2A high school football championship:San Juan claims title

SANDY — If one word could perfectly describe what the 2A championship game was all about, it would be slippery.

After snow blanketed the football field at Alta High during halftime, both South Summit and San Juan found it difficult to find footing on the turf and had an even harder time holding onto the football.

The two teams combined for seven turnovers, and a 13-yard touchdown pass from Cameron Shumway to Benny Royer in the second quarter provided the game's only score in a 7-0 victory for the Broncos Saturday afternoon.

Shumway, a junior, said earning a state title was a goal he and his teammates set out to accomplish while they were still in elementary school.

"We played for five or six hours every day dreaming of state, and it's finally here," Shumway said.

San Juan claimed its first title since 2006, and it marked the third time that the Broncos sent the Wildcats home with a loss in the 2A title game. San Juan also beat South Summit to claim state titles in 1998 and 2000.

A low-scoring game seemed appropriate considering the Wildcats owned the top scoring defense in 2A and San Juan's defense ranked second in that category. But it was more the nasty weather conditions than anything else that put points at a premium.

"This kind of conditions doesn't really allow either team the opportunity to really show what they have," said San Juan coach Monty Lee. "It was just one of those things that you have to weather. We were just lucky to score first and score early. Then the weather conditions took both teams out of what they like to do."

South Summit had chances to take control of the game in the first quarter. While the Broncos mustered minus-1 yard of total offense during the quarter, the Wildcats were driving down the field.

But mistakes proved costly for the Wildcats. Their first drive ground to a halt when Stetler Shumway recovered a fumble at the San Juan 47. South Summit tried a 55-yard field goal on its next drive, but the ball landed a yard short of the goalposts.

The Broncos finally found some offensive life in the second quarter with a 60-yard, five-play drive for a touchdown with 7:35 left before halftime. Back-to-back passes from Shumway to Royer — a 30-yard bomb to get San Juan into the red zone and a 13-yarder for the score — largely fueled that decisive drive.

Passing being the difference maker offered an ironic twist for a run-oriented team, and Shumway praised Royer for delivering a clutch performance.