This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2012, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
It will be another busy day on the hill for the Utah Utes as they are expected to announce Brian Johnson's hiring as the new offensive coordinator before 9 a.m. today. Johnson, who has just two years of coaching experience, replaces the 65-year-old Norm Chow, who left after just one season to become the head coach at Hawaii. While Johnson is one of the least experienced coaches on Utah's staff, Whittingham frequently has spoken highly of the former quarterback's feel for the game. Still, the hiring would be a surprise, considering Whittingham said he had more than 70 coaches apply for the position. However, the hiring of Johnson would make for a smooth transition back to more of a spread offense, a change the Utes are expected to make. He also becomes the fifth coach to serve as coordinator under Whittingham, following Andy Ludwig, Dave Schramm, Aaron Roderick and Chow. It's unclear how the hiring of Johnson will affect Roderick's role with the Utes. Roderick, who shared co-offensive coordinator duties with Schramm in 2010, coached the receivers in 2011.