Week 2 of high school football in Region 9 saw better results…for most schools.
Five of the region’s seven teams finished Friday night by adding a W to their record. However, for Snow Canyon High School and Cedar High School, this was not the case.
This week we will start with the good news:
Hurricane Tigers (2-0):
Hurricane 48, West Jordan 36
The Good News: The 3A state runner-up Hurricane Tigers are once again proving that they’re a perennial power house in southern Utah. If beating up on 5A West Jordan isn’t enough to make that claim, how about the fact that they beat up the Jaguars without their starting quarterback Taylor Parker? Parker was out due to a shoulder injury suffered in the Tigers’ season opener against Skyline.
Defense is the name of the game for the Tigers. They forced four fumbles and picked off three passes against the Jaguars on Friday night. Despite Parker’s absence, Hurricane was still effective on the offensive side of the ball, led by running back Brian Scott, who carried the ball 24 times for 182 yards and four touchdowns.
Hurricane looks to keep their perfect 2-0 record alive next week as they host 3A Tooele.
Dixie Flyers (2-0):
Dixie 59, River Valley, Ariz. 7
The Good News: In their two games so far, the Dixie Flyers have outscored their opponents 100-42. Blake Barney has been on an absolute tear through their first two games. On the season Barney has completed 32 of 49 passes for 659 yards through the air. He’s connected for seven touchdowns and zero interceptions. Against River Valley Barney was 12-for-15 for 315 yards and three touchdown passes, all of which were to receiver Tadd Challis. Challis notched 227 yards on five catches.
Needless to say, Dixie’s offense has been more than efficient through two games. But their defense has also played very well. They didn’t give up a point Friday night until 14 seconds remained in the game. Penalties were a factor, though. The Flyers gave up more yards on penalties in the first half than their defense allowed.
The Flyers are soaring right now, and will look to keep gaining altitude next week against Uintah. The game will be played at Snow College.
Canyon View Falcons (2-0):
Canyon View 22, Richfield 20
The Good News: Canyon View’s defense was a crucial factor behind their win. Nathaniel Hansen recorded 12 solo tackles and assisted on 10 tackles. The Canyon View running core was led by Dakota Marshall, who ran for 91 yards on 15 carries and 3 touchdowns. Quarterback Kameron King threw for 53 yards and carried the ball 11 times for 73 yards.
The Falcons are off to an impressive 2-0 start with wins over Juab and now Richfield. They will look to add to their momentum as they head into their week 3 bye, before their matchup the following week on the road against Desert Hills.
Pine View Panthers (1-1):
Pine View 46, Desert Pines, Nev. 16
The Good News: After a heartbreaking loss in week one to 4A East, where the panthers lost by only eight points in a back-and-forth battle, Pine View was able to win big on the road in Nevada. The Panthers headed to Las Vegas to face the Jaguars of Desert Pines.
Neither team scored in the first period of play, but the Panther offense was more than efficient in the remaining three quarters, putting up 46 points in that span. Quarterback Braxton Peterson was 8-of-13 through the air, throwing one touchdown, with one interception. Peterson also scored twice on the ground. Kody Wilstead, who also stepped in at quarterback, was 5-of-9 for 91 yards and two touchdowns, with one interception. Jake Arslanian was on the receiving end of eight of those passes, gaining 160 yards and scoring twice. Prentiss Miller led the Panther running core with 19 carries for 204 yards and two touchdowns.
The Panthers look to build on their win this weekend when they head to Salem Hills to take on the 0-2 Skyhawks.
Desert Hills Thunder (1-1):
Desert Hills 24, Moapa Valley, Nev. 0
The Good News:
The Thunder roared Friday night. Coming off a heartbreaking loss against Syracuse in week one, Desert Hills bounced back to shut out the Pirates of Moapa Valley. Mike Needham led the Thunder on both the passing and receiving fronts. Needham ran the ball 13 times for 171 yards with one touchdown. Needham also caught two passes for 40 yards, and one score. Peter Brown led the Thunder defense with 11 tackles and one interception.
The Thunder travel to Mt. Pleasant this week to take on the 1-1 Hawks of North Sanpete.
Cedar Redmen (0-2):
Cedar 7, Highland 41
The Bad News: It was a rough game for the Redmen on Friday night. The Highland Rams put up 41 points in the first half of the game. Highland jumped out of the gate early, when Justin Weaver recovered a fumble and returned it 82 yards to the house. At that moment it seemed all the figurative air in Cedar’s figurative balloon was deflated. The Redmen were never able to get it going. Their only score came in the fourth quarter, when Kaylan Anderson had a big run for Cedar.
The Redmen have been outscored 74-7 in their two games, which goes to show that neither their offense nor defense are getting it done.
The Redmen will look to get into the win column Friday when they host 0-2 Skyline. Skyline has lost to Hurricane and Syracuse this season.
Snow Canyon Warriors (0-2):
Snow Canyon 25, Las Vegas 30
The Bad News: The rally that was almost enough, just wasn’t enough Friday night in Las Vegas. The Warriors of Snow Canyon trailed 30-14 going into the final period of play, and despite their 11 points in the fourth they fell short. Quarterback Brayden Linde was 17-of-30 for 218 yards and two touchdowns. Connor Livingston caught seven passes for 142 yards and one touchdown.
The Warriors have the week off before taking on North Sanpete next week.
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Region 9 is looking very strong early on. Three teams are in the the Deseret News‘ 3A Power Rankings.
1.) Juan Diego 2-0
2.) Hurricane 2-0
3.) Dixie 2-0
4.) Pine View 1-1
5.) Spanish Fork 2-0
