After Kenan Johnson’s season-ending injury, who will step up at cornerback for Utes?

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Thirteen snaps into his Utah debut, cornerback Kenan Johnson ’s season came to an end.

Johnson went down away from the play, remained on the field for a while while trainers evaluated him, and was helped off the turf without being able to put any weight on his leg.

Later, he was seen using crutches and wearing a knee brace, and on Monday, Utah coach Kyle Whittingham confirmed that Johnson’s injury was season-ending.

It was a tough ending for the Georgia Tech transfer, who arrived in Salt Lake City this winter, wholeheartedly bought into the program, and quickly rose to become Utah’s starter at cornerback opposite Zemaiah Vaughn.

“He’s done nothing but put everything into this program, the culture, the way we do things. So I love that kid. He’s going to come back stronger,” defensive coordinator Morgan Scalley said.

The fifth-year senior would be eligible for a medical redshirt if he wants it, and though no firm decisions have been made yet, Johnson’s mindset is to return to Utah for the 2025 season.

“You bet. That’s kind of his mindset. So right now, let’s just, let’s focus on the surgery, let’s focus on the rehab,” Scalley said. “Who knows where a kid’s mind is at this point, but for right now, that’s what the hope is.”

In the meantime, the Utes have to replace Johnson for the rest of the season, and while the position group was a little bit thin following fall camp, Scalley is confident in his options.

One player that will be on the field for pretty much every snap, aside from Vaughn, will be Smith Snowden . The sophomore cornerback impressed in Thursday’s game, starting at nickel and finishing with four tackles, including a team-high two tackles for loss.

“I try and prepare as if I’m playing nickel or as if I’m playing corner,” Snowden said. “So every game I feel like I feel confident whether I’m playing the inside or the outside.”

Now, his role will expand, moving to outside cornerback — where he played a few snaps against Southern Utah — more frequently.

“Smith Snowden, he’s a football player, so it’s really not just like a nickel or corner. He plays all positions,” cornerback Cameron Calhoun said. “I like to say Smith wears that ‘S’ on his chest just because I like to think that Smith is our do-it-all on the defense.”

Michigan transfer Cameron Calhoun — a redshirt freshman who played sparingly on the Wolverines’ 2023 national championship team — arrived in Salt Lake City ahead of spring camp as a capable backup, already polished from a year in Ann Arbor.

“Cam’s a great athlete. He’s a lockdown corner, and I feel confident about Cam’s ability to play corner and ability to make plays,” Snowden said.

He was listed as the backup to both outside cornerback spots when Utah’s first depth chart was released, but didn’t fully rejoin the team in practice until this week, when he was cleared to return following offseason surgery that cost him some of the summer and fall camp.

Calhoun is healthy now, and his experience during spring camp learning Scalley’s defense definitely helps. Though he is still getting back up to speed after missing a significant amount of time, he’s also a candidate to see the field during Saturday’s matchup against Baylor.

“Just feeling good to just be just back in the mix, back practicing with the team and yeah, I’m feeling fired up about this week,” Calhoun said.

Don’t forget about sophomore Elijah “Scooby” Davis, who was the first player off the bench for the Utes when Johnson went down.

The moment when a teammate suffers an injury — especially one that ends their season — is a tough one for players, who have been working with them from winter to fall to prepare for the year.

“When KJ went down, yeah, that was kind of hard. Shedded a tear for him,” Davis said.

After that emotional moment, Davis’ number was called, and he knew that Southern Utah was going to target him as the new guy on the field.

“Just thinking they’re going to come at me and don’t lose this game because of me,” he said.

Davis didn’t allow a reception during his 28 snaps on the field, played good coverage, and even had Utah’s first takeaway of the season — jumping in front of SUU running back Targhee Lambson’s route and picking it off.

“It felt great. It felt real good,” Davis said. “I get a lot in practice, but to get one in the game, that felt amazing.”

In his third season in the program, Davis has played sparingly on defense, but is getting his opportunity now.

“Coming to practice every day, going hard, just practicing like I am a (No.) 1. So just be ready when your time comes, when your number’s called,” Davis said.

Those three players — Snowden, Calhoun and Davis — will help fill the void for Johnson, and Utah may use a mixture of those three players on Saturday until they have one that stands out and nabs the lion’s share of the reps opposite Vaughn.

All of those options are relatively untested in game action, aside from Snowden, who has logged 161 career snaps. But Whittingham feels comfortable with the group.

“We still feel like we’ve got a good group of corners,” Whittingham said. “Hopefully don’t take too many more hits, but we feel like we’re in good shape right now. We should be able to be very competitive out there.”

If that standout corner on the outside is to be Snowden, Utah could compensate for him at nickel in one of two ways: by elevating freshman nickel backup Quimari Shemwell, or one of the other cornerbacks, to the starter at the position or by moving Tao Johnson, who started at nickel last year but is now at free safety, back to his old position.

The competition level ramps up now with Baylor coming to town, and one thing that stands out about the Bears, Scalley says, are their skill players — dual-threat quarterback Dequan Finn and wide receivers like Ashtyn Hawkins, who made the 2024 Biletnikoff Award watch list, Ketron Jackson Jr. and Monaray Baldwin.

After a disappointing season last year, Baylor fired offensive coordinator Jeff Grimes and brought in Cal OC Jake Spavital to revamp the offense.

Whichever players Utah puts out there at cornerback will face a much tougher test than Thursday’s game.

“Their skill players are legit. The quarterback is a dual threat. The running backs have speed, so it’s a much improved offense from a year ago for them,” Scalley said.

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