5A high school football championship: Miners' Cantwell makes name for himself

Some nicknames don't make sense. A big guy with the moniker "Tiny," or a bald guy named "Curly."

In the case of Bingham's Stefan Cantwell, his nickname was dead-on for the Miners' 35-24 win over Davis in the 5A state title game Friday afternoon at Rice-Eccles Stadium: "Tebow."

The junior quarterback did his best impression of the University of Florida's Heisman Trophy winner, Tim Tebow. He ran for 173 yards on 18 carries and scored four touchdowns to spark the Miners' comeback victory.

"Stefan was unbelievable," said Miners coach Dave Peck. "Now you guys can see why we have had a two-quarterback system. Stefan brings a lot to the table obviously as an athlete, as a competitor. He is a kid that could play linebacker. He could play fullback. He could play tight end or whatever we need him. And you know what, he didn't complain about his role at all this year. In our biggest moment, he really came through for us."

One of the only bright spots for Bingham in the first half was Cantwell's 1-yard touchdown run. He had six carries for 39 yards before the break, but he was most amazing in the second half.

"I just tried to go out and do my best," Cantwell said. "I knew I was going to get a chance to run the football, and just tried to run to daylight and then not go down when I was first hit."

Trailing 24-14 with just under six minutes to go in the third quarter, Cantwell helped get the Miners' comeback started. He had three carries in an all-important drive, including runs of 18 and 19 yards, before capping it with a 13-yard scoring blast where he broke several tackles along the way.

"It is an honor and a privilege to block for Stefan," said right tackle Brandon Taukeiaho. "The nice thing about him is if you can even just get a piece of your guy, he is going to run by him and make you look good."

While coming into the season, Cantwell knew he was going to split some of the reps with senior quarterback Ty Hannay. But he never expected to have a title-game performance where he became the main story.

"Not really," said Cantwell if he thought he would have such a big impact during a state championship. "They usually put me in on quarterback sneaks, so I try my best on those. But if I don't get those, I just cheer my team on the best I can."

It will be difficult next year for Cantwell to top his amazing conclusion to this season, but he will try.

"I have a lot to work on for next year," he said. "I can work on my reads, my drops and keep working on being a better runner. I have plenty I can do, but right now I am just going to go home and enjoy this one."

e-mail: mblack@desnews.com