This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2011, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.

Last Saturday, a day after the lights went out on Layton's home field, Northridge's David Adams ran lights-out the entire afternoon. He gained 140 yards on the Layton Lancers, including a game-winning 15-yard burst in double overtime.

It was the same field his four older brothers had run on years before him. For nearly two decades, the Adams boys have been Lancers. Dave, the youngest, took his own path, and so far it seems like the right one.

"Growing up, I had a lot of friends over there. I felt like it was the right place to go. I felt like I had more opportunities at Northridge," Adams said.

He's made the most of those opportunities. Assistant coach Jason Duckworth recalls head coach Erik Thompson bringing him aside to talk about Adams' future.

"I was told by Erik that he was too valuable on offense, we didn't want to get him hurt," Duckworth said. "We'll use him at crucial points, but we use defense to give him a breather."

Considering how much of the offense is run through Adams, it's no wonder he needs the rest. With one game left in the regular season, the all-purpose back has run for nine touchdowns and caught six. His 15 total touchdowns are more than any other player in 5A — and Adams is only a junior.

"He has great instinct," Duckworth said. "He sees a hole and cuts and makes some great decisions. There were some games early in the season where he just broke kids' ankles with his cuts."

"I think where he came from helps, too. He watched his brothers at Layton and played football his whole life, and has that mentality that he won't go down after one hit. He's different — a rare breed," Duckworth added.

Adams admits that his brothers don't talk too much about the rivalry between Northridge and Layton. Family comes first, and their loyalty remains with David.

"They're so supportive," Adams said, "They just come to watch me and don't care what school I go to."

Adams feels like he learned the most from his brother James, whom he considers his mentor. At Layton, James was an all-state honorable mention his senior year, and was an integral part of a Lancers team that went all the way to the championship game.

"He's got the most competitiveness in him," David said. "I grew up watching him and he's always been around to support me."

While football runs deep in the Adams family, none of his brothers went on to play football at a level above high school. That's one thing David would like to change.

"My goal is to get a football scholarship somewhere," Adams said, "I hope I can get my name out this year and next and hopefully keep playing on scholarship in the future." —

David Adams file

Adams' oldest brother is 34 years old, twice the age of David.

Adams was named one of the Northridge team captains this year, a rare honor for a junior.

Averaging 8.19 yards a carry puts Adams behind only Riverton's Joey Jenson in the category.