4A high school football championship: Sione Houma has emerged and made major impact for Highland Rams

SALT LAKE CITY – Every time he thought of being a starter in the backfield, Sione Houma felt nervous.

Houma had relative security working as a backup to senior fullback Toi Taufa earlier in the season and refining his skills while the bulk of the rushing duties fell on the more seasoned Taufa. But when a stomach ailment forced Taufa to limit his playing time, Houma knew it was up to him to take a more active role in the offense.

Being in the spotlight made him nervous. But the junior also understood his Highland teammates and coaches were counting on him to perform.

"There is no other fullback besides Toi," Houma said. "When he went down, there was only me."

Truthfully, the Rams haven't really needed anyone else with how Houma has run over the past month. His production in the backfield is a big reason why they are facing Mountain Crest in the 4A championship game on Friday.

Houma has eclipsed the 100-yard mark three times in his last four games and is coming off consecutive games where he tallied more than 200 yards rushing. He rushed for a season best 288 yards and scored a pair of touchdowns on 25 carries against Pine View. And last week against Springville, he churned out 216 yards and three touchdowns on 21 carries.

Overall, Houma has rushed for 716 yards and six touchdowns on 76 carries in his last four games. To put it in perspective, he had just 191 yards and a touchdown on 28 carries for the previous nine games prior to that point.

Highland coach Brody Benson said that Houma's athleticism made him a perfect candidate to have a breakout season, and the Rams' coaching staff expected it to happen eventually.

"He's a horse," Benson said. "We were expecting it. To be honest with you, I was expecting it a little earlier. He seems to be peaking at the right moment."

Issues with ball security were the only thing delaying Houma from making a major impact earlier.

He showed promise against Tooele when he ripped off a 75-yard touchdown run on his first carry. But Houma fumbled the ball away the next time he touched it and did not get his number called on another running play the rest of the game.

From that point on, practices for Houma were focused on learning better ball control. Benson instructed his fullback to hold the ball high and keep it covered with both hands. Then he instructed his scout team players to hit the ball and try to knock it lose every time Houma came through a hole in the line.