This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2010, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
In the days following their season-ending loss to No. 1-ranked Bingham, the Hunter Wolverines can only think about what might have been.
Close losses to Brighton and West haunt them, and an ill-fated draw — which sent Hunter into a play-in game with Layton — eventually doomed them.
"You can dissect it all you want," said Hunter coach Dustin Pearce. "We were put in this position because we probably should have won a few of the games we lost."
And because West, Skyline and Hunter (7-4, 4-2) tied for second place in Region 2, that meant a draw was the last option — and Hunter got the short straw.
Thus, the team was forced into the play-in game, in which the Wolverines prevailed over Layton 17-10. However, in the first round of the 5A state playoffs, top-ranked Bingham shut out Hunter 34-0, leaving the team to wonder if it was jinxed.
"I thought our kids played tremendously hard, and hats off to Bingham — they're the best high school football team I've ever seen," Pearce said. "Sometimes you have to have to have a little luck in this game — and we didn't have luck this season."
Hunter's defense can take pride in holding the high-powered Miners to a season-low 34 points and the third-year coach was obviously gratified by the play of this squad, which managed to hold seven opponents to 10 points or fewer this season.
The offense, on the other hand, was "too inconsistent." It failed to score a touchdown in two close games — a 7-3 defeat at Brighton and 14-10 home loss to West. Both were winnable games, which could have changed Hunter's season or at least keep it from playing Bingham in the first round.
Still, the Wolverines managed to jump back into the region race by winning three straight games in blowout fashion. The tandem of Equasi Tavo and Leva Bloomfield combined for 483 yards rushing and nine touchdowns over this stretch. And just when Hunter got on a roll, Cottonwood was there to restore order, crushing the Wolverines 46-9, late in the season.
Looking ahead to next year, Bloomfield should be a big-time player at running back and safety.
And good things are expected from defensive end Siamani Harris and linebacker Moses Folauhoa. The problems could lie with a new secondary and to some degree, an inexperienced offensive line.