Morgan's reign ends at 3A semis, 35-21 to Manti

The defending state champs were on the ropes. 

But a promising drive into Manti territory at the end of the first half gave the 3-seed Trojans hope at the 3A semifinal against Manti, who head coach Jared Barlow warned would be a handful. 

“Manti is a very talented team with a great mindset,” said Coach Barlow of Morgan’s 35-21 loss Saturday at Herriman’s Zions Bank Stadium. “We battled, but in the end, Manti just made more plays and pulled out the win.” 

A coach’s words never rang truer. 

Despite committing four first-half turnovers and trailing mightily at 21-0, a Trojans defense that combined for six sacks forced a three-and-out midway through the third quarter. 

For just the second time in the game, Morgan [8-4] was in Manti territory. 

That's when the No. 2 seeded Templars got a steady diet of Jett Salmon, who pushed past Manti’s defense for a first down. 

With the playbook open for Beck Sheffield, a comeback route to Tate Nelson got Morgan 22 yards. Zak Sargent punished ahead for one. 

Then the Trojans’ ground-to-air offensive took flight as Sheffield fired a dart into Lincoln Gilson for Morgan’s first points of the night with 5:23 left in the third quarter. 

Penalties hurt the Trojans whenever they had any sort of momentum. Two of these totaling 30 yards were costly for Morgan, who with 3:07 in the third fell behind 28-7. 

But the Trojans offense moved back into Manti territory. Salmon had an 11-yard burst. Derrick Tilby had a nine-yard grab. Gilson came back to Sheffield’s throw for 12 yards. And Sargent, who made big defensive stops all night, earned two yards the hard way. 

The Trojans were left with 4th and a goal inside the Manti 1. On a tush push, Sheffield surged for the score.  

Trailing 28-14 with 11:56 left in the game, Coach Barlow went into his bag of tricks. He had Beau Johnson try an onside kick—it didn’t travel 10 yards. But on the rekick, the Trojans launched a sneak attack that Johnson squibbed, and Christian Nunez recovered. 

Facing 4th and long, Sheffield rolled left and found Nelson tiptoeing near Morgan’s sideline. Then the Trojans’ QB located Gilson for 8 yards. 

Salmon swam upstream again, somehow keeping his balance as he got the first down on the second effort. Then Nelson grabbed the ball and squeezed, lunging for the goal line. 

Paydirt. The Trojans trailed 28-21 with 9:09 to play. 

Another issue for the Trojans: giving up big plays. Manti answered on a long pass following a defensive holding penalty and punched in a 1-yard TD. 

With the game on the line, the Trojans still had six minutes to play, down 35-21. Nelson returned Manti’s kickoff with a bolt of energy and a 36-yard gain. But the rest of that drive went nowhere and so would the last drive, ending the season.

“This year was full of ups and downs, a season I will not forget, said Coach Barlow.” I am thankful for all the players, coaches, managers, trainers and doctors, community members, and most importantly the parents.  I am blessed to be part of such an amazing community.” λ