END OF THE THIRD QUARTER, Rice-Eccles Stadium: Corner Canyon 24, Mountain Ridge 14. Mountain Ridge has second and 12 from its own 18 to start the fourth. I'm at the game, and this page updates as it goes.
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Third quarter
Corner Canyon got the ball first in the second half. Harris fielded the kickoff and was tackled at about the Corner Canyon 17. Corner Canyon came out in 13 personnel, three tight ends, and Mountain Ridge again played a seven-man box. That is the whole game: if Corner Canyon cannot win one-on-one on the outside, it will not beat Mountain Ridge, and the first throw of the half it won one.
Then Corner Canyon did what we had been waiting for it to do. It hit two big deep passes in a row, covering about 80 yards of field, with just the right amount of touch on both. They were as impressive as any throws we have seen from its quarterback this season. That put the ball at the Mountain Ridge 10-yard line, first and 10, and Corner Canyon called a timeout. It burned one it may need later.
The drive did not score right away. Corner Canyon came up empty on its next shot, and Mountain Ridge called a timeout facing third and goal. Then Jaxon Pehrson threw a touchdown pass to Beckam Coon, a very physical route and a really good throw. The defender wanted an offensive pass interference call and did not get it. In my view it was a good physical route, not a foul. The extra point was good, and Corner Canyon led 24-14.
Mountain Ridge answered with its best drive since the two-minute drill. It was in rhythm, with a speed option for 13 yards by No. 45 Tyson Dunn on a good pitch from Jaxon Hunt and a call that put the defender in conflict, then a quick out for another 13. That put the ball at the Corner Canyon 12, first and 10, and Mountain Ridge lined up quickly while Corner Canyon was still getting set. Corner Canyon's Ryce Palepoi sniffed out the same option play on second and 10 and went for the pitch man. Hunt did a good job attacking the end man on the line of scrimmage.
Then Mountain Ridge tried a trick play, a reverse that was supposed to turn into a pass. The ball carrier got out of two tackles and stayed with the pass, but Josh Harris was waiting in the end zone for it. In my view it was probably the easiest interception of his life. He took a knee for a touchback, and Corner Canyon had the ball at its own 20. It was Mountain Ridge's fourth interception of the game.
Corner Canyon could not do anything with it. Mountain Ridge dialed up the pressure on third and 15, sending four rushers, and a good play call from the defense kept Corner Canyon from getting the first down. Harris punted, and Mountain Ridge took over around the 29-yard line.
Mountain Ridge got a first down on a run and had first and 10 again, then faced second and 6 at the 44 with 3:45 left in the quarter. Jaxon Hunt escaped what looked like a sack in the backfield with a really good move. Then Mountain Ridge was called for holding and faced first and 20 from its own 42.
The drive ended in another interception. Lakin Abilla, who also had the first-half interception, baited a throw and picked it off for his second of the game, and in my view he had the receiver covered the whole way, with the deep defender over the top the entire time. It was Mountain Ridge's fifth interception of the game. Corner Canyon took over with 2:34 left in the quarter and stuck with the ground game, which surprised nobody.
Corner Canyon moved the ball with a first-down gain on a curl-flat, and Mountain Ridge's Cole Uluave broke up a pass. A false start and an encroachment penalty marked the drive. Corner Canyon threw a flat route to Jackson Carruth and then punted. The snap on the punt was bad, but Harris handled it, got the kick off to the opposite side of the field and it went for a touchback. In my view it was a really good punt on a play that could have gone badly, and it is one of those plays you have to have in a game like this.
Mountain Ridge's drive from its own 20 went nowhere. Abilla made another quick play on the drive, and Mountain Ridge has second and 12 from its own 18 to start the fourth quarter. Before the game I said Corner Canyon's defensive backs were good enough to play with Mountain Ridge's receivers, and that has played out. They have done a masterful job.
How the first half went
Mountain Ridge could not have scripted a worse start. Its quarterback was intercepted on the first play of the game, and Corner Canyon took over and drove to the 4-yard line. On 4th and 1 inside the 1, the Corner Canyon quarterback appeared to score off the right side, but a timeout had been called before the snap, so the touchdown did not count. Corner Canyon ran it again, and Levi Hines scored from a yard out around the right side. Carson Burnett's extra point was good for a 7-0 lead with 8:40 left in the first.
Mountain Ridge's second possession ended in another interception, a deep ball picked off by Lakin Abilla and returned to the Mountain Ridge 15. Jackson Carruth walked in from the 1-yard line up the right side for a 14-0 lead with 6:33 left. The third possession ended in a third interception, which stood despite an unsportsmanlike conduct flag on Corner Canyon. Three possessions, three interceptions.
Mountain Ridge's defense then had its first good series. A perfectly timed blitz on 3rd and 4 at midfield forced a Corner Canyon punt with about 3:24 left. Mountain Ridge's fourth possession started inside its own 10 and ended in a punt, and Corner Canyon ended the quarter with a gain of about 20 to the Mountain Ridge 29, up 14-0.
Corner Canyon kept running at will early in the second, with a 12-yard gain outside and a first down. Mountain Ridge's linebackers were being washed inside and not filling gaps. A Corner Canyon drive stalled on 4th and 3 at the 10, and Burnett kicked a 27-yard field goal. On that drive Corner Canyon had the look it wanted in the end zone, one-on-one coverage, and its quarterback threw a perfect ball that was dropped. A touchdown there would have made it 21-0. It was 17-0 with 10:20 left in the second quarter, three scores and an extra possession ahead.
Mountain Ridge's next drive showed some life. Josh Harris smothered a flea-flicker attempt in man coverage, with no interference called, but Mountain Ridge's quarterback fumbled under pressure and recovered at his own 21, and the drive ended in a punt that Corner Canyon almost blocked.
Then came the turn. Corner Canyon turned the ball over on a sack-fumble, and Mountain Ridge took over at about the Corner Canyon 42. On the next play its quarterback got out of the pocket, bought time, and hit Jordan Claassen on an over route for a 42-yard touchdown, a perfectly placed ball. Will O'Neil's extra point made it 17-7 with 6:52 left in the half.
Corner Canyon punted, and Mountain Ridge got the ball back at about its own 22 with a first down. Its quarterback made a technical escape from pressure, stepped up in the pocket and threw a good ball, but it hit the receiver in the chest and fell incomplete. Harris then broke up another pass, blanketing a receiver who has a size advantage on him, and Palepoi made an athletic play in space. On 4th and 4, Mountain Ridge punted the ball away with 3:37 left in the half.
After a Harris punt return, Corner Canyon had the ball at its own 44 with 3:24 left, and Mountain Ridge was defending in a way that dared Corner Canyon to throw. Its safeties played low to stop the run, and it trusted its corners on the outside. Corner Canyon did not take the bait and punted from around the Mountain Ridge 49, a good kick that was fair caught at the Mountain Ridge 9.
Mountain Ridge got the ball at its own 9 with 2:00 left in the half, trailing 17-7, out of timeouts, and knowing Corner Canyon gets the ball to start the second half. After a swing pass and a run, it took a sack, which put it in 3rd and 3 at its own 16. A short in-breaking route converted it, and Mountain Ridge went to hurry-up mode with the clock stopping. Corner Canyon had trouble getting lined up in the hurry-up, and the Mountain Ridge quarterback found free access throws underneath. Corner Canyon called a timeout to get organized. It showed a split-safety look, which turned out to be cover six after it had been in cover four, and Mountain Ridge snapped the ball quickly and picked up an easy first down. That put the ball at the 40 with 43 seconds left, and Corner Canyon used a second timeout.
Then No. 7 made a great catch over the middle, and Corner Canyon was flagged 15 yards for hitting a defenseless receiver. In my view that was a bad call. The receiver was in the air and the hit was low, not to the head or neck. The penalty put the ball at the 9-yard line, first and 10 for Mountain Ridge. Hunt scored on a 9-yard run with 30 seconds left to finish a 10-play, 91-yard drive that took 1:30, and the extra point made it 17-14. Corner Canyon ran the clock out with a couple of inside runs and both teams went to the locker rooms.
Official halftime numbers
From the official halftime statistics, adjusted for one typo: the sheet lists the Mountain Ridge touchdown run as 91 yards, which was the length of the drive. The run was 9 yards, so Mountain Ridge's rushing and total offense below are 82 yards lower than the sheet prints.
- First downs: Mountain Ridge 10, Corner Canyon 5.
- Rushing: Mountain Ridge 19 carries for 76 yards, Corner Canyon 23 for 92.
- Total offense: Mountain Ridge 173 yards on 39 plays, Corner Canyon 132 on 28.
- Passing: Mountain Ridge 11 of 20 for 97 yards with three interceptions. Corner Canyon 2 of 5 for 40 yards.
- Corner Canyon's leading rusher: Jackson Carruth, 18 carries for 84 yards and a touchdown.
- Third downs: Mountain Ridge 3 of 9, Corner Canyon 1 of 6.
- Red zone: Corner Canyon 3 for 3.
- Possession: Mountain Ridge 12:37, Corner Canyon 11:23.
- Punting: Corner Canyon's Josh Harris averaged 49.3 yards on three punts, all downed inside the 20, with a long of 68.
What I'm seeing
Mountain Ridge spent the game bringing seven and eight players into the box, daring Corner Canyon to throw, and until the second half Corner Canyon had tested those one-on-one matchups about once, the dropped end-zone pass. The run game was the reason: Mountain Ridge could not stop it without extra defenders. This is a good game of chess. Corner Canyon has shown it can win the outside matchups, and it has turned that into a 10-point lead. Mountain Ridge found its rhythm on two drives in the third and has nothing to show for it.
Every Corner Canyon point in the first half came off a Mountain Ridge turnover, and Corner Canyon's own turnover handed Mountain Ridge its first touchdown. A 31-14 score would put Mountain Ridge in desperation time, so it needs a stop. I'll update this page through the fourth quarter and at the final.
Editorial note from the SPIN desk
This is opinion, not reporting, and it was written at halftime. The SPIN desk thought Corner Canyon was in trouble. It had its chance to put Mountain Ridge away early, up 17-0 with the dropped touchdown that would have made it 21-0, and it did not do it. Mountain Ridge is too good a team to give that chance to. It had weathered the storm, and the desk expected Mountain Ridge to win this game.
