This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2015, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Bingham High School's run of football championships ended with tears, one final Haka dance and a coach who refused to make excuses.
The Miners had won 36 straight in-state games since losing a semifinal game to Syracuse in 2012, establishing themselves — along with, perhaps, Timpview — as Utah's dominant program.
But on this surreal Friday at Rice-Eccles Stadium, a gorgeous day far from the Paris horror, Lone Peak ended the Miners' domination with an impressive 26-9 Class 5A semifinal victory.
John Lambourne, who took over Bingham's program this year after serving as an assistant under Dave Peck for years, could have blamed an injury to starting quarterback Matt Degn on the second series, an event that, in retrospect, changed the tenor of the game.
While he said that the injury affected some of the play-calling, Lambourne said the Miners had plenty of talent to win the game and just didn't get it done.
"Was it emotionally deflating?" he said. "I don't think so. We won the last two state titles with backup quarterbacks. So no excuses. [Keaton Torre] did an admirable job."
Bingham has rarely been behind in recent years, especially against Utah teams, but after falling behind 14-3 on two quick Lone Peak scores, the Miners didn't have many answers.
"Momentum is a tricky thing," he said. "Ultimately, we think we should return the favor and score ourselves. We didn't do it. It never got so far that it was a desperate come-from-behind game. We just needed to get that first score. … We threatened a number of times, but we just didn't get it done."
Lambourne had nothing but praise for Lone Peak, calling the Knights a heck of a football team.
"They are pretty versatile," he said. "That's the big difference with that team. You have to pick your poison. You try to take some things away and they come up with other things. Their quarterback is good and there are a lot of guys on the edges."
In the end, he praised the effort of his players and assistants.
"They are way disappointed and you should be," said Lambourne. "You put that much time and that much effort in, and you are going to be disappointed for awhile. Our guys are hurting. But I am proud of everything they accomplished."
Twitter: @tribtomwharton —
Bingham goes down
• The Miners had won 36 straight games against in-state teams, dating back to the 2012 Class 5A semifinals, when they lost to Syracuse.
• Starting quarterback Matt Degn went out with an injury on the team's second series and didn't return.