High school football: Titans stay unbeaten in Region 1

BOUNTIFUL — Sometimes it's easiest to take away the obvious from a football game.

Syracuse entered Friday night's bout with Viewmont ranked fifth in 5A and with one of the best defenses in the state. And though the defense led the Titans to a 28-14 victory over Viewmont to remain the only unbeaten in Region 1, it was the offense that stood out in coach Russ Jones mind.

"We are still trying to find ourselves on offense," said Jones. "We are still in search of the role players and right personnel."

Jones considered the night a step in the right direction as his staff searches for an offense that will compliment the defense night in and night out. In its previous two games, the Titans had not cracked the 20-point mark, but washed that stat aside as Tanner Russell tossed four touchdown passes to put up a season-high 28 points Friday.

"Our offense made some great plays tonight," said Taylor Russell. "They were able to take the turnovers and score."

Syracuse forced five interceptions by Viewmont hurler Jeremy Lieber, two of which were tipped. Three of the interceptions turned into scores for the Titans.

Both teams put up blanks in the first quarter, but things turned positive for Syracuse with just over 7 minutes left in the second quarter. Lieber had his pass tipped by defensive lineman Jake Dallimore into the hands of fellow defender Hunter Dimick. Dimick returned the ball to the Viewmont 1-yard line. The Vikings did everything they could to thwart the drive, stopping the Titans twice for a loss of yards each time. But on third down, the Vikes committed a facemask penalty that put Syracuse back on the 1. This time the Titans converted off play action by Tanner Russell to Rick Reardon.

Syracuse followed up with another interception on the ensuing drive. This time it was Taylor Russell who grabbed his first of two picks on the night.

The Titans then doubled their score when Tanner Russell hit Mitch Tulane, who avoided a handful of tackles on his way to a 24-yard touchdown. Russell hit Tulane again in the third quarter, this time from 10 yards out to put Syracuse up 21-0.

Viewmont punched in its first score in the third when Garrett Bushman rushed through the middle nearly untouched on his way into the end zone. After another Titan score, Viewmont gained some momentum when Tyler Worlsey stripped the ball loose from Jarrel Fox and marched 69 yards the other way for a Viking touchdown. But the Titans defense picked off two more passes to prevent further damage.

The Vikings won the battle on the stat sheet, putting up 254 yards of total offense to Syracuse's 185, but the turnovers proved costly for Viemont, which fell to 1-2 on the year.

The Titans moved to 3-0 as Tanner Russell threw four touchdown passes with 64 yards rushing. Viewmont travels to Layton next week in desperate need of a win to stay in the Region 1 race while Syracuse plays host to Davis in a huge showdown.