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Last Saturday, the Utah football team played before fans for the first time since 2019 in the spring game at Rice-Eccles Stadium.
A crowd of 6,500 attended the event and the Utes loved the atmosphere. And in his Utah debut, Baylor transfer quarterback Charlie Brewer achieved perfection, completing 15 of 15 passes for 151 yards and two touchdowns.
“He’s a quick decision-maker, he’s accurate, he gets the ball out of his hand quickly,” coach Kyle Whittingham said. “He does a good job protecting the football. What you saw today was what we’ve been seeing all spring long.”
And with that, the Utes concluded spring practices with plenty of optimism.
Two days later, former Utah quarterback Alex Smith announced his retirement from the National Football League.
Not only did Smith enjoy remarkable success in the NFL, but he also battled back from a life-threatening leg injury to earn NFL Comeback Player of the Year in 2020.
“Even though I’ve got plenty of snaps left in me, after 16 years of giving this game everything I’ve got, I can’t wait to see what else is possible,” Smith said in an Instagram video. “But first, I am going to take a little time to enjoy a few of those walks with my wife, and my kids have no idea what’s coming for them in the backyard.”
Numbers game
16: Years Alex Smith played in the National Football League.
99-67-1: Alex Smith’s record as a starter during his NFL career.
35,650: Yards thrown by Alex Smith in his NFL career.
From the archives
Extra points
- The Britain Covey story (Deseret News)
- Jantunen turning pro (Deseret News)
- O’Keefe wins 2 NCAA titles (Deseret News)
- Brewer shines in spring game (Deseret News)
- Riley Battin returns to Runnin’ Utes (Deseret News)
Fanalyst
Comments from Deseret News readers
We’ll go as far as our OL takes us, because we’re solid everywhere else, including added WR depth this Summer. It’s encouraging to see a guy like Bam progress as well as he has, because we’re going to depend on that playable depth come Fall. And Curry’s precisely the sort of RB we need to absolutely pound opponents in the 4th qtr to put games away....He’ll be dang good during quarters 1-3, too. Man, we’re absolutely loaded. GO UTES!
— AZUTE5
Absolute legend. As a BYU fan, I have nothing bad to say about Alex Smith. He was an all-timer in college, a true professional and class act in the NFL, and had one of the most epic comeback stories in pro sports history.
— GeneralKenobi
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