With Baytown Lee graduate Brian Johnson leading the way, Utah defeated Navy 35-32 in the Poinsettia Bowl last Thursday night, extending the Utes' bowl winning streak to seven.

Johnson, a sophomore, had one of the best games of his career as he passed for 226 yards on 20 of 25 passing. He also racked up 69 yards rushing on 11 carries as he helped lead Utah back from a 17-7 deficit.

“Anytime you face a team that has the triple option element you have be conscious that every possession you get is critical,” Johnson said. “We didn’t do that in the first half.”

This was a night he was looking forward to after battling his way through injuries the last two years and not being able to participate in Utah’s last two bowl appearances.

“We were on national television and the first bowl game so we wanted to make sure we came out and played well,” Johnson said. “We wanted the rest of the country to see what we were capable of doing as a team.”

This is exactly the type of performance many expected from Johnson when he came on the scene at Utah.

“Coach (Dick) Olin (Baytown Lee's head coach) was huge for me in my development as a quarterback,” Johnson said. “He taught me a lot about the game and I just can’t say enough about the way he develops quarterbacks.”

In high school Johnson was a first-team all-district selection and District MVP after passing for 2,900 yards and 33 touchdowns. He also excelled running the ball, scoring 12 touchdowns and compiling 540 yards.

As far as quarterbacks go, Johnson ranks among the top in almost every category in the Mountain West Conference. He is also right up there at the top when it comes to Utah’s most successful quarterbacks.

“It just kind of came together for me offensively,” Johnson said. “We had some time off before the bowl game and I was feeling pretty good health-wise.”

Johnson already is looking forward to his senior season.

“I want to stay healthy, stay injury free, and have a great senior season,” he said. “We know we have a lot of talent on this team so we just have to find a way to put it all together.”