Region 9 football: Week 1 in the books – with some crazy results

Desert Hills vs. Jordan, Football, St. George, UT, Aug. 18, 2017, | Photo by Robert Hoppie, ASPpix.com, St. George News

ESPN SportsRadio’s Devin Dixon’s favorite phrase, when it comes to local sports, is “Expect the unexpected.”

Never was that more true than Week 1 of the 2017 prep football season.

Could anyone have predicted that Desert Hills and Jordan would combine for 89 points in an overtime thriller? Did anyone realize Snow Canyon was this good – or is it too early to be sure? What about Dixie winning on the road – when Springville missed its last extra point? Or who could have known that Pine View would score 69 points (including 48 in the first half) on the road? Hurricane’s road win was a little more predictable, but no one knew that it would be a blowout. And Cedar’s heartbreaking loss to Provo happened after the Redmen made a huge conversion late in the game … and then fumbled on the next play. And finally, most of us thought Canyon View would make a better showing at home against 2A Beaver.

Expect the unexpected.

So what have we learned in Week 1?

Here are seven things, along with links to each game’s story.

  1. Desert Hills quarterback Noah Sewell, just a sophomore, is really, really good. Like, you know, really good. Like, five-touchdowns-in-his-first-game-at-quarterback good.
  2. Speaking of quarterbacks, Snow Canyon may have found its star QB in Austin Staheli. The young signal-caller showed great decision-making, hitting eight different receivers in SC’s big win.
  3. Another QB, Dixie’s Jacob Barben, isn’t new to his team, but is returning after a scary injury last season that threatened his career. Barben lit it up for 333 yards as Dixie edged past Springville.
  4. Pine View traveled further than any other team in the state of Utah to play its season opener. It wasn’t a wasted trip as Ryan Javines and Jacob Mpungi helped the Panthers rack up 69 at Green Canyon High.
  5. The Hurricane Tigers also hit the road and had no problem with Mt. View. It was the vaunted Tiger run game, led by Jaron Cordova, that ruled the night in the blowout of the Bruins.
  6. In Cedar City, the Redmen were looking for revenge against the Provo Bulldogs. The Cedar defense is good, but vengeance will have to wait as a tough Provo D helped the Dogs hold on for a close win.
  7. Canyon View found out that a good football program regardless of classification, is still a good program. The Falcons opened the Skyler Miller era with a tough loss at home to 2A Beaver High.

There’s certainly plenty still to be learned about Region 9 football as we progress toward the Sept. 8 Region 9 openers. But Week 1 was very (crazy, wild, unexpected, wacky) enlightening.

And a little unexpected.

Email: [email protected]

Twitter: @oldschoolag

Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2017, all rights reserved.

 

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