What’s different as Morgan Scalley opens his 1st spring camp as Utah football coach?

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The vibes were a bit different than in years past as Utah opened spring camp on an uncharacteristically warm March Thursday.

The weather hit 80 degrees, but something else beside heat was in the air as the Utes embarked on their first practice — the sound of music blasting from the field.

“The music is real cool. We didn’t have it last year. This year we have it and it just makes everything 10 times funner, better. It’s just like, ‘OK, let’s dance together, let’s get a groove and then go on the field and handle business,’” running back Wayshawn Parker said.

Thursday marked the first time since 2004 that someone other than Kyle Whittingham is leading the Utes into spring practice. Though he already has a Las Vegas Bowl win under his belt, this is Morgan Scalley’s first spring camp as Utah’s new head coach, and an it’s important time to put his stamp on what the program will look like under him.

That process started back in winter workouts and will continue every day.

“It’s important every day. It is important every day,” Scalley said. ”Culture is not just words on walls. You have to practice it and you promote it when you see it.

“When we see the behavior that we’re asking for, man, you got to shout it to the rooftops, and then don’t permit anything that’s counter to your culture, so it’s a daily thing and you’ll hear that from the players as well. If you’re just talking about it once a week, then it’s really not culture. It’s fake.”

Indeed, each player who was interviewed on Thursday talked about the culture Scalley implemented as a defensive coordinator that is now team-wide — RSNB, which stands for “Relentless, Smart, Nasty, Ballhawks.”

“That’s what he’s instilled into the team since Day 1. Coach Whitt had his way of doing things. Loved coach Whitt. He was awesome. He was one of the best to ever do it. Scalley has implemented it in a different way,” said safety Jackson Bennee.

“Similar tough-mindset culture, but I love the direction he’s putting this program in, and he’s just a winner, man. He really will do whatever it takes to win. He definitely leads by example, and I look up to coach Scalley a lot.”

Scalley is going to do certain things his way, but there are going to be similarities between the program Scalley will run and the one Whittingham ran, which is a positive for Utah.

Utah’s new coach was his usual high-energy self on Thursday, something quarterback Devon Dampier is a fan of.

“That energy, it’s all energy. I really love that about Scalley because that’s how I am — to bring energy every day, to be consistent, to want the best out of the team and just knowing how to be smart, but also push our team to our full limits," Dampier said.

“That’s what he’s doing and he’s doing a great job so far.”

The biggest difference for Scalley himself in his first spring practice as the head man?

“I don’t get to teach as much. I’m not a position coach, so I try as much as I can to get out there and teach what I can teach,” Scalley said.

“It’s more not what we’re doing, but how we’re doing it, making sure that the effort’s there in all aspects, that the culture is … everyone’s being held accountable to the same standard. My role is different. Still have the same energy, the same passion, but I don’t have a position group.”

Thursday was also the first spring practice at Utah for new offensive coordinator Kevin McGiven, the former Utah State play-caller who replaces Jason Beck, who joined Whittingham at Michigan.

Offensive install has been happening since the winter, so Utah was able to hit the ground running on the first day of spring as the team continues to perfect McGiven’s offense.

“When you’re talking alignment, assignment technique, that’s kind of the progress. Align correctly, align with speed. OK? What’s my assignment? Master my technique, and then the rest of it is just reps, reps, reps, reps, reps,” Scalley said.

“Building a skill takes time and effort, and that’s why we’re out here doing this, but I’m pleased because a lot of the stuff that we did during the offseason, too, was to prepare for today.

“This isn’t the first time they’ve lined up in formations, so we’ve been getting ready for this moment. Coach McGiven and that staff’s done a great job.”

The early reviews from Dampier on his new offense are positive. One selling point about McGiven’s offense was its similarity to what Beck ran last year at Utah.

“He’s one of those guys that he does what’s best for the team and he fits the offense around his players,” Dampier said of McGiven. “He starts that off with me, what I do best, and we go from there with our O-line and then what our receivers do best and we put them in the best situations possible, so I’ve been really happy with the offense. I’m here with a smile on my face, so I’m happy about the process.”

Dampier, who threw for 2,490 yards and 24 touchdowns and rushed for 835 yards and 10 scores while helping Utah to an 11-2 record last season, isn’t at 100% health as spring camp opens, but is practicing and is digesting the new offense.

“The first thing with him is making sure he’s fully healthy, which he’s not there yet, but we want to see progress,” Scalley said. “There’s some different things that we’re asking in this offense, maybe a little bit more in terms of reads and stuff like that, but he is so smart, so football savvy that he enjoys the challenge of that.

“He’s very smart picking up scheme, but the main thing is getting him healthy to the point where he can be as dynamic as we know he can be.”

Until pads go on, there’s not a lot to take away from the first week of spring ball, but one thing Scalley is looking for is effort, and he found that in spades on Thursday.

“Relentless. You’re going to make mistakes. Make them full speed. We can teach. We can learn from those. Learn from your mistakes. Don’t make the same mistakes twice, but effort makes up for a lot in a lot of aspects of your game,” Scalley said.

“People talk about luck. You make your luck a lot of time by the way you work. Ball’s on the ground and a guy’s there to pick it up. Oh, how lucky, how fortunate. No, he was running to the ball. He was there for a reason, so I think you make your own luck, and all coaches, all players understand that that’s the first word in our culture for a reason, and we’re going to hold our guys accountable to it. ”

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