LOGAN — With Diondre Borel and precious little else on the quarterback depth chart, Utah State's first official scrimmage of the spring season had a distinct look-but-don't-touch feel to it.
Borel was off limits to the defense, and because of that limitation — not to mention all the other controlled factors a scrimmage can present — the Aggies weren't at full speed as they went at it in Romney Stadium on Saturday afternoon.
Still, the scrimmage gave USU coach Gary Andersen plenty to observe. And he was pleased with what he saw.
"Overall, it was productive," Andersen said. "We showed improvement and that's what I'm looking for right now."
Andersen said it drove him a little crazy as a defensive coach to see Borel playing. He said the former player and position coach in him wanted to see sacks while the head coach in him wanted to see no one lay a finger on what is the only experienced quarterback the Aggies have in camp.
With quarterback hits off limits — including backups Jeff Fischer and Steve Vincent — the Aggies proceeded with their scrimmage and saw some big plays from the offense.
Senior running back Michael Smith broke a 80-yard touchdown run and had 211 combined yards of rushing and receiving on 12 touches.
Wide receiver Stanley Morrison, likewise, displayed his speed with a 56-yard touchdown run and a touchdown reception across the middle.
"Stanley continues to make big plays," Andersen said. "That's what we expect out of our seniors."
The USU quarterbacks had solid days, too. Borel completed 15-of-21 passes for 184 yards while Fischer had 197 yards through the air on 18-of-29 passing.
The difference between last year's spring drills — Andersen's first at USU — and this year's practices is readily evident, Borel said.
"Everybody is a lot more disciplined," USU's senior offensive leader said. "That's what we needed, to go 100 percent all the time."
Also playing a role in Saturday's scrimmage was former Utah Jazz coach Frank Layden.
After developing a relationship with Andersen when the USU coach was at Utah, Layden was invited to observe the Utah State scrimmage and speak with the team.
"I have the players' best interests in mind," Layden said, stating his emphasis on academics and that very few of them would play at the next level. "I told them 'General Motors doesn't have a team. So this is it. You've got to give it all you've got.' "
Layden also heaped compliments on the Aggies' coach.
"I like this guy," Layden said. "He's going to bring Aggie football back to where it belongs."
Utah State will continue spring practices with another scrimmage scheduled for next Saturday and an annual spring game set for April 24.
e-mail: jeborn@desnews.com