South Jordan • The East High Leopards have been asking for years for the chance to square off with the best. East was nationally ranked, winners of back-to-back state championships and riding a 23-game winning streak. But as one Leopard put it, “Bingham is the kings.”
And on Friday night, the Miners made sure everybody knows who still wears the crown.
In a highly anticipated matchup of Utah prep powerhouses, Bingham walloped East 48-17.
“Oh, absolutely we wanted to make a statement,” Bingham senior Brayden Cosper said. “… We just wanted to get everyone’s respect back, which I’m sure we did tonight.”
Cosper, the BYU commit, helped put away things for good Friday by picking off a pass from East quarterback Ben Ford late in the third quarter. Bingham’s Ryan Wood found wideout Dax Milne streaking down the right sideline for a 35-yard touchdown on the very next play.
Bingham's Brayden Cosper: "Oh, absolutely we wanted to make a statement." @TribPrepsEd pic.twitter.com/Umpb8Guju7
— Aaron Falk (@aaronfalk) August 26, 2017
The Leopards have a roster full of talent — 3- and 4-star recruits with multiple Division I offers — but the Bingham students were pointing gleefully to the difference on the scoreboard by the start of the fourth quarter.
“Everybody was really focused in,” Bingham coach John Lambourne said. “I had a feeling that we were going to come together as a group, and it looked like it happened.”
BINGHAM 48, EAST 17 <br>• Bingham junior Braedon Wissler rushes for 181 yards and two touchdowns. <br>• East turns over the ball five times, including three first-half fumbles. Bingham does not commit a turnover. <br>• This is the first meeting between the two teams since 1980. East leads the overall series 5-2.
The Leopards hurt themselves with penalties and turnovers, especially early. East fumbled away the ball three times in the first half, each time setting up Bingham with a short field for a scoring drive.
Even with those issues, the score remained close and Bingham led by just 24-17 heading into the locker room for halftime.
A 17-0 third quarter, however, turned the tide.
“We just wanted to show what we have,” said junior running back Braedon Wissler, who had a 1-yard touchdown in the period. “And the legacy that came before us, we just wanted to carry that on.”
Wissler rushed 20 times for 181 yards and two touchdowns.
“It was just the line,” the junior said. “They were doing great. Blowing some huge holes. It was definitely a team effort.”
For East, senior running back Sione Molisi led the way with 224 yards rushing and a touchdown. The Leopards outgained the Miners 348-339 on the night but turned over the ball five times.
Friday’s game was the first meeting between the two schools since 1980. But East (1-1) moved up to Class 6A this season, which means there still could be a rematch with state championship implications later this fall.
“Our guys were on tonight and hopefully we’ll get to be on again,” Lambourne said. “That’s a great team and they’re well coached and they do a lot of good things. … We’re happy. We’ll see what happens in the future, though."