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SALT LAKE CITY — Orem standout and University of Utah commit Aisa Galea'i delivered one of the great individual championship performances in Utah high school history Thursday at Rice-Eccles Stadium.
The senior two-way player scored on offense, defense and special teams as the Tigers rolled past Springville 42-7 to claim the 5A state title.
Galea'i opened the game with a 60-yard touchdown run, then blew it open with a 78-yard pick six that sent Orem into halftime up 21-0. Moments after the break, he added a third score, a 96-yard kickoff return up the right sideline that pushed the Tigers' lead to 28-0 and effectively sealed the championship win.
"He can do anything we ask him to do," Orem coach Lance Reynolds said. "He runs it, catches it, returns it, and he's great on defense; he's just electric. Every time he touches the ball, something big can happen."
For Galea'i, the moment didn't fully hit until the clock hit zero.
"I'm just really happy," he said. "To score in every phase and do it with my brothers, it means a lot. I just wanted to show I could trust them and they could trust me."
When asked about the potential of having more games like Thursday's at Rice-Eccles Stadium, Galea'i smiled and said: "It meant a lot to play here."
"It was really cool to maybe get used to the field," he added.
The championship win comes a year after Orem lost in the quarterfinal round of the 5A playoffs. But the 2025 season was different, and at halftime Reynolds said he reminded his team not to repeat past mistakes.
"We were up big earlier this year and took our foot off the gas," he said. "We didn't want that again. I was proud of how we kept pushing."
Reynolds called the title run one of the "most difficult, turbulent season" he has coached, but credited his staff and players who "battled through everything."
"I couldn't be prouder," he said.
Orem controlled the trenches throughout, holding the Red Devils without a first-half score while riding Galea'i's all-around brilliance to another championship.
