Herriman • Football coaches often talk about needing to play four full quarters of football to secure a victory. In Friday night’s rivalry game between Bingham and Herriman high schools, the visiting Miners were able to slowly wear down the Mustangs and come out victorious, 27-10.
The teams traded blows in the first quarter, both with multiple three-and-out situations leading to a 0-0 tie at the end of the quarter. Herriman quarterback Jack White did attempt a field goal for the Mustangs, but poor blocking led to the kick being blocked.
Bingham slowly gained momentum in the second quarter, mainly on the legs of quarterback Dallen Martinez, who ripped off a 44-yard run to open the quarter, then scored on an 18-yard run a few players. The Miners (3-3) would go for a two-point conversion after that touchdown, but the attempt failed.
It would take a few series for Herriman (2-4) to get into scoring position, but every time things would start to look promising, the drive would stall. With under three minutes left in the opening half, Bingham botched a pitch, which was quickly jumped on by Herriman’s Michael Falatea. Nu’u Tafisi would end up scoring for the Mustangs a few plays later.
The Mustangs had the momentum and a 7-6 lead heading into halftime. According to Bingham running back Siosaia Lomu, the Miners knew the mistakes they made in the first half and that there wasn’t much talk at the half on how to improve.
“Coach didn’t say anything to us. He knew we could get it done, he trusts us,” Lomu said.
Postgame, Bingham coach Dave Peck said the Miners moved into a nickel defense since Herriman was leaning more on the passing game.
Herriman’s first drive of the second half resulted in a Jack White field goal, but that was where the tank went on empty for the Mustang offense.
The third-quarter defense from Herriman was impressive, not letting Bingham get much going.
The Miners did catch a break toward the tail end of the third when Herriman fumbled the ball on a bad snap, giving Bingham the ball on the Herriman 9-yard line with 39 seconds left in the quarter.
It took Bingham four plays to get into the end zone, electing to go for it on fourth-and-goal from the 1-yard line to open the fourth quarter. Havea Fotu was able to fall forward after his offensive line was able to move Herriman defenders out of the way. The Miners could have easily taken the three points to keep the game within one, but Peck wasn’t a fan of that idea.
“If you can’t get one yard, you probably don’t deserve to win the game anyway,” Peck said.
That touchdown was the turning point for Bingham and the start of 21 unanswered points in the fourth quarter. Lomu had his first of two touchdowns on a 32-yard rush with 6:51 left in the game. His second came with 3:20 left from 48 yards out.
Lomu said that communication between the running backs and the offensive line was key to helping open up the ground game.
“We told them, ‘Hey man, give us a chance. We can open up some big runs for us.’ And they did that for us, so all the credit to those guys,” Lomu said.
With the win, Bingham snapped a three-game losing streak.
“We’re not really satisfied, we’re still hungry after coming off of a couple of losses. This game was just a good game, shout out to Herriman for giving us a good game to bounce back and get better,” Lomu said.
The Miners will take on Mountain Ridge at home next week, while Herriman will hit the road to take on West Jordan.