This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2015, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Cottonwood Heights • Call Brighton's football team resilient.
Playing with a third-string quarterback, surviving miscues and turnovers and braving repeated American Fork comebacks, the unbeaten Bengals held on for a 28-27 victory Friday night.
The victory that included an 85-yard punt return and a 62-yard scoring pass reception by Brighton star Simi Fehoko somewhat avenged a 58-28 thrashing the Cavemen gave to the Bengals in the 5A semifinals a year ago.
In the end, it came down to American Fork kicker Brock Hughes bouncing an extra point attempt off the uprights as he battled the wind after Nathan Honey scored on a two-yard run to nearly bring the Cavemen back from a 28-14 deficit.
This game had the drama of a big Brighton touchdown being called back on a penalty to set up American Fork quarterback Tanner Smith's fourth quarter heroics that came up just short.
It finally took Brighton's Max Hoole intercepting a tipped pass with 1:51 to play to secure the victory.
Andrew Covey, the Bengals' third-string quarterback, made the big plays when his team needed them, hitting Fehoko for the 62-yard touchdown and some key passes.
Fehoko compared his team to Ohio State, which won the NCAA title with a third-string quarterback earlier in the year.
"It is good," he smiled. "We're like Ohio State with our third-string quarterback. The wind was a huge factor."
Indeed, Brighton coach Ryan Bullet said the combination of the wind and using an inexperienced quarterback forced him to grind it out a bit, with Sione Lund scoring on two short runs and a two-point conversion that proved the difference in the game, and Kimball Reece doing some bruising running.
"We didn't throw the ball," said Bullet, who was upset with what he called some selfish play that hurt his team. "We went to our power running game. Our offensive line played well. We are resilient. We're down to our third-string quarterback and we keep winning."
Give American Fork, which dropped to 1-2 on the season, credit with some great comebacks. Smith proved why he is one of the state's top quarterbacks with some great passing in windy conditions and Honey provided needed ground support.
In the end, Fehoko and some big turnovers kept Brighton unbeaten and rolling into league play next week.
Twitter: @tribtomwharton —
Storylines
R Brighton's Simi Fehoko returns a punt 85 yards for one touchdown and catches a 62-yard scoring pass from third-stringer Andrew Covey to keep the Bengals unbeaten.
• Tanner Smith throws two TDs and Nate Honey runs for two other as American Fork comes up just short when an extra point kick hits the uprights.
• Brighton stays unbeaten and avenges a 58-28 loss to the Cavemen in last year's 5A semifinals.