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South Jordan • Bingham fully comprehends the stakes. The nation is watching as Bishop Gorman (Nev.), the consensus top-ranked program in America, invades South Jordan on Friday at 7 p.m.
"We're not only representing Bingham, we're representing the state of Utah — that we can play football as well as any other state," said junior defensive tackle Jay Tufele. "… It's probably the biggest game in Bingham history."
The Miners (2-0), who are ranked as high as No. 7 nationally, finished 13-2 last season, with the only two setbacks occurring against nationally-ranked out-of-state opponents: Bishop Gorman, 23-20 in overtime, and Booker T. Washington (Fla.), 34-28 in overtime. They let leads slip away in both games, which, as Tufele described: "has been stinging ever since."
"We put ourselves in position to win twice and came out empty-handed," said Bingham coach John Lambourne. "We've been emphasizing the overtime thing throughout the offseason, because our intentions are to go out and win the football game, and then let all the other things that come with that come. For us, it's that 48 minutes on the field that we need to take care of."
The majority of the national coverage this week has centered on the Gaels (1-0), who have won 25 consecutive games, and justifiably so. It's almost comical to evaluate the roster and realize it's one high school in Las Vegas. For instance, Bishop Gorman features: Tate Martell (five-star quarterback committed to Texas A&M), Tyjon Lindsey (four-star receiver), Haskell Garrett (four-star defensive end), Alex Perry (four-star corner committed to Arizona State), Biaggio Ali-Walsh (three-star running back), Bubba Bolden (three-star safety), Ikem Okeke (three-star OLB), Julio Garcia (offensive tackle committed to UNLV) and Jaron Caldwell (offensive tackled committed to UNLV).
Bingham isn't exactly devoid of talent, though, which has led to the attitude of being overlooked, a feeling certainly uncommon for the Miners.
"It's a really big game for us," said Bingham defensive end Langi Tuifua. "We have a lot of dirt on Bishop Gorman from last year. We're lookin' to come back this year and see what we can do."
More than anything, the exposure provides another opportunity for Bingham to expand its brand into national notoriety, but as Lambourne explained — exposure can also be negative if the Miners play poorly.
"I think it's awesome for Utah high school football," Lambourne said. "We've kind of been off the radar for a number of years, and we've gradually built ourselves into a little bit more national prominence — not just us, but a lot of schools that have gone out. I think it's a good thing, of course we've got to play well, or it can be a bad thing."
Twitter: @trevorphibbs —
No. 1 Bishop Gorman (Nev.) at No. 7 Bingham
P At Bingham High School, South Jordan
Friday, 7 p.m.
Ticket prices • Students: $4; adults: $6; seniors age 62 and older: free —
Friday's games
West Side, Idaho at Rich, 4 p.m.
Altamont at Parowan, 5 p.m.
Alta at Dixie, 7 p.m.
American Fork at Brighton, 7 p.m.
ALA at Grand, 7 p.m.
Bear River at Box Elder, 7 p.m.
Bishop Gorman, Nev. at Bingham, 7 p.m.
Bountiful at Syracuse, 7 p.m.
Cedar at Canyon View, 7 p.m.
Clearfield at East, 7 p.m.
Copper Hills at Cyprus, 7 p.m.
Cottonwood at Kearns, 7 p.m.
Davis at Olympus, 7 p.m.
Desert Hills at Roy, 7 p.m.
Duchesne at Diamond Ranch, 7 p.m.
Emery at Delta, 7 p.m.
Gunnison at Kanab, 7 p.m.
Herriman at Hunter, 7 p.m.
Highland at Sky View, 7 p.m.
Juab at Salem Hills, 7 p.m.
Juan Diego at Snow Canyon, 7 p.m.
Judge at Provo, 7 p.m.
Layton Christian at Carbon, 7 p.m.
Lehi at Granger, 7 p.m.
Logan at Mountain Crest, 7 p.m.
Lone Peak at West, 7 p.m.
Manti at Pine View, 7 p.m.
Maple Mtn. at North Sanpete, 7 p.m.
Millard at Beaver, 7 p.m.
Moapa at Hurricane, 7 p.m.
Monticello at Wayne, 7 p.m.
Morgan at Ben Lomond, 7 p.m.
Mountain View at Springville, 7 p.m.
Murray at Tooele, 7 p.m.
North Sevier at Milford, 7 p.m.
North Summit at Enterprise, 7 p.m.
Northridge at Layton, 7 p.m.
Orem at Wasatch, 7 p.m.
Payson at Ogden, 7 p.m.
Pleasant Grove at Jordan, 7 p.m.
Richfield at San Juan, 7 p.m.
Riverton at Fremont, 7 p.m.
Skyline at West Jordan, 7 p.m.
South Summit at Park City, 7 p.m.
Stansbury at Grantsville, 7 p.m.
Summit Academy at South Sevier, 7 p.m.
Timpview at Taylorsville, 7 p.m.
Uintah at Union, 7 p.m.
Viewmont at Woods Cross, 7 p.m.
Weber at Bonneville, 7 p.m.
Westlake at Hillcrest, 7 p.m.