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South Jordan • At the beginning of every fourth quarter, Bingham coach Dave Peck issues a "Call four!" order and every Miner football player puts his arm in the air and shouts four.

The tradition has served Utah's top Class 5A football team well.

That's what happened Friday as Bingham captured a 36-6 quarterfinal victory over rival Herriman to advance to next week's 11 a.m. semifinal game at Rice-Eccles Stadium against Riverton.

"This is Bingham football," said Peck, whose top-ranked team scored three touchdowns in less than three minutes in the fourth quarter after only leading 9-6 on three Chayden Johnston field goals. "I think we have lost one game here in seven years. We have a big home-field advantage. Part of that is we lost a game to Alta in 2008 in the fourth quarter. Every workout we do starting in the offseason, we end workouts with a four call. That means finish with our best effort. In the weight room, we go to failure. It happens in January on a daily basis. We will not lose this game in the fourth quarter. It is the mentality, and the kids bought into it. It has meant something for months and months. We yell 'four' and say it loud. You know what we have put in."

There had to be some nervousness on the Bingham sideline after a first half in which only a pair of Daniel Langi fumble recoveries kept Herriman from perhaps leading by two touchdowns.

"There is always some nervousness when you are playing your biggest rival," said Bingham quarterback Kyle Gearig.

But the Miner quarterback, who may not be as flashy or put up as big of stats as other signal-callers, but certainly can match his career with any of them, finally figured things out quickly.

After a 44-yard third quarter field goal by Johnston gave Bingham the lead going into the fourth quarter, Gearig found Cameron Smith for a 26-yard touchdown pass to open the fourth quarter, seconds after the Miners "four" call on the sideline. Bingham forced a quick punt and Gearig raced 57 yards for a touchdown. Then Parker Workman picked up a fumble and ran it seven yards for a score. In less than three minutes, a 9-6 game was suddenly a 29-6 blowout.

"We were on the verge of breaking their will the whole entire game," said Gearig. "I finally listened to my coach [on that run]. I ran outside and then cut it inside. It's amazing what happens when you listen to your coaches."

There is nothing fancy about a Bingham team that seems determined to defend its 5A title. In fact, Peck said a University of Utah coach told him that "nobody grinds like you do."

"How can you not be nervous," Peck said about his feelings at halftime when the game was tied 6-6 after Herriman scored the game's only touchdown at that point on an 18-yard pass from Braydon Kener to Isilei Leakehe. "They are a good football team. I honestly felt like they were a team that could potentially win a state championship. Once we got it rolling, we started to get that swagger on our own field. It's a special thing. We're not real flashy on either side of the ball. We keep coming. I'm kind of proud of it. It's not necessarily the most fancy stuff. But we grind out a lot of wins with our attitude and the way we go about things."

Bingham's defense, which forced five turnovers, was simply dominating in the second half, as Herriman struggled to get anything going. Then, at the start of the fourth quarter, the Miners simply put it away. Trying to avoid injuries and get some experience, Peck put in his second team late in the quarter. Backup quarterback Ben Boulter capped the scoring with a one-yard run.

The Miners aren't flashy. But they may easily be the most fundamentally sound team in Utah. It will take an amazing effort to beat them.

wharton@sltrib.com Twitter: @tribtomwharton —

Bingham 36, Herriman 6

O Kyle Gearig tosses a touchdown pass and then runs 57 yards for another score to help Bingham break away from a 9-6 lead in the fourth quarter.

• Bingham's defense forces five turnovers.

• Herriman scores the only touchdown of the first half, but the Mustangs are stymied by the Miners' defense in the second half.