5A high school football preview: Syracuse at Alta

Syracuse (6-3) at Alta (9-1)

5A state tournament first round

Friday, 3 p.m.

Parry's Power Guide: Alta by 24

All-time series: Alta leads 1-0

Coach vs. coach: First meeting between Syracuse's Russ Jones and Alta's Bob Stephens

Last meeting: Nov. 13, 2008, Alta 42, Syracuse 14 (5A semifinal)

When it comes to this week's first-round matchups in the 5A state playoffs, Alta might look like a prohibitive favorite to roll past Syracuse and into the second round.

After all, the second-ranked Hawks haven't lost since the second week of the season and have been putting up some eye-popping offensive numbers over the past several weeks. The Titans, meanwhile, started the season very strongly but have sputtered somewhat once they got into Region 1 play.

However, first-year Alta head coach Bob Stephens certainly isn't taking anything for granted.

"In my opinion, everything changes for the playoffs," Stephens said. "I know Syracuse will play great against us, and we also have to try and match that intensity they'll come down here with. Anything can happen in these first-round games."

Alta, whose only loss of the season came in Week 2 against defending 5A champion Bingham, roars into postseason play riding high on an eight-game winning streak.

And in their last five games, all lopsided wins, the Hawks have absolutely hammered their opponents, winning by scores like 56-0, 51-0, 62-29 and 48-7 during that span. Their closest margin of victory over those five games — which included three shutouts — was a 21-0 win over Brighton.

Still, coach Stephens sounds very wary.

"That doesn't mean anything unless we come out and play on Friday," he said of the Hawks' recent run of high-scoring offensive outbursts. "That's always going to be my biggest concern, that we think we should win the game because we're a No. 1 seed and they're a 4 seed. That whole region up there is very good; all three of their losses came in their league, and they could just as easy be a No. 1 seed."

Syracuse started the season with four straight victories, and the defensive-minded Titans didn't allow more than 14 points in a game through their first six outings. But they struggled down the stretch, dropping three of their last five decisions.

Syracuse coach Russ Jones knows his team is a decided underdog in this matchup, but he and his team are geared up for the big challenge that awaits them.

"It is what it is and you've got to go play it," he said. "Our kids are pretty excited about being in the playoffs. We thought we could've finished a lot higher in our region, but some things didn't go our way and we didn't do it. Now we're anxious to go down there and see what we can do.

"We're going to have to be at our best to beat 'em. We've got to try to create some turnovers and step up and play; I just hope we can do it.

"The pressure situation could work in our favor," Jones said of the Hawks being heavily favored while his team isn't expected to make much postseason noise. "I think our kids are ready for the challenge. They feel pretty good about what they're doing, and we've got some good matchups with them that we think we can take advantage of."

Trevor Davis is the Titans' best weapon on offense, as he's thrown 11 touchdown passes and has run for five more scores. Tyson Greenwood, Dillon Sandberg and Hunter Dimick lead the way for the Syracuse defense.