SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Three defensive stars for No. 16 Utah can be credited with helping the Utes improve on the other side of the ball.
Cornerback Smith Snowden, linebacker Lander Barton and safety Jackson Bennee have played key roles in an offense that ranks near to the top of the league in several categories heading into Saturday's Big 12 opener against No. 17 Texas Tech (3-0).
A year after being near the bottom in nearly every offensive category, the Utes are second in scoring (45.7 points per
game) and rushing offense (290 yards), and third in total offense (517 yards).
The trio have wasted no time making their presence felt.
Snowden led Utah (3-0) in receiving in the Utes’ 43-10 season-opening win over UCLA, totaling 51 yards on six catches. Barton hauled in a 14-yard touchdown against the Bruins — his first career reception.
“If my team trusts me on offense to have the ball in my hands, why not go out there and make a play?” Snowden said.
And it's not just on gadget plays.
Snowden, Barton and Bennee split their time equally between offense and defense each game. It requires striking a balance in how they prepare for games so they can contribute at a high level on both sides of the ball.
This means dividing snaps between offense and defense in practice each week. It also means dividing meeting time and film study between two different position groups.
“We try to get the balance in practice as close as we can to what we predict the balance in the game is going to be,” Utah coach Kyle Whittingham said. “We have a good idea going into every game what the ratio is going to be (for) offensive snaps and defensive snaps, and we try to mimic that in practice. We also have to divide the meeting time up as well, so it’s a balancing act.”
Playing on both sides isn’t a foreign concept for Snowden, Bennee, or Barton. All three did the same in high school.
Doing the same thing for a Power 4 team is more complicated. Preparing themselves for multiple positions has made all three players fluent in a second football language.
“This whole thing has definitely made my football IQ much better than it was in previous years,” Snowden said. “When I am on offense, I can look at a defense and know what they’re doing. When I’m on defense, I can look at the offense and have a pretty good idea what they’re going to do.”
Playing on offense has not diminished defensive production for Utah’s designated two-way players through the team's first three games. They are still finding ways to stop offenses as often as they test defenses.
Bennee leads the Big 12 with two interceptions and 103 interception return yards. His first career interception was a 46-yard pick-six in a 63-9 win over Cal Poly.
“I really love having the ball in my hands as well as making some tackles,” Bennee said. “I love all of it. Any opportunity that I can get, I’m going to take it.”
Barton had a team-high seven tackles against UCLA. Across three games, he and Bennee are tied for second among Utah players with 12 tackles apiece.
Their all-around contributions draw parallels to what Eric Weddle did for the Utes earlier in Whittingham’s coaching career. During his senior season with Utah in 2006, Weddle played snaps at safety, running back, punt returner and even quarterback on his way to earning consensus All-American honors.
Colorado's Travis Hunter took it to another level last season by winning the Heisman Trophy as a two-way player.
Utilizing positionless playmakers may be a staple for Utah going forward under first-year offensive coordinator Jason Beck. Whittingham noted Beck’s offensive schemes are designed to keep defenses guessing about which players will be involved and how they will be involved.
“Jason has a really good feel for getting the most out of his guys and putting them in positions where they can do the things they do best instead of asking a guy to do something that maybe is not his cup of tea,” Whittingham said.
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