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Lone Peak linebacker Britton Bettridge issued a message to fans awaiting the biggest game of the season between the undefeated Knights and top-ranked Bingham in the Class 5A semifinals.
"Get your popcorn ready," he said on Monday.
He should have suggested grabbing the large bucket.
Lone Peak resoundingly ended the two-time defending champs' string of 36 straight in-state wins dating back to 2012 with its 26-9 win at Rice-Eccles Stadium.
"We knew we could win this game," said Lone Peak quarterback Talmage Gunther. "We didn't come into this game feeling like, 'Oh! Big, bad Bingham.' We came in feeling like if we played our best football we could come out on top."
Trailing 26-3 late into the fourth quarter, it was the first time since Lone Peak beat Bingham, 45-24 in 2011, that the Miners (11-2) faced a deficit of more than 20 points against a Utah-based program.
The Knights punctuated a perfect 14-0 campaign that season with their first and only state championship, and this year's group will attempt to duplicate the feat against Herriman at 2:30 p.m. on Friday.
"I think the first time we played Herriman, we awakened a sleeping giant," said Lone Peak coach Mike Mower, whose team clinched the outright Region 4 championship with a 30-0 win against the Mustangs on the final week of the regular season. "That's going to be a tough ball game. They're playing great ball, but we're looking forward to it."
Considered Utah's flagship program, Bingham rarely lands on the receiving end of what transpired on Friday. Lone Peak (13-0) topped the Miners in total yards (355-289), rushing yards (107-104) and passing yards (248-185) — despite running 21 fewer plays. The Knights were 5 of 11 on third down while holding Bingham to 1 of 13 in the same scenario.
"They're as good as everyone said, but I think we came out and dominated them," Lone Peak offensive tackle Ethan Schofield said of Bingham's vaunted defensive front. "We were more physical than them."
The Miners showed success early, trekking inside Lone Peak's 10-yard line on their opening drive before settling for Kyle Mitchell's field goal. But after forcing the Knights into a second consecutive three-and-out, the complexion of the game changed drastically when Bingham quarterback Matt Degn suffered an apparent concussion on the Miners' second series.
The junior signal-caller, who was 10-0 after inheriting the starting position in Week 3, did not return to action, placing immense responsibility on backup Keaton Torre, who finished 14 of 29 for 169 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions.
Immediately after Gunther connected with Jackson McChesney for a 73-yard touchdown to furnish a 7-3 lead — the first time Bingham trailed at any juncture since Sept. 4 — the Knights corralled their first pick of Keaton, which presented a perfect opportunity to drop another bomb following the change of possession.
"We saw the defense they were in, and we called an audible straight from the line," McChesney said.
Gunther hit McChesney on nearly an identical route as the previous touchdown for a 62-yard score. The sequence delivered shockwaves to both sidelines.
"We felt that," Bettridge said. "Our swagger was back."
Gunther added another touchdown, this time with his feet, on a 1-yard plunge with 49 ticks remaining until intermission. The senior finished 11 of 19 for 248 yards and three touchdowns while adding 77 yards on the ground.
In the third quarter, the Miners were gifted life after recovering a muffed punt at Lone Peak's 23-yard line, but rather than kick the field goal on fourth-and-3 to cut the deficit to 14 points, Bingham's fourth-down attempt fell incomplete.
"The way things were going, we thought we would try to get some points on the board," said Bingham coach John Lambourne. "I actually thought there was a penalty on them. We thought it was pass interference."
Lone Peak promptly embarked on a 14-play, 97-yard drive that culminated with a 4-yard fade from Gunther to Jon Christensen, snuffing any light Bingham had remaining.
"No, I don't think so," Mower said when asked if his team felt disrespected as undefeated underdogs. "We know the great program Bingham is, and they probably deserve that attention. Our kids believe in themselves. They weren't intimidated. They came out with confidence, they knew they could win."
Twitter: @trevorphibbs —
Storylines
R Lone Peak ends Bingham's 36-game winning streak against in-state programs to advance to its first state title game since 2011.
• Quarterback Talmage Gunther finishes 11 of 19 for 248 yards and three touchdowns while adding 77 yards and a TD on the ground.
• The Knights, who face Herriman for the Class 5A state championship, defeated the Mustangs 30-0 in the final week of the regular season.