This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2011, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Utah sophomore Brian Blechen has been a safety, then a linebacker and now he is both.
Blechen, who played at linebacker and safety in Saturday's loss to Arizona State, will remain in a fluid role the rest of the year, Utah coach Kyle Whittingham said.
Blechen was moved to linebacker for the 2011 season when he started to put on too much muscle in offseason workouts to play as fast as the Utes wanted him to at safety.
However, the 6-foot-2, 230-pounder still has the skills the Utes need at safety for some teams such as Arizona State.
The Utes are also moving linebacker Trevor Reilly between the role of linebacker and defensive end.
Their versatility allows the Utes to give opponents a lot of different looks, Whittingham said.
"It's a personnel decision as the scheme dictates," he said. "He'll [Blechen] be at both positions again this week and Trevor Reilly, too. Depending on the schemes, we'll plug them in and go the rest of the season like that."
Durable QB
Utah offensive lineman Tony Bergstrom entertained media members Tuesday with his thoughts on Utah quarterback Jon Hays, a guy he believes is durable enough to last the rest of the season.
"It's not like Jordan [Wynn] or the Brian Johnson situation where you just want to sit in the pocket and rub their joints with Milk of Magnesia and hang out for a while," he said.
This and that
Utah's game at Cal will start at 5 p.m. MST on Oct. 22 and will be televised by KJZZ and Comcast Sportsnet Bay Area, Utah has announced. … Pitt has recorded at least one sack in each of the past 18 games. The last team to deny the Panthers a sack was Utah in its 27-24 OT win in the 2010 season opener. … Pitt is 23-25 all-time against current members of the Pac-12.
Twitter: @lyawodraska