5A high school football: Wolverines showed heart in semifinal loss to Darts

Heart. It's an attribute that can't be measured in the weight room or with electronic speed timers. It's a characteristic that isn't an acquired trait but rather something that individuals are born with. This undeniable passion and willpower was shown in the body language of every player on the Hunter roster Friday night.

Although Hunter fell to Davis 41-17 in the semifinals at Rice-Eccles Stadium, the Wolverines refused to unstrap the shoulder pads until the final whistle sounded and the clock read double zeros.

"They showed a lot of courage, a lot of character — you want to talk about never say die, competing (to the end) — that's this team," said Hunter coach Dustin Pearce. "They played hard every single down, every single play."

Coming into the game, Hunter had just participated in a classic four-overtime game against Lone Peak. As a result, it suffered multiple key injuries that played a factor in Friday night's contest. Easily the most notable was the absence of La'au Tanuvasa in the backfield; he was sidelined with a knee injury.

However, injuries are a natural, unfortunate part of contact sports. As the old saying goes — "the show must go on."

"I'm not one to make excuses, our kids played hard, but to say we weren't banged up would be a lie," said Pearce, "I won't make that excuse; I'm not taking anything away from Davis High. They came out (and) executed, played real hard and did a real good job."

Much like the situation Utah running back Eddie Wide was catapulted into when ex-Hunter running back Matt Asiata went down with a season-ending knee injury — the Wolverines' junior tailback Ekuasi Tavo proved he was more than capable of filling rather large shoes.

Tavo racked up 171 yards off 32 carries. On the opening drive, Tavo bounced to the outside and immediately fired up the jets and scampered into the corner of the end zone, evening the score at 7-7. Ultimately the play would be the highlight of the night for Hunter.

"He stepped up the last three or four games. He did a real good job. He's a junior, he'll be back next year," said Pearce, "He's a good back. It is Tailback High for a reason."

As the game continued it seemed as if Davis had an extra edge or a 12th man. The Darts' offensive line was opening massive holes that Tanner Hinds took full advantage of throughout the entire second half, in which he averaged 9.8 yards per carry.

"We don't platoon. We have guys that (don't) come off the field. All of our guys (play both sides), where Davis, Alta and Bingham — they platoon, they're fresh," said Pearce, "It's bound to catch up to you sooner or later. Times are changing in high school football."

Although losing is never fun, it could be said that one can learn more from defeat than victory. This fact is something Pearce is fully aware of.

"What a great expedition of senior leadership — hard work, competitiveness, completely buyin' into what I put on the table," said Pearce. "We're disappointed to lose this game, but I think the future looks bright for Hunter."

e-mail: tphibbs@desnews.com