Bryson Barnes emerges as Utah’s backup quarterback after Brandon Rose injury

As of now, Utah has its backup quarterback set.

Utah coach Kyle Whittingham confirmed after Tuesday’s practice that if the Utes had to play without quarterback Cam Rising today, junior walk-on quarterback Bryson Barnes would take the field against Florida at Rice-Eccles Stadium.

The backup quarterback situation was made clearer after redshirt freshman Brandon Rose was injured last week. In an Instagram story, Rose said he had been released from the hospital and is expected to make a full recovery.

On Tuesday, Whittingham declined to give any specifics on Rose’s injury.

“Bryson Barnes is taking the majority of the reps at the ones and Nate (Johnson) is taking the majority of the twos. Cam is at practice, which is not every day but most every day. He gets a fair share of the ones in certain deals,” Whittingham said.

The quarterbacks were live (able to be hit) in Thursday’s scrimmage, something Whittingham said was necessary to evaluate Rose and Johnson, who haven’t been under center in a game, save for a few appearances by Johnson in mostly running situations.

“If you’re an established guy like Cam, you’re not going to be hit at all. If you’re a younger guy, we need to find out what your ability is to extend plays,” Whittingham said. “You don’t get a true flavor of that or a true read on that unless you make them live. You don’t know what they could have got out of them, what they could have. So it’s just a case by case basis how much we need to find out about them.”

Going forward, the quarterbacks will probably not be live for the rest of camp, Whittingham said.

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Barnes’ emergence in the backup quarterback competition was hinted at last week, with Whittingham praising him for making “less mistakes” than the other two competitors, Rose and Johnson.

“He was just making less mistakes,” Whittingham said. “He knows the offense better than the other two. He’s a little more consistent and more steady. The other two guys have bright futures, can make some spectacular plays here and there, but it’s all about taking care of the football and moving the chains.”

Last year, Barnes helped the Utes beat Washington State with Rising out. On short notice — Barnes didn’t take starting reps before that game — he was 17 for 27 and threw for 175 yards and a touchdown with no interceptions.

In the 2023 Rose Bowl, after Rising’s ACL injury in the third quarter, Barnes was inserted in during another emergency situation. He couldn’t guide the Utes to a win, passing for 175 yards and throwing a touchdown and an interception in Utah’s 35-21 loss to Penn State.

If he is indeed the starter for the Florida game, it will be the first time he has prepped during game week as the starting quarterback.

“It’s got to be the same thing you prepare for as a backup,” Barnes said last week of the mindset if he is called upon to start. “You plan, you game plan, you go through the game plan, we got our plays we’re going to run, and you just got to trust in the offense, trust in the coaching staff and the positions they’re going to put you in against their defense.”

Johnson will still have special packages for him, Whittingham said, even if Barnes is indeed the starting quarterback. It’s something we saw a bit of last year, when Johnson rushed five times for 51 yards and two touchdowns, and threw a 16-yard touchdown.

As for Rising’s status, it still hasn’t changed 16 days out from the opener. He is still a “limited participant” in fall practice. He’s throwing and working on mechanics, but isn’t going to be put in a position where he has to react to defenders or make any quick movements with his feet.

Earlier, Whittingham said that if Rising is not fully cleared by a week to the Florida game, Whittingham will “have to make some decisions.”

Tight end Brant Kuithe, who suffered an ACL injury last September, is still limited, Whittingham said on Tuesday.