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Deseret News •

New coach, new players, new everything: Utah State prepares for a season where nothing is the same

Utah State basketball coach Danny Sprinkle wasn’t shy about the challenge ahead of him when speaking to media in Las Vegas last Thursday during Mountain West media days.

“It’s probably going to be the hardest year of my life,” Sprinkle said, “and the biggest challenge coaching-wise that I’ve ever had.”

For the last five years, Utah State basketball fans have become accustomed to change. Constant change. Whether it was a new coach, new players or even, on a broader scale, changes in the athleti
Deseret News •

High school football: 5 most intriguing flashback results from Week 9

When Week 8 of the high school football season came to a close with very little upset or relative intrigue, it was reasonable to think that perhaps the top teams across the state were settling in, and the general picture of the standings was made clear in a way that little would be left to question in the final stages of the season.

Then Week 9 came along and smacked us all over the head with a frying pan that very well might have had the initials “PG” engraved in it. The week served as a disti
Deseret News •

For Utah’s two newest high school football programs, USDB and St. Joseph, progress takes different forms

OGDEN — There was 9:27 left on the game clock, but it would not be played.

St. Joseph, in its first-ever year as a football team, led the game 64-0. For the moment, people stood and players knelt waiting for Alejandro Resendez to get back up off the grass.

Resendez was one of just eight players comprising the second-year football team for the Utah Schools for the Deaf and the Blind Eagles. He wasn’t the first player knocked out of the game for USDB, but for the day, he would be the last. USDB’
Deseret News •

High school football: 5 most intriguing flashback results from Week 8

With just two weeks remaining in the regular season of high school football, each team’s journey is different. Some teams are in control of their destiny and are awaiting the all-important state championship tournament. Others are giving it their best shot to claim a title in region play. Many others are looking to get into their best shape to be their best selves come playoff time.

For Week 8’s Friday flashback, here are five of the most intriguing results from last week’s action.

It may not
Deseret News •

UCLA’s final trip to Rice-Eccles Stadium was a mistake-riddled one as the offense sputtered against the Utes

It took all of 12 seconds for Chip Kelly and company to know the UCLA Bruins weren’t playing against North Carolina Central anymore.

Utah junior linebacker Karene Reid picked off UCLA freshman quarterback Dante Moore on the first play of the game Saturday at Rice-Eccles Stadium by undercutting an outward slant pass and returned it an easy 21 yards for the core.

Kelly chalked the broken play up to a “miscommunication,” while Moore credited Reid for getting in position to make the play after not
Deseret News •

High school girls soccer: Clearfield gets revenge over Box Elder, 2-1, to lead four-team Region 5 race

Clearfield’s small bunch of a student section could be heard after game chanting, “Kelly! Kelly! Kelly!”

In Falcons head coach Kelly Parke’s first year with the program, Clearfield girls soccer is staying alive and at the front of a crowded title race for Region 5. The Falcons further progressed towards that goal as they earned a revenge win over Box Elder at home, 2-1, to keep themselves at least in a tie for first place in region standings. Clearfield’s record now stands at 10-3 with a 9-2 re
Deseret News •

High school football: 5 most intriguing results from Week 5

It’s Bon Jovi week for the regular season of high school football — which is, of course, to say, we’re halfway there.

Five weeks down, five to go before the regular season ends on Oct. 13. Here’s some of the most intriguing storylines from Week 5:

Timpview’s ability to score the ball was made clear on multiple occasions in head coach Donny Atuaia’s first season with the Thunderbirds last season, but the team’s real staple of success in its 3-2 start has been how well it can defend.

The T-Bird
Deseret News •

High school football: 5 most intriguing results from Week 4

With Week 4 now a wrap for Utah high school football, five of the state’s 17 regions kicked off region competition, but for most of the rest of them, that fourth game served as a final tune-up against non-region opponents before jumping into that hypercompetitive slate until the end of the season.

Here’s a look at some of the most eyebrow-raising results from Week 4 in this week’s Friday Flashback:

The intrigue of how Sky View handled Fremont, 35-7, has multiple layers to it, some that will be
Deseret News •

High school football: The 5 most intriguing flashback results from Week 2

With Week 2 now in the books, here are some of the most intriguing results from last Friday night’s slate of high school football.

Last year, despite the prevailing talent and depth that went across the top tier of 6A squads, there was a strong argument for then-5A school Lehi as the best football team in the state in 2022, thanks to the Pioneers’ 14-0 record. As part of that undefeated run, Lehi pulled off wins against more than one of the best 6A had to offer, knocking off Corner Canyon, Davi
Deseret News •

High school girls soccer: Bountiful attacks fast in rout of Northridge, 5-0

BOUNTIFUL — It could be heard on the sidelines, “What happened between now and Tuesday?”

Bountiful girls soccer looked like a whole new team in avenging its Tuesday loss as the Redhawks turned a contest with high billing into an abrupt rout, defeating Northridge, 5-0, at their home of Hugh Wigham Field.

Going into the matchup, Northridge and Bountiful were each ranked in the Deseret News Top 5 for 5A, but both were coming off disheartening losses. Bountiful was out of sorts in a 2-1 loss to Ro
Deseret News •

High school football: Top 5 most intriguing flashback results from Week 1

We are officially a go for high school football in 2023 as of last Friday (technically Thursday a la Lone Peak-Bingham).

Each week, we’ll take a look at some of the weekend’s most intriguing storylines. These are results that stood out among the rest.

Until last Friday night, only one man had ever governed the sidelines for Maple Mountain football. Brad Burtenshaw had coached the Golden Eagles since the school opened in 2009.

Lucky for them, the only coaching change in the school’s football h
Deseret News •

Top 10 storylines to follow in high school football

High school football in 2023 kicks off this week. Surely, we all missed it very much.

The gridiron will captivate parents, families and fans across the state of Utah for the next 15 weeks between now and when the final play is called at Rice-Eccles Stadium in November.

Along with the hopes and dreams of every kid putting on the pads this fall, there are many other intriguing things going on around the sport to keep an eye on as the season progresses. Here’s a look at some of the most entertain
Deseret News •

High School Sports Awards: First-ever ceremony honors 152 athletes across all sports

With roughly 400 attendees, multiple sponsors and 17 inaugural awards, a new precedent in high school sports awards was set Saturday night.

More than 150 high school athletes were honored at the Little America Hotel during the inaugural Deseret News High School Sports Awards gala, presented by the Larry H. Miller Company.

The event honored athletes from every Utah High School Activities Association-sanctioned sport, and for the first time in the nearly 100-year history of the Deseret News’ hig
Deseret News •

Who will be the next Utah State basketball coach? Here are six possible candidates

Never has two years seemed so short.

Ryan Odom, the now former men’s basketball coach at Utah State, needed just one good year to be attractive enough on the hiring circuit to merit a shiny new job in the Atlantic 10 Conference at VCU. He’ll take over an already solid program that places him closer to his East Coast roots, and it’s hard to fault him for finding a great fit.

Now the burden lies on Utah State interim athletic director Jerry Bovee to find a new coach who will keep the train rolli
Deseret News •

Here’s what interim AD Jerry Bovee is looking for in next Utah State basketball coach

LOGAN — When Jerry Bovee last was in charge of hiring coaches, he wasn’t wearing blue.

The former athletic director at Weber State had plenty of previous experience, 10 years to be exact, when in 2019 he took the job of assistant AD at Utah State, his alma mater. He spent some four years handling business under the direction of AD John Hartwell, whom Bovee said had him heavily involved with everything in the athletic department.

Then, as winter approached in the middle of what was blossoming i
Deseret News •

The Aggies are going dancing, claiming the No. 10 seed to take on a very similar squad in No. 7 Missouri

The Aggies can briefly exhale with their spot in the 2023 NCAA Tournament made certain as of Sunday afternoon.

Utah State men’s basketball earned a No. 10 seed in the South region and will face the No. 7 Missouri Tigers on Thursday in the first round. This is the 23rd time in school history the Aggies have made the tournament and the fourth time it has earned an at-large bid.

“Ultimately, I think we’re really happy with where we’re at,” junior guard Steven Ashworth said. “We’re going to have a
Deseret News •

Big Dance hopes hang in the balance for Utah State heading into MW tourney

It was an electric environment on Senior Night last Saturday when Utah State knocked off rival Boise State, the reigning Mountain West tournament champion, but when talking about it afterward, head coach Ryan Odom and his players were clear about where their sights were set.

Odom, whose opening comments after each game usually consist of a few minutes of analysis, spent most of his time talking about his seniors who were honored that night. But when it came to discussing the game, he summed it
Deseret News •

High school football: The ‘power of hope’ fueling a special season for the Gunnison Valley Bulldogs

Residents in the Gunnison area were used to seeing their team losing by a lot, so a 19-0 score in the second quarter of a homecoming game at Gunnison Valley High School wasn’t a new feeling.

That feeling didn’t last too long. The Bulldogs had been beaten too many times for too long; they had lost to their rival, the North Sevier Wolves, seven years in a row.

Despite being down by three touchdowns midway through the first half, for the rest of the Bulldogs’ game against the Wolves, they proved
The Hive Sports •

Three reasons why Everyone in Utah should be a Fan of Wasatch Academy

by Matt Harris | Basketball is very rarely not fun to watch.

Sure, watching your team get spanked by 20 points is not a great time, but it’s still better than most episodes of Antiques Roadshow. Quality basketball, however, is some of the best entertainment you can put on a roll of film.

Utah’s prep hoops scene has grown rapidly in the last 15 years, perhaps enjoying its sunniest day when the 2013 Lone Peak Knights were declared the national champs by multiple polls.

However, it’s not Lone P