High school football: 4A power Pine View working to get even stronger

ST. GEORGE — Last year's 4A state championship game was a real eye opener for the Pine View Panthers.

Losing to Timpview 38-0 wasn't necessarily embarrassing, but it was a wake-up call about how much work lay ahead in the offseason if Pine View hoped to take the next step in 2008.

It's not like the program needed to reinvent itself or anything; after all it owned a 13-0 record heading into the title game. But getting bullied around by Timpview for four quarters at Rice-Eccles Stadium exposed some weaknesses. A year later, everybody knows that Timpview is again the team to beat.

In an effort to narrow the gap if not close it completely, Pine View has worked harder than ever in the weight room this offseason, and the coaching staff has tried to schedule tougher preseason competition as well.

"These kids have worked hard, and they believe in themselves," said Pine View coach Ray Hosner, whose team lost back-to-back 3A championship games in 2004 and 2005. "If you stick with it long enough, good things happen and eventually you get what you need."

Pine View has seven returning starters on offense and seven on defense, more than enough to make a run at the championship again this year. To have any chance against Timpview though, the Panthers' lines need to get much better.

Last year Timpview's offensive and defensive lines were jokingly referred to as a junior college line. A good chunk of those starters are back again, and the T-Birds could be dominant again this year.

The only way Pine View has a chance against Timpview if the teams meet in the playoffs is for its line to get stronger. They might be closing the gap.

"It's amazing — all of them squat over 500 pounds and three of them bench over 300 pounds," said Hosner. "Coach Dale Stott does such a good job with those guys. They live and breathe weight lifting all year at his house; we call it the bat cave."

Pine View's projected starting offensive linemen Tanner Wood, Justin Lytle, Jorden Gary, Kevin Moss and Keaton Bale all have plenty of experience and would love another shot at Timpview to prove themselves.

It's going to take a lot more than just a good offensive line to get the job done in the extremely competitive 4A, and Pine View is loaded there as well. Justin Ence will start at quarterback after serving as the running quarterback last year.