Utah Wildcats-14, Vegas Hawks-13
Saturday, April 2, 2016
St. George, Utah- Dixie Sunbowl

 

The game was hard, smash-mouth football and it was a great day for the sport.

Hawks struggled on offense in the 1st half while the Wildcats capitalized on a blown coverage play with WR Major Smith over the middle for a touchdown late in the 2nd quarter.  The Hawks’ defense like always was holding their own.

 

At halftime it was 7-0, both teams exchanged ball control and the Hawks finally pounded the ball in the ends zone as RB James Makin ran it in from 3 yards out for the score.  The score was then tied at 7 following the Isaac Lopez extra point.

 

Early in the 4th, the Wildcats gained great field position on a Hawks facemask penalty and two plays later Chris Marshall caught the 23 yard touchdown pass from QB Jordan Hernandez despite the tight coverage.  Utah took the lead, 14-7, following the Aaron Price extra point midway through the 4th quarter.

 

Vegas received the ball on the ensuing kickoff and drove down the field with a deep pass to Trey Robinson and some hard running by rookie RB Anthony Wilkerson.  The Hawks scored with 4:45 on the clock and a chance to tie.  However, the Lopez PAT kick would fail, wide right, leaving the score 14-13 in favor of the Wildcats.

 

The Wildcats took over from their own 35-yard line with time running out.  The Hawk defense took control with leadership from LBs Dana Bryant and Will Postell, who made key tackles for loss against the Wildcat offense.

On 3rd and long with 28 seconds left, the Hawks trailing by 1, the Wildcats were then forced to punt.  The Hawks received the ball with 14 seconds left.  The first play of the ensuing Vegas drive, Wildcat LB Carlton King, Jr. was able to reach Hawks QB Willie Brisco for the sack.  The remaining 4 seconds would have ticked down to finish the game, however, the Wildcats committed a holding penalty and gave the Hawks an opportunity to win from the 32-yard line.

 

The Hawks attempted a 38-yard field goal with 4 seconds left.  Lopez lined the game-winning kick, but failed to place it through the uprights.  Utah left St. George with a 1-point victory.

 

Hawks QB Willie Brisco completed of 8 of 15 passes for 189 yards and an inception on the day, as well as his 21 yards on 4 carries and a touchdown.  Brisco’s favorite receiver on the day was Trey Robinson, who finished with 122 yards on 6 receptions.  Ray Richardson would also share some success as Brisco’s other target.  Richardson caught 3 passes for 67 yards on the day.  LB Dana Bryant led the Hawk defense with 8 tackles as well.

 

On the other side of the competition, Wildcat QB Jordan Hernandez finished 14 of 26 for 236 yards and 2 touchdown passes.  Hernandez also carried the ball 4 times for 24 yards.  His two impact targets on the day were WRs Major Smith and Chris Marshall.  Smith caught 4 passes for 80 yards and a touchdown while Marshall would also catch 4 passes for 90 yards and a touchdown.  There were four defensive starters with 6 tackles on the Wildcat defense, consisting of Tyler Christensen, James Hogan, Chaz Williams, and Zac Jensen.

 

Next week, the Utah Wildcats will complete in their first home game of the season as they host the Wasatch Revolution in Layton, UT.  The Vegas Hawks will host the Vegas Trojans in Las Vegas, NV.