Milford claims second consecutive 1A title in 45-14 beatdown of Duchesne


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OGDEN — Milford’s Bryson Barnes scored seven touchdowns, Paxton Henrie caught his 24th and 25th touchdowns for the Utah state record and the Tigers forced five turnovers en route to their second consecutive Class 1A state championship, 45-14 at Stewart Stadium on Saturday.

“This is awesome to be involved in, for these kids not to taste defeat,” Milford head coach Thane Marshall said in the aftermath of what was his first perfect season. “These kids fought, they come to practice everyday, they work their butts off. They just keep fighting.”

In a game of milestones, it was the most dynamic player, Barnes, who stole the show. For the game, he finished 12-of-19 for 352 yards and six touchdowns, while adding 45 yards on the ground to go along with a rushing touchdown. He also completed passes to five different receivers, sustaining the hot hand he exhibited in games against Layton Christian and Monticello, where he threw for a combined 11 touchdowns.

“I knew if we caught the ball it’d be a long night for Duchesne,” Marshall said. “Bryson is just too good a quarterback. … He’s a once-in-a-lifetime, coach’s dream.”

Bret Beebe rushed 25 yards on three carries, while Zach Sherwood led all receivers with four receptions for 83 yards and a touchdown. Elsewhere, Kyler Wunderlich and Jarrett Sullivan caught two balls a piece and combined for 99 yards and a touchdown.

Milford had beaten teams by an average of 27.5 points entering Saturday, and early on, it was evident that trend would continue. After Gage Griffiths’ fumble recovery, Barnes snuck across the goalline to open the scoring 6-0, and on the ensuing drive, dropped in a throw to Beebe on a wheel route to extend the lead to 12.

From there, the Tigers kept their foot on the gas. After consecutive sacks set up 3rd and 31, Barnes flicked the ball to a streaking Paxton Henrie, who dusted several Eagle defenders en route to an 81-yard touchdown. Later in the quarter, Russell Walker fell on fumble caused by a botched handoff exchange, setting up Beebe’s 68-yard touchdown with 6:16 remaining in the second quarter.

For the game, Henrie and Barnes combined for 171 yards and four touchdowns.

“It’s good to have people out there that can catch the ball and not rely on one guy,” Barnes said. “It’s pick your poison. You try to guard Paxton, you try to double him up, I’ll hit Sullivan, Sherwood and Wunderlich right there, Beebe out of the backfield.”

Just before halftime, Barnes connected with Jarrett Sullivan, from 27 yards out, for his fifth touchdown and extended Milford’s lead to 32. Then, on the second play of the second half, Zach Sherwood caught Barnes’ sixth touchdown, and one drive later, Henrie caught his seventh to bring the game to 45-0.

Duchesne and Milford play in the 1A state football championship at Weber State's Stewart Stadium in Ogden on Saturday, Nov. 10, 2018. (Photo: Scott G Winterton for KSL)
Duchesne and Milford play in the 1A state football championship at Weber State's Stewart Stadium in Ogden on Saturday, Nov. 10, 2018. (Photo: Scott G Winterton for KSL)

Duchesne’s Gavin Davis scored both of his team’s touchdowns in the fourth quarter. The first came via a pass from Kason Grant, totaling 60 yards in all; the second again came from the hand of Grant less than two minutes later, this time from 25 yards out.

While most of the attention was paid to Milford’s offensive outburst, the defense was impressive in its own right. For the game, the Tigers limited Duchesne to just 241 total yards and 4.7 yards per play, in addition to causing four turnovers.

“We knew what they were gonna do,” Marshall admitted afterward. “We shored up the middle and we knew we were faster than they were, and we were just hoping. … We played pretty good defense.”


Dillon Anderson is studying literary journalism as a student at the University of Utah. You can follow him on Twitter @dillondanderson.

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