Kearns • The Kearns defense certainly was doing something right Friday night.
A West Jordan offense that scored 41 points the week before scuffled against the Cougars early and often. But it was only as a 24-14 victory for Kearns progressed that the individual defensive players began to shine for the home team.
The Cougars grabbed a 7-0 lead on their first possession and never trailed as Sese Felila ran for 161 yards.
“The holes were there, but most of the time there would be defenders filling them,” Felila said. “Props to them [the offensive line] and props to the defense.”
PLAYER OF THE GAME <br>Sese Felila carried the load as the Cougars running back gained 161 yards on 27 carries. Felila set the tone early when his 11-yard run capped a 72-yard TD drive to put Kearns up 7-0 in the first quarter.
The first defender to stand out was a guy that initially wasn’t on the team in the weeks leading up to the start of the regular season. Senior Journey Buba had two interceptions in the first half and ran the second one back 22 yards for a 14-0 advantage with 2 minutes, 1 second before intermission
“Honestly, he just earned a starting spot this week. His effort was just outstanding. He was the hardest worker the last two weeks,” Kearns coach Matt Rickards said about Buba, who has been a multi-year standout at the school in basketball.
“He’s a great player and he’s starting to figure some things out, which is great,” Rickards said.
Kearns (2-0) still only had a 14-7 lead late in the game after West Jordan (1-1) got on the board with a 5-yard run by Hamana Taula with a minute left in the third quarter.
But the Cougars sealed the win when sacks on consecutive possessions by Alfredo Colin and Caden England forced fumbles deep in West Jordan territory. Kearns converted with a field goal the first time then via a 2-yard TD run by quarterback Isaac Matua after the second for a 24-7 lead with 3:14 left in the game.
“Our defensive line is probably the best I’ve seen here at Kearns in a long time,” Rickards said. “And there’s some young kids making plays. Caden England and Ami Leha — and Ami’s only a sophomore. That’s something else.”