MANTI—If games were decided entirely by the first and last quarter, the Templars would have been world-beaters at home in their last regular season game.
Everything in between unfortunately did count as well, and the visiting 3A South champion Juab owned the Manti football team for the middle 24 minutes as the Templars lost at home, 35-25, after hanging unexpectedly tough with the Wasps in the first quarter. The Templars finished in fifth place in the 3A South at 4-5 overall with a 2-3 region record.
“Even with the loss, we played well against Juab,” Coach Cole Meacham said. “We ran the ball well. I think we’re playing well as a team.”
Junior quarterback Kayson Douglas led the passing attack as he shared duties with junior all-purpose back Larsen Pogroszewski. Douglas completed 5 of 11 passes for 116 yards and a touchdown, while Pogroszewski completed 5 of 9 passes for 46 yards, a touchdown, and an interception.
Sophomore Reggie Frischknecht was dynamic at receiver, catching four passes for 115 yards and two touchdowns. Pogroszewski was the rushing leader with 21 carries for 89 yards and a touchdown, while senior A.J. Cox had 90 yards on 12 carries.
Surprisingly Manti was the convincingly better team in the first 12 minutes. Junior Hayden Wade intercepted Juab on a tipped pass on the first drive of the game to set up a short field for the Templars to score, courtesy of a 1-yard sneak by Douglas, for the 7-0 lead.
Juab scored quickly in return with an 80-yard touchdown pass, but Manti kept it up with a 57-yard strike to Frischknecht to go up, 13-7, in the first quarter.
Juab took control in the second quarter with two touchdown drives for a 21-13 halftime lead. They then extended the lead to a convincing margin with a long touchdown pass in the third quarter and led, 35-13, going into the fourth.
Then, the Manti offense woke up again with a number of big fourth-quarter runs by Cox and Pogroszewski, leading to a 9-yard touchdown pass by Pogroszewski. Pogroszewski scored again on Manti’s subsequent drive with a goal-line draw play. Unfortunately, it was all Manti could do as the Templars succumbed to the loss.
Manti’s efforts this season earned the Templars a No. 9 finish in final RPI rankings. Their No. 9 seed in the upcoming 3A State Championship Playoff gives them homefield advantage in the first round as they prepare to take on No. 9 Ogden, a new face to the 3A class. If the templars get past the Tigers, they’ll be right back to playing Juab in the second round.
