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SMITHFIELD — It was a pristine, sub-80 degree summer evening in Northern Utah for the season opener for Sky View and Salem Hills.
That didn't stop cramps from being a part of the game.
Multiple players from both teams sprawled out on the field periodically throughout the evening as they grabbed their calves and writhed in pain. Cramps even got the best of junior Sky View quarterback Carson Thatcher, who hobbled off the field in the middle of the third quarter.
Fortunately for Thatcher, who was breaking in his first-ever varsity start, he left his team in a good position, leading 21-14 driving down the field. The rest of the Bobcats took care of business from there.
Junior quarterback Jace Favero stepped in and manufactured two touchdown drives and the defense broke down a fatigued Skyhawks offensive line as 4A Sky View defeated visiting 5A Salem Hills 35-14.
"That's where our depth came into play because we have kids that can step in and do a really good job and execute at a high level," Sky View coach Chris Howell said. "Carson played great tonight; he played so good. And then Jace came in and we didn't drop off at all, so I'm really proud of the two of those guys for being big-time team guys and being able to prepare for the situation."
Despite playing just a little over half the game, Thatcher finished 15-of-26 passing for 211 yards and two touchdowns. Favero was 2-for-5 for 21 yards passing. His job was made easy by senior Jaxson Bradley, who headed the run game with 24 carries for 104 yards and three touchdowns.
For Salem Hills, senior quarterback Jackson Nelson finished the night 19-of-39 passing for 287 yards and two touchdowns — a commendable effort considering much of his night was spent evading traffic or lying on his backside. Turnovers didn't help the Skyhawks either; they fumbled the ball over to the Bobcats twice and turned it over on downs three times.
"We got a lot of work. We're using guys on both sides of the field and we've got to figure out how to find a way with this young team; we have to make that work," Salem Hills coach Jeff Higginson said. "I thought our offense had sustained drives. Two of them were really nice. We had two other ones that were nice and then turned it over and gave two balls away, and so, you know, that hurts. Things just have to be cleaned up."
Despite the miscues, the Skyhawks did make the game competitive for a good while.
Late in the first quarter, Nelson found Skyhawk junior Aiden Haskell in one-on-one coverage and hit him for a 61-yard touchdown pass to tie the game 7-7. Two plays later, Thatcher responded with a near identical play and connected with Bobcat senior Michael Furgeson for a 61-yard touchdown to give Sky View the 14-7 lead.
They wouldn't relinquish it for the rest of the night.
In the second quarter, a key fourth-down run conversion on a pitch play to Jaxson followed by a 2-yard touchdown run from Jaxson extended the hosts' lead to two touchdowns. The Bobcat's defense stalled out, and juniors Carson Thatcher and Taylor Lindley recovered fumbles on back-to-back drives to maintain Sky View's 21-7 lead into halftime.
After giving up a 10-play, 77-yard touchdown drive to open the second half, the Sky View defense overwhelmed Salem Hills and sacked Nelson three times to keep Salem Hills out of the end zone.
"I thought we were really physical with their quarterback, and he's like nine-feet tall," Howell said. "We got some rush stuff out of both Casen and Taylor and Jaxson on the other side, so super proud of their effort."
After a 15-yard touchdown run from Bradley to open the fourth quarter to give Sky View a three-touchdown lead, the Skyhawks made a last-ditch effort to get back into the game, driving the ball near the red zone. But a sack from Lindley, followed by a blown-up fourth-down play that resulted in an incompletion, sealed the deal.
"We had to come out swinging in the second half and hit (Nelson)," Spackman said. "We had to punish that quarterback, make him throw some bad balls."
Thatcher, who Howell said will be good to go health-wise, will lead Sky View to Heber City to face Wasatch next week; Salem Hills will host Lehi in its home opener.
