1A high school football championship: Rich dominates in the cold to take 1A state title

On a blistering cold afternoon, with blizzard-like conditions — the Rich Rebels were able to put the icing on top of the cake and cap off an undefeated season with a 25-0 victory over Duchesne at Alta High School Saturday to win the 1A championship.

It came as no surprise that the Rebels hoisted the trophy at midfield at the end of the year. From early summer workouts in July, to midseason 1A rankings, Rich was the clear-cut favorite to notch the prized hardware. With a roster swarmed with seniors, it was only a matter of time until the experience paid off.

"Words can't describe how (I) feel right now. It's a great bunch of kids, and (I'm) very proud of what they did today," said Rich coach Ashley Brown, "We have eleven seniors, and they've worked for this point their whole life. They've been lifting weights to be ready, and they went undefeated and had a great year."

As the snow continued to accumulate on the playing surface, the quality of play suffered. It goes without saying that slippery conditions cause sloppy play. That was certainly the case Saturday, as both teams combined for 15 turnovers — 12 of which were fumbles. The Rebels advanced into the Duchesne red zone three times in the first quarter, only to have the drive cease from mishandled snaps, handoffs and simply put — dropping the football.

Despite the turnovers, however, Rich's quarterback Bradley Holmes proved why he's the front-runner for the 1A MVP award for the 2009 season. The signal-caller finished the game 10-of-15 for 286 yards and two touchdowns. He also added 99 yards on 17 carries, along with finding the pylon once more with his feet. When all was said and done — Holmes had racked up 399 all-purpose yards and three touchdowns.

With the memorable performance he was able to eclipse the 1,000-yard mark in both categories for the year and finished with an eye-opening 31 total touchdowns.

"It's not me. My team did it for me. It's just about the team, nothin' else," said Holmes, "It can't get better than this. I feel a bunch of emotions, but it's good. It's a good feeling."

"He's done this for us all year long. He's a great runner, he passes the ball well? he's just a great all-around player," remarked Brown.

The main beneficiary of Holmes' accuracy in the adverse weather conditions was wideout Caden Andersen. The tall, speedy receiver hauled in six receptions for 175 yards. Late in the second quarter Andersen was able to burn a defending defensive back on a crisp 15-yard post route. He then kicked into overhaul and left everybody in the dust for a game-changing 70-yard touchdown.