Bingham, Timpview and Dixie claim 2014 Utah high school football titles

SALT LAKE CITY – Domination has characterized Bingham (South Jordan) on both sides of the ball all season. The Miners have shut down opponents all season by forcing turnovers and getting stops on defense while controlling the ball on offense.

Bingham did nothing to deviate from that blueprint in the Class 5A championship game. The Miners, ranked No. 16 nationally, forced three turnovers and never trailed en route to beating American Fork 20-3 on Friday afternoon.

Cameron Smith rushed for 192 yards and two touchdowns on a state-record 37 carries to help Bingham (13-1) clinch its second-consecutive state title. Tanner Smith threw for 223 yards and an interception on 18 of 32 passing to lead the Cavemen (11-3), who fell short of claiming their first football state title since 1962.

Bingham put a defensive stamp on the action starting in the first half. The Miners allowed American Fork to accumulate just 100 yards before halftime and forced a fumble deep in the red zone to keep the Cavemen off the scoreboard.

Bingham struck first, going up 3-0 on Chayden Johnston's 24-yard field goal midway through the first quarter. The Miners made it 10-0 when Cameron Smith stretched across the goal line to cap a 15 yard run with 8:10 left in the second quarter.

American Fork had a chance to cut it to three points again just before halftime. The Cavemen looked poised to score after reaching the Bingham 10-yard line. Then Nate Heaps fumbled a pass at the 2 yard line when Simote Lokotui jarred the ball loose after hitting Heaps. The ball bounced across the turf and out of the end zone for a touchback.

"That was huge because if they go in and score there, they go in with some momentum," Bingham coach Dave Peck said. "But you know what? They didn't get it. We came up and we made a play. That's football."

Bingham boosted its lead to 17-0 after Smith capped off the Miners' initial third quarter drive with a 6 yard scoring run. American Fork finally got on the board after Jackson Nadauld drilled a 34-yard field goal with 2:57 remaining in the quarter. The Cavemen were forced to settle for a field goal after three straight sacks by Bingham stalled the drive.

The Miners responded with a 34-yard field goal to go up 20-3 early in the fourth. American Fork drove into Bingham territory once more during the quarter, but Chase Messervy picked off Tanner Smith at the Miner 18-yard line with 8:09 left to put the finishing touches on the win.

"Our defense did a great job," Smith said. "They really stepped it up. Even when it was in the red zone – that's when they really stepped it up."

Dixie (St. George) 27, Hurricane 19

Explosive offense has defined Dixie all season. With a state championship on the line, defense took its turn ruling the day for the Flyers.

Dixie forced a pair of fourth quarter turnovers and did not allow Hurricane to convert a third down until the final quarter. It helped the Flyers claim a victory on Friday afternoon and win a Class 3AA title for the second time in three years.

Hurricane (8-6) struggled to move the chains throughout most of the game. The Tigers generated 357 yards offensively and converted just 3 of 13 third downs.

Dixie (10-4) only generated 333 yards of total offense – led by Ammon Takau, who passed for 199 yards and two touchdowns and rushed for 54 yards. But the Flyers did enough defensively to hold off Hurricane in the final minutes.

Trailing 17-6 entering the fourth quarter, Hurricane did not convert a third down until Kyle Williams hauled in a 31 yard pass on the opening play of the quarter. It helped set up 5-yard scoring run up the middle by Jeremiah Ieremia, cutting Dixie's lead to 17-12.

The Flyers quickly regained momentum when Jaden Harrison picked off a pass to set Dixie up with the ball at its own 43. On the next play, Tre Miller raced 57 yards up the middle untouched to make it 24-12 with 8:52 left.

Hurricane quarterback Josh Parker coughed up the ball following a sack on Hurricane's next drive. Namu Stevenson recovered it at the Tiger 13, setting up a 32 yard field goal from McLane Keenan to give Dixie a two touchdown lead.

Hurricane cut it to 27-19 on a 10-yard pass from Parker to Noah Elison with 3:16 left. Dixie recovered the onside kick, but was forced to punt three plays later. The Tigers drove down into Flyer territory, but Rj Wilgar intercepted a pass with 1:51 left to secure the win for Dixie.

"We knew it was going to come down to us and it did," Wilgar said. "The last drive it came down to us and I was just telling my brothers on the field, 'This is (on) us. Defense wins championships.' We were fortunate enough to make a play and give our offense back the ball to run out the time."

Dixie partially blocked a Hurricane punt midway through the first quarter. The ball traveled 2 yards and gave the Flyers favorable field position at their own 43. It set up a 26-yard pass from Takau to Logan Schweitzer that gave Dixie a 7-0 lead.

After Hurricane added a 25-yard field goal from Jd Stanworth, the Flyers extended their lead to 14-3 when Takau connected with Harrison on a 7-yard pass with 9:09 left in the second quarter.

Stanworth added a 28-yard field goal before halftime and Keenan connected on a 29 yarder in the third quarter to make it 17-6 for Dixie at the end of the third.

Timpview (Provo) 28, Roy 7

It took a half for Timpview to get going on offense. Once the Thunderbirds did, they scored 28 unanswered second-half points to cap a perfect season with a 28-7 victory over Roy on Friday night. The win gave the T-Birds their third-consecutive Class 4A title.

Senior quarterback Britain Covey helped Timpview (14-0) shake off a tough Roy defense. Covey rushed for 140 yards on 21 carries and threw a pair of touchdown passes. Royals quarterback Tyler Skidmore threw for 185 yards and three interceptions. It marked the first loss of the season for Roy (12-1), which fell short of claiming its first state title since 1981.

Roy shut down Timpview's offense during the first half. The Royals allowed just 65 total yards and sacked Covey five times to stop multiple T-Bird drives. It led to the T-Birds being held scoreless before halftime for the first time since 2007.

Roy wasn't able to do much offensively to take advantage. The Royals scored their only touchdown in the first quarter when Skidmore connected with Baby Tee Eteuati on a 14-yard pass to make it 7-0.

Timpview tied it at seven when Covey threw a 12-yard TD pass to Jordan Espinoza to cap off the T-Birds' opening third-quarter drive. After forcing a Roy punt on the next series, Timpview went ahead 14-7 when Will Watanabe returned a punt 68 yards for a touchdown.

Covey found Samson Nacua on a 9-yard score for his second touchdown pass early in the fourth quarter. Then Tristan Bradley punched it in from 2 yards out on the next series to give Timpview a three touchdown lead with 6:08 remaining.

John Coon covers Utah high school sports for MaxPreps. You can contact him at john_coon@hotmail.com and you can follow him on Twitter at @johncoonsports