This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2017, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Although all of Brighton's football title game appearances have come at the largest classification, some school officials in recent years wished the Bengals might be able to move down a class once in awhile.
It finally happened.
But what Brighton is getting in its new region home is a region that includes the likes of Alta, Jordan and Timpview.
"It's going to be brutal. We've been petitioning to play 4A for several years. Now it finally happens, and we're in this region," Bengals coach Ryan Bullett said. "Bingham's no longer on our schedule, but we've got the only team that's won more state championships [Timpview]."
Bullett added that he played a number of freshmen and sophomores last year, and the premature experience on varsity should pay some dividends for the current season.
Even with the youth, the 2016 squad got both of its wins in region, so it still was in contention for the postseason until the end of the campaign.
"We had a shot all the way to the last week, and that's all we could ask," Bullett said.
Behind center • Senior Alex Zettler (6 foot, 185 pounds) ended up getting the majority of snaps, and the Bengals plan on getting their quarterback more under center this season. That means a slew of running backs figure to see plenty of handoffs after the graduation of standout Sione Lund. Senior Salua Masina (6-4, 205), sought by several Division I college programs, may see some time in the backfield when not at tight end. He'll be joined by junior Evona Hall (6-0, 205) and sophomore Junior Heimuli (6-0, 195), who was in the Cottonwood program a year ago. Another sophomore, Sione Angilau (5-9, 235), also might get his fair share of looks.
Ball hawks • Masina will be a tempting target when he's running pass routes, and he'll supplement the likes of junior Devin Elder (6-1, 180), Brooks Johnson (6-1, 180) and fellow senior Trey Davenport (6-4, 200). Davenport's length at free safety allows him to also make plays on the ball, and he'll get assistance from a younger corps of defensive backs like sophomore Kepu Fifita.
In the trenches • Another Fifita, junior defensive end Olive Fifita (6-0, 190), brings experience to the D-line, along with returning sophomore starter Toatasi Laufau (6-2, 320), who actually dropped about 30 pounds from a year ago when he was a regular as a ninth-grader. Laufau will line up at nose guard and, besides Fifita, will be flanked by junior Jackson Owens (6-4, 255) and another returning starter in Tui Kefu (6-3, 200). Offensively, Luke Martin (6-1, 200) returns as a starting guard, while Owens and Laufau will man tackle and guard positions.
Hit men • Masina had nearly 30 more tackles than his next closest Brighton teammate on defense a season ago, and he'll be counted on to top his 86 stops from an outside linebacker spot. Angilau also had 34 tackles as a sophomore, and he'll be at an insider linebacker position. Sophomore Heimuli also figures to make an impact on defense at linebacker despite his youth. "We played a lot of young guys last year," Bullett said. "But they're still young."
Key returners • Salua Masina, Sr. (LB/TE); Alex Zettler, Sr. (QB); Sione Angilau, So. (LB/RB); Toatasi Laufau, So. (OG/NG)
Key losses • Sione Lund, RB/LB; Kimball Reece, RB/LB; Tate Weichers, DB/WR; Andrew Covey, QB/DB
The next wave • Evona Hall, Jr. (RB); Junior Heimuli, So. (RB/LB); Kepu Fifita, So. (RB/DB); Addison Trupp, Jr. (LB)
—
Brighton Bengals
Coach • Ryan Bullett, 11th year
Last season • 2-7, 2-4 in Region 3
State championships • 1982
Other championship game appearances • 1997, 2005, 2013
2017 schedule
Aug. 18 • at Roy, 7 p.m.
Aug. 25 • Jordan, 7 p.m.
Sept. 1 • Northridge, 7 p.m.
Sept. 8 • Bountiful, 7 p.m.
Sept. 15 • Layton, 7 p.m.
Sept. 22 • at Weber, 7 p.m.
Sept. 29 • Fremont, 7 p.m.
Oct. 6 • at Clearfield, 7 p.m.
Oct. 12 (Thu) • at Cottonwood, 7 p.m.
Oct. 18 (Wed) • Alta, 7 p.m.