittingham mentioned after practice that Marcus Williams is still too undersized to really be considered for safety.

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