Utah Defense Looks To Be Reloading At Safety

SALT LAKE CITY – Utah Football is halfway through week two of fall camp. As they make the final preparations for the 2024 season, coaches are identifying answers to some important questions that still need to be resolved, which includes defensive coordinator Morgan Scalley finding two new starters at his safety positions.

Last season’s starting duo, Cole Bishop and Sione Vaki, both moved onto the next level after they heard their names called in this year’s NFL Draft. That’s left open vacated starting roles at both free and strong safety.

However, it seems Utah has the answers they need at each spot, one is pretty clearly identified, while the other is still going through the process of finding that starter.

Tao Johnson poised for a big year?

The player that quickly emerged, not only as an option but as an answer at safety, is Tao Johnson. After playing at nickel last season and playing quite well, Johnson made the move to the safety room this offseason.

“I think free safety and just safety in general is my position,” Johnson said. “Playing all of those other positions has helped me and just growing throughout camp.”

Utah’s @thatboytao on his move to safety… #GoUtes pic.twitter.com/XakrqlxgJ1

— Steve Bartle (@BartleKSLsports) August 7, 2024

At 6-foot-1, 196 pounds, Johnson has an exciting blend of athletic and physical traits. He has the sort of qualities that tend to translate really well at free safety, specifically the range he will need to have success there.

He’s also had to make improvements as there are a lot of demands on the safeties in Morgan Scalley’s defense. Johnson shared where he felt he’s grown the most this offseason.

“Physicality- you know, what comes with safety is playing in the box, making game-saving tackles, and just being that who can do everything,” Johnson said. “I really had to grow in all aspects of my game- even in pass rush, and it’s been great for me.”

Johnson seems to be trending towards a significant jump this season. If he can play to his full potential or even close to it, that will bode really well for the Utah defense.

Nate Ritchie emerging at strong safety

While Johnson looks to be the pretty clear-cut starter at free safety, the strong safety position has had a bit more competition this off-season. However, it appears that Ritchie is starting to emerge as the favorite to start.

Ritchie returned from a church mission last off-season and was an option behind starters, Bishop and Vaki. Compared to how he looked as a freshman in 2020, something seemed off in Ritchie’s play. The good news is that doesn’t seem to be an issue for him anymore.

“Not many people probably know I came home from my mission with a back injury,” Ritchie said. “I feel most improved just physically, and just feeling strong, ready to go, and able to do a lot of things again.”

“It just lets my mind play free. When you have an injury, you always just kind of have it in the back of your mind. Now when those things are gone, you’re back to normal, and you just kind of play free. That’s what it’s been for me, just playing free and just trying to do better every single day.”

That’s allowed him to be at his best in a pretty competitive competition with Jonathan Hall and Alaka’i Gilman. Each of whom possesses the sort of game that would make them capable starters. Ritchie feels that regardless of who is eventually named the starter, the group is all focused on the same thing.

“I think we all have the same ideology of wanting to make the team better,” Ritchie said.  “I think at the end of the day, we all of the same goal of making the team better and whoever is going to be the guy, we’re all going to support him and be there when we need to be there.”

A thought on Johnathan Hall and Alaka’i Gilman

Though it seems that Johnson and Ritchie are trending as the starters, this is still a close competition. Regardless of who eventually emerges as the starters, all four of these players will make an impact for Utah this season.

The 5-foot-10, 194-pound Gilman played at a good level for Stanford last season and earned All Pac-12 Honorable Mention. He showed the ability to make an impact against the run and pass with 50 tackles, four pass deflections, and one interception.

Hall has been in the mix for playing time since he arrived in Salt Lake City.  At 6-foot and 215 pounds, he is a bigger body that adds some versatility to the room, and he is a particularly strong matchup against tight ends.

That means that coach Scalley has a fairly promising quartet of safeties. Obviously, things will need to translate on game days but as it stands now, it seems that there will be depth as well as the ability to mix and match to find the best matchups depending on the opponent. That could be a significant dynamic that Scalley utilizes this season.

Utah Football Schedule

Utah will kick off the season against Southern Utah on August 29. You can find Utah football’s conference schedule here.

Steve Bartle is the Utah insider for KSL Sports. He hosts The Utah Blockcast (SUBSCRIBE) and appears on KSL Sports Zone to break down the Utes. You can follow him on X for the latest Utah updates and game analysis.

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