The Grand County High School (GCHS) football team traveled to Salina on Friday, Sept. 21, where the Red Devils spoiled the North Sevier Wolves’ homecoming in dominant fashion, shutting out their 2A South foes 30-0.
The Red Devils allowed the Wolves, who came into the game leading 2A in passing, to 101 yards of total offense, rushing and passing combined.
“The defense did what we asked them to do,” GCHS football coach Dennis Wells said. “(The Wolves) are good at mixing it up, so we knew we had to shut down the run and make them one-dimensional.”
When the Wolves were forced to pass, the Red Devils were there to defend it. Grand got a handful of passes defensed, as well as interception by junior Brayden Cloud and a pair of quarterback sacks by senior Jarett Reidhead.
“Jarett Reidhead has really been impressive lately,” Wells said. “He’s our nose guard and he’s done a good job stuffing the run. With him also putting pressure on the quarterback, in order for other teams to stop him, they have to double-team.”
Wells also attributed Grand’s defensive success to stellar pass coverage.
“The quarterback had nowhere to go with the ball because we had the receivers covered, so he either gets sacked or has to scramble away, where our guys had him contained,” he said.
Senior Austin Johnson led the Red Devils in tackles with eight, followed by Reidhead, junior Brayden Troutt and junior Clynn Backus, each with seven.
Offensively, the Red Devils collectively had 411 rushing yards and 68 passing yards. Junior Bryant Troutt had 163 yards and a touchdown on 20 carries, while senior Corbin Arbon had 99 yards and two touchdowns on 15 carries, and senior Trent Elmore had 96 yards on 16 carries. Senior Stacy Randall caught a 30-yard touchdown pass from sophomore Dante Wells.
For the second consecutive game, the Red Devils controlled the clock with over 60 offensive plays.
“We’ve been doing a good job of controlling the game on the offensive side,” coach Wells said. “We’ve been running a lot of plays and eating up the clock.”
Arbon scored the game’s first touchdown midway through the first quarter on a 9-yard run, while Bryant Troutt scored on a 5-yard run early in the second quarter. Wells and Randall connected with their 30-yard touchdown strike shortly before halftime for a 20-0 Grand advantage at intermission. Arbon scored from a yard away in the third quarter for a 27-0 lead, and Wells hit a 33-yard field goal in the fourth quarter for the 30-0 final.
The Red Devils play at Enterprise (also the Wolves), which are 0-2 in 2A South play after a 13-0 loss at San Juan on Friday, Sept. 21, but coach Wells said they had a chance to win that game late and shouldn’t be taken lightly, thanks to a strong defense and a capable offense. The Enterprise Wolves are tied with Grand for second in 2A in points allowed defensively, while they have an offense good enough to keep them in the game, coach Wells said.
Kickoff for the 2A South match-up in Enterprise is set for Friday, Sept. 28, at 7 p.m.
Grand spoils North Sevier’s homecoming in 2A South tilt
“The defense did what we asked them to do. They’re good at mixing it up, so we knew we had to shut down the run and make them one-dimensional.”
