by Daniel Olsen | This is the first of a weekly series throughout the high school football season where we will feature one big matchup per week from the bigger 4A-6A division schools. My colleague, Matt, will feature one 2A-3A level game per week for the Ballgame in the Boonies. Make sure to check out his article on North Sanpete vs Richfield. Both of those teams are expected to make big runs in their respective 3A division.
For this week’s Showdown in the Suburbs, there is a big 5A matchup to talk about: Orem vs Alta. Both teams sit at 2-1 but different stories of how they got there. Alta lost the season opener to Skyridge before rebounding to beat two easier opponents in Desert Hills and Tooele.
Orem on the other hand was riding a seven game win streak dating back to the start of the 5A state tournament last year. This year they easily dispatched of crosstown rival Mountain View and traditional powerhouse East. That all came to a screeching halt when they were also defeated by Skyridge.
Neither team was able to really compete with Skyridge as they defeated Orem 35 to 14 and Alta 33 to 13. Now that these two teams have a common loss, this looks like on paper it should be a competitive game. There is plenty of film at this point for both teams to use to their advantage.
First-year Coach Sewell had a lot to say about Alta’s length and physicality, specifically Safety Brock Fabrizio.
“That dude is a playmaker and I love the effort he plays with,” said Coach Sewell. “We have to be aware of him on every play.”
Fabrizio currently has the in-state rivals BYU and Utah State battling for his commitment.
Sewell also has some highly recruited guys on his own team. Kingsley Suamataia is one standout who has committed to Oregon and Jayden Ah You could possibly be committing to the nearby BYU Cougars like his older brother Chaz currently is. Sewell is always careful to give a word of caution to his team on getting too hyped about how many stars they have on MaxPreps.
“At the end of the day, those four or five stars don’t mean a damn thing,” said Coach Sewell. “Those stars aren’t going to play for you on the field”.
My final prediction: While this is a tough matchup for the Tigers, I think they will be hungry to bounce back after a disappointing loss. Coach Sewell has coached several of his sons to successful high school careers that resulted in college offers. He and the team are motivated to work together to play assignment football.
Final Score: Orem 31 Alta 28