Kyle Whittingham said Utah made the call early in the week; Luke Bottari was going to be the starter at quarterback for the Utes in their final regular season game against Colorado. And Bottari got the majority of the first-team reps throughout the week as a result.

Bryson Barnes was not available due to injury. Whittingham said he “got banged up pretty good” in the loss to Arizona in Week 12 and they concluded shortly after returning to Salt Lake City that he wouldn’t be ready to go by Saturday.

Then, on Monday, Whittingham said the staff learned redshirt freshman quarterback Nate Johnson had decided to enter the transfer portal.

“We wish him well. We appreciate what he did for our program while he was here,” Whittingham said after Saturday’s 23-17 win over Colorado. “He’s a fine young man and I wish him nothing but the best.”

Johnson played in seven games this season for Utah, completing 39 of his 72 passes for 499 yards and three touchdowns. He added 232 rushing yards and four touchdowns on the ground. He was briefly a starter, but lost the job for good after the Oregon State loss.

With Cameron Rising returning for the 2024 season, attrition was expected in the quarterback room.

But Johnson’s decision meant Utah was seriously shorthanded at quarterback for its regular season finale.

Bottari completed six of his 10 passes for 61 yards. He added five rushing attempts and two touchdowns on the ground.

Whittingham said Ja’Quinden Jackson would have been the emergency quarterback option if Bottari had been unavailable. The Utes are looking to keep a medical redshirt intact for Brandon Rose, and putting him into the game would have jeopardized that.

“Rose had a small package that he was ready to execute, just a handful of plays, as was Ja’Quinden,” Whittingham said.

Whittingham said Utah turned to Bottari and not Rose because Rose had spent his entire season working with the scout team. Bottari had been in team meetings and knew the offense inside and out.

“It’s not a lack of confidence in Brandon Rose, it just wouldn’t have been fair to him to put him in the game in that situation without having had the entire season to continue to assimilate the offense and progress,” Whittingham said. “So, Luke was the guy and did a nice job running the offense. It wasn’t very flashy, but he did what we needed him to do.”

Utah expects Barnes to be healthy and available for whatever bowl game the team is selected to participate in.

“It’s nothing we believe is long-term. I guess that remains to be seen but he is making progress,” Whittingham said. “With the timing of the bowl, of course a later bowl game gives him more time to prep. But I think regardless, even if it’s one of the earlier ones, that he would be ready to go. That’s what we’re hoping for.”