High school football: Mountain Ridge spoils Herriman’s undefeated season in marathon game

There wasn’t much excitement for the Herriman Mustangs as they celebrated their final regular-season home game Friday night.

Sure, their 31 seniors were honored on “Senior Night,” but once the game started, their local rival, Mountain Ridge, got the best of them.

Jaxon Hunt threw for one touchdown and ran for another and the Sentinels’ defense ended Herriman’s undefeated season with a 24-8 victory in a Region 2 game.

But the statistic the players and fans will remember most? When the contest ended – 12:47 a.m.

Scattered thunderstorms passed Herriman’s campus all evening and nearby lightning caused three delays, including one for two hours, 20 minutes. The final delay occurred just after 11 p.m. after Mountain Ridge kicker Aidan Robison booted a 30-yard field goal to give the Sentinels’ a commanding two-score lead with 2:47 remaining..

The sky lit up immediately afterward with a nearby lightning strike, so game officials brought both coaches to midfield and had a discussion. Mountain Ridge coach Nick Robins was happy to accept the win, which improved his team’s record to 7-2 and boosted the Sentinels to 4-0 in region.

Stadium officials turned off the lights and most fans left. The residents of the nearby apartment complex also must have cheered.

Herriman, however, felt it still had a chance. Despite less than 100 yards total offense at the time, coach Matt Rickards felt headstrong that the Mustangs could still remain undefeated.

So, just after midnight, the lights turned on again and Herriman accepted the kickoff. Quarterback Tyler Messer tried to revive his team with several scrambles for big yards but the Mustangs’ frustration continued and ended on a 4th down incompletion at Mountain Ridge’s 12-yard line.

The Sentinels took over, and two plays later, earned their third win in four tries against Herriman since the teams started playing in 2021.

“This was a great win … probably the best we’ve had all year,” said Robins. “We knew Herriman was undefeated but we were motivated and had always played well against them.

“We did a nice job stopping them,” he added. “The game really should have ended earlier. They didn’t get past midfield the whole game.”

The game was televised locally on KJZZ and Robins, in fact, had already accepted the winning trophy in the darkened stadium just after Robison’s boot sailed through the uprights. His defensive line – Jaxon Brown, Sefa Toki and Isaiah Ortiz – had pressured Messer the entire game and, for the first time this season, Herriman couldn’t generate a consistent offense.

Herriman had just 38 offensive yards in the first half and 142 for the game. The offense never threatened until the final minutes and that was helped by a pair of personal foul calls against the energetic Sentinels’ defense. The Mustangs’ only touchdown, in fact, came on a 31-yard interception return by Wesley England midway through the second quarter.

“That was probably our best effort all season,” said Robins. “The kids really got after it.”

Mountain Ridge, on the other hand, started quickly and made it stand. Herriman didn’t make it easy but Hunt still connected with Tytan DeJong on a 54-yard scoring strike on the Sentinels’ first drive and they boosted the lead to 14-0 later in the first quarter on a 1-yard run by Zach Ofisa.

Hunt scored on a quarterback sneak in the third quarter, taking advantage of a Herriman penalty that would have forced the Sentinels to kick a field goal.

That proved to be enough. Later, though, those facts were forgotten, thanks to the lightning, rain and delays that made this the longest game any of these kids will likely ever be involved.