High school football: Better-prepared Hunter looks to repeat

Note: Hunter finished with a 8-4 record in 2009 and went 5-1 to tie Cottonwood for the Region 2 championship. The Wolverines lost to Davis in the 5A semifinals.

WEST VALLEY CITY — An important crossroads for Hunter came just four games into the season a year ago.

Losses in three of their first four games threatened to send the Wolverines into a permanent downward spiral. Hunter dealt with a 1-3 start in the best way possible.

The Wolverines started winning.

"Everyone thought we hit rock bottom," senior linebacker Tevita Bloomfield said. "After those three games that we lost in a row, we came back, got together as a team and did some good things."

One of those good things was claiming a Region 2 title and reaching the 5A semifinals. The drive to prove critics and unbelievers wrong served Hunter well in that stretch. Now the challenge is to show they can be a region champion two years in a row.

It will not be an easy task. The entire region looks to be stronger from top to bottom than last fall. Still, Hunter appears to be in excellent shape to defend its championship.

The Wolverines return a total of 11 starters on both sides of the ball. More importantly, this group has pushed itself much harder through the summer than their counterparts did at this time a year ago.

"We have a better work ethic than last year," senior running back Landon Hancuff said. "Last year, everyone was lackadaisical. We didn't care. But, this year, it seems like we have a little more stuff in the tank we can use."

One challenge Hunter will face is finding a replacement for leading rusher La'au Tanuvasa. Last season, as a senior, Tanuvasa ran for 1,069 yards and 16 touchdowns on 199 carries. He was the team's no. 1 weapon out of the backfield and often provided the main spark on offense.

Duplicating that production may fall to more than one player this fall.

Bloomfield, who will play for the University of Utah next year, gained 408 yards and six touchdowns on 106 carries last season. Ekuasi Tavo is another reliable option after he churned out 576 yards and seven touchdowns a year ago.

Hunter coach Dustin Pearce has confidence one or both players will step up and make certain the offense doesn't skip a beat.

"We're as good at the running back spot as we were last year," Pearce said.