Hawks don’t just win, but crush Red Devils 42-10
By Matt Harris
Staff writer
9-19-2019
MT. PLEASANT—It’s ironic the North Sanpete football team faced the Grand County Red Devils last Friday, seeing as they looked to have divine favor multiple times throughout the game.
The Hawks turned what was likely to be a convincing victory already into a 42-10 rout over visiting non-region foe Grand County. Senior fullback Connor Jorgensen showcased his best performance ever in a Hawk uniform by a mile. Jorgensen scored five touchdowns on the night, four on the ground and one on a punt return. He finished with six carries for 62 yards.
The early sign that Jorgensen was going to have himself a great night came when the Hawk defense forced a three-and-out just before the five-minute mark of the first quarter. Grand punted from their own endzone and got it out a convincing distance to the 45-yard line.
The ball hit turf on the 45 and unexpectedly bounced back the other way, straight into Jorgensen’s jersey numbers. Jorgensen secured the ball, pivoted, and took off toward the surprised kicking team, easily scoring on the 34-yard return.
Jorgensen wasn’t near done.
After the punt gave him his second touchdown of the evening, Jorgensen scorched the Devils’ defense as if the North Sanpete mascot was a vial of holy water, churning out three touchdowns, all on the ground and all in the second quarter.
“A lot of things went in our favor,” Coach Rhett Bird said, “but what was more impressive was to watch and see the good blocking that propelled Connor and others into the end zone.”
After halftime, Hawk fans saw another little miracle on a botched offensive play. The Hawks’ center snapped the ball right past the head of an unaware Bowles, who chased it down over 15 yards behind the line of scrimmage. Bowles hooked around a couple of pass rushers and threw the ball away, presumably to mark it incomplete. Bird reported that it was a cadence error between Bowles and the center.
Senior Magnus Clawson caught the pass in a ridiculous stroke of luck and turned it into a 12-yard gain and a first down.
“One thing we will discuss, “Bird said, “is never quitting on a play until the whistle blows because that is a good example of a bad play turning into something good because we didn’t quit on it.”
On the Hawks’ next possession, Clawson showed out again with a 25-yard touchdown catch from backup quarterback Mason Bailey.
The Devils avoided the shutout with a 9-yard touchdown run and a 27-yard field goal, both in the fourth quarter. The Hawks have yet to allow a touchdown in the first half of a game this season.
With the exception of their season opener against Grantsville, the Hawks are averaging 39.5 points per game. They currently field the sixth-best scoring offense in 3A with the second-best scoring defense. The scoring is also third in the entire state behind Morgan and Beaver.
North Sanpete is developing the penchant of attacking the scoreboard more than the stat sheet. They only netted 210 total yards on offense despite heavy scoring output.
The Hawks remain at home to face American Leadership Academy this Friday. The Eagles are one of only seven teams in the state to have scored over 200 points in their first five games and the only 3A team to do so. They are currently 4-1 and avenged their first loss of the season with a 69-27 shellacking of Judge Memorial last week.
The UHSAA released their first RPI rankings this week. The Hawks are ranked No. 4 in 3A and have already beaten the No. 3 team, Grantsville.
