From Deseret News archives:
High school football: Alta stuns Beetdiggers with last-second FG in rivalry tilt
He was rushed by his teammates and Jordan defenders trying to block his kick, and they blocked his view of the goal post. But the 39-yard field goal felt right when it left his foot, and the crowd reaction told Bingham that the kick was good, and that top-ranked Alta had just survived a monumental test by Jordan, prevailing 38-36.
"From the reaction of the crowd, you can always tell when it goes through," Bingham said shortly after he was mobbed by teammates, cheerleaders and random Alta fans. "Jordan's side was quiet and Alta's side was going ecstatic. It was amazing."
It truly was an amazing end to a classic contest that decided the Region 2 championship. With the win, Alta won the league title outright for the third consecutive year. Jordan gets Region 2's two seed in the state playoffs after losing in front of what was an overflow and electric crowd at Jordan High.
"Wow," said Alta coach Les Hamilton. "It was a heated battle, a physical game. We were just fortunate to have the ball last."
It briefly looked like the result would be reversed. Jordan put together a stunning comeback from a 21-point first-half deficit and a 14-point fourth quarter deficit. Beetdiggers quarterback Alex Hart directed two scoring drives in the final two minutes of the game, and converted a two-point conversion on a pass to Braden Hammond with 34 seconds remaining to put Jordan up 36-35.
The Hawks got the ball back at their own 26-yard line and quarterback Ammon Olsen worked some magic. He completed 3-of-4 passes for 52 yards while being protected by an unsung and solid offensive line. He was helped by clutch receptions by Parker Webster and Zach Liston. The last pass went to Webster, who got to Jordan's 22-yard line with 3.5 seconds remaining in the game.
Hours of monotonous practice paid off for both Olsen and Bingham in Alta's victory.
"We practice our two-minute 'O' every day in practice," Olsen said. "We just had to put a drive together like we do in practice and leave it up to Moose."
Bingham was prepared for his game-winning moment by a drill the Hawks do in practice every Wednesday night under the lights. His teammates yell at him, throw things at him, and try to get in his head while he attempts to make long field goals.
"I usually do pretty good," Bingham said. "Ammon Olsen prepares me amazingly. He always throws mularky at me. They try to scare me. All that was going through my head was, 'I can do it, I've been there before.' I'm just so happy I made it."
Olsen completed 15-of-25 passes for 231 yards and rushed for 107 yards. Hart threw for 360 yards and five touchdowns. He threw a 45-yard touchdown strike to Hammond with 1:49 left in the game. After the Beetdiggers recovered an onside kick, he threw a 7-yard score to Cory Hunt.
Knowing Jordan coach Alex Jacobson's risk-taking mentality, no one was surprised when Jordan went for two and the lead.
"We knew they'd go for two," Hamilton said. "We even knew the play they were running and they still got it. So you've got to give them credit for stepping up and making plays."
E-mail: aaragon@desnews.com
