Sanpete County’s 2024-25 Athlete of the year, Maison Starkweather, “wouldn’t change anything” about his story

MANTI—The old mantra of “It takes a village to raise a child” has been quoted ad nauseum over generations, but there are times when the old saying is just the best way to say it.

When just an early teen, Maison Starkweather had the choice to leave Sanpete County with his father, who was starting a new life in Richfield. Wherever he went, football was going to be in his future.

Maison made a choice few his age would ever have to make, but “it was never really a question,” he said. Finding a more permanent residence, he chose to remain in Manti. He stayed with his village.

That decision would end up having magnanimous effects on his own future, the community, and the future of Manti football.

In the last year, Maison’s story became better and better known among community members, and even people across the state.

The story of Maison Starkweather represents the best of Manti. His impact on his community, and that community’s impact on him, complemented the rise and sensational two-year run of a generational quarterback and team leader, a fitting profile for the Messenger’s 2024-25 Sanpete County Athlete of the Year.

“I couldn’t have wanted it better, and honestly, the routes that I’ve been and the stuff that has happened in my life, I don’t see it as bad whatsoever,” Maison said. “I wouldn’t want it any other way, because I’ve had a great life, and I’m super grateful for that because of the people in my corner.”

Maison’s story, going back to early childhood, characterized the principle that hard times do not necessarily have to harden the person. Those who’ve known Maison have largely credited his positivity, his loving nature, and his respectability.

Maison has had to “grow up quickly,” his grandmother Jean Starkweather said. Born into circumstances where his mother was unable to care for him, Maison was brought up by his father, Mitch, who brought him to the doorstep of his grandparents to help raise him when Maison was just two years old.

While being raised primarily by Mitch, Maison spent a lot of his childhood learning from his grandparents. Jean taught him how to cook for himself, and as a kid, Maison’s grandfather gave him some of his earliest memories of football. Jean recounted how Maison and his childhood friend, Jaden Henningson, would go out with her husband to toss a football, constantly standing further and further from each other to catch longer passes. On the basketball side of things, Maison got a lot of that from his father.

Maison’s early life, however, went through some torrential changes through the actions of his father. During a period of time that Mitch was involuntarily out of the picture, Maison lived with Jean and grew very close to his grandparents.

When Mitch returned and reassumed his parental role, Maison was back with his dad. However, due to his father’s struggles with alcoholism, the young Starkweather often took care of himself in many ways.

“Maison was pretty much his own boss for a while,” Jean said. “He was just a little guy in his preteens.”

Despite the situation, Maison wasn’t as alone as one might think.

“He had lots of friends in town and a lot of people that helped him,” Jean said.

In his local Latter-day Saint ward, Maison’s bishop was Fred Taukei’aho, the man who was his first varsity quarterbacks coach. Taukei’aho was one of the people that Maison calls a “major father figure” in his life.

Taukei’aho, along with many of Jean’s friends and neighbors were ever mindful of Maison as he grew up.

“A lot of people would fold in his situation,” Taukei’aho said. “For him just to be where he’s at today…I think it’s a God-given gift. Our Father in heaven was watching this kid and knew what was in front of him and blessed him with everything that he’s got to handle the trials.”

When Maison was 14 years old, Mitch got into a relationship with a woman in Richfield and made the decision to move there. The choice was Maison’s whether or not to go with him. It just so happened that around the same time, Jean’s husband passed away, leaving her as a widow.

“I saw that opportunity where my grandma’s going to be living by herself and she’s going through that hard time,” Maison said. “In my situation, I wanted someone to be with as well…It was a no-brainer.”

Living now just three blocks away from Manti High School, Maison’s future was certain, and his career as an athlete was just getting started.

As a freshman, Maison entered into the Manti football program in the final years of legendary head coach Cole Meacham. He saw his first playing time in a 43-21 win over Carbon in 2021, and he needed just three completions to throw his first two varsity touchdowns.

As a sophomore, Maison got his first varsity start, and it was a baptism by fire against an undefeated Morgan team in 2022. The Trojans won that game, 42-0, and Maison’s stat line was a humbling 7 of 18 passes for 48 yards and an interception.

Maison’s talent was clear, but he needed direction. Up until his junior year, his quarterback coach was Fred Taukei’aho, who would be the first person to tell you it’s not his strength.

“You’re looking at a D-line coach trying to coach quarterbacks,” Taukei’aho said. “Us getting the right people in our program in the right place to be teaching these kids that had talent.”

Taukei’aho’s influence on Maison would stretch forward as well when he took the role of head coach at Manti. Not only did it enable Taukei’aho to alter the gameplan and showcase the strength of Manti’s quarterbacks, but it also gave him an opportunity to bring in Cameron Shumway, a former college quarterback who became Manti’s offensive coordinator and QB coach.

“That’s when things really took off,” Maison said. “[Shumway] showed me the game, he showed me the art of the game, going over film and really knowing football terminology. That’s when things really started to take off.”

Under Shumway’s tutelage, Maison transformed. As a freshman and sophomore, he was a plucky underclassman with a strong yet uncontrolled arm. Over the next two seasons, he became a nearly unstoppable force.

Aided by some of Manti’s best receiver talent in a generation, Maison’s first full year as a starter at Manti saw him shatter just about every quarterback record the school had. Leading what was essentially an air raid offense in 2023, he threw the ball over 400 times in 12 games and completed over 63% of his passes for 4,031 yards, 49 TDs and just nine interceptions. He led Manti to its first 3A championship game appearance since 2012.

In 2024, Maison and the Templars just kept on churning, winning consecutive games to open the year against 4A opponents. Manti put some more emphasis on balancing the offense in 2024, but Maison’s numbers kept popping off the stat sheet anyway. He completed just over 61% of his passes for 3,108 yards, 40 TDs and eight picks in 10 starts. His final career record in starts was 18-8.

In that 10th game, however, the story took another turn.

Down by eight in a “weird” game against Juab to close out the regular season, Maison went down on a 2-point conversion play. He initially got back up just fine, but he quickly realized his leg did not feel the same. Exiting the game, he later found out he’d pulled his ACL and MCL, an injury that not only ended his football season prematurely, but also meant the end of his playing time as a Manti athlete in full.

In yet another example of the community that looked after him, Maison spent roughly a week sleeping at Taukei’aho’s house, where Fred and even Max Taukei’aho, Maison’s starting center, helped to take care of him.

A life full of unfair trials had yet another as Maison’s senior year became focused on rehab rather than claiming victories. Gone was his long-awaited chance to start for the heralded Manti boys basketball team after contributing highly from the bench during his junior year.

Basketball coach Devin Shakespear, who stepped down from the position recently, said that the role Maison took, even though he had zero chance of ever taking the court, was “as impactful as anyone who did.” Even with his leg in a boot and whatever else his recovery took the form of, Shakespear said Maison was a vocal leader, “yelling and screaming” at his teammates in practices and at games to keep them going.

“Your role-player senior who doesn’t start has to be a special player,” Shakespear said. “A guy like Maison is so special because he didn’t just slip away into the background…he stayed, and he was committed to being his best.”

When the Messenger deliberated on Maison’s candidacy for Athlete of the Year, much of why we went this direction came down to impact. What Maison accomplished, both on and off the field of play, and what his example meant to those around him, was a heavy complement to a few quick months of firing off touchdown passes.

“I can’t think of an athlete in Sanpete County who had a larger impact than Maison on the school, the team…he’s one of a kind,” Shakespear said.

Maison’s story of athletic accomplishment came to an end by his own admission. After going through spring training with Snow College football despite being limited by his lingering injury, the time came for him to retire from it and pursue his true passion of being a businessman and making his way in the professional world. He grew up working alongside Kelan Layton, and he is now in Texas working in door-to-door sales for Vivint for the summer to hone his salesmanship and interpersonal skills.

“I love the community that Manti has,” Maison said. “It’s incredible the things that people have done for us. Just with me and my grandma, going through high school, it was an amazing time, and I’m super grateful. I wouldn’t change anything.

Perhaps no one will miss his playing days more than Jean.

“I loved watching him play,” Jean said. “It was my moment of the week.”

Jean’s moments were everyone’s moments as Maison showcased each week what it meant to be, almost literally, a son of Manti.