High school football: Wilkes Weston accounts for 6 touchdowns as Rich advances to 8-player title game - Deseret News

By Google News Sports · 2026-11-08T00:09:46+01:00

Wilkes Weston threw for three touchdowns and ran for three more as Rich beat Water Canyon 45–12 in Saturday’s 8-player football semifinals at Zions Bank Stadium. The Rebels will play for their fourth straight state championship next week at Southern Utah University against the winner of the Milford–Monticello semifinal. Weston completed 10 of 19 passes for 229 yards and rushed for 157 yards on 20 carries.

His 386 yards of total offense were 35 shy of Rich’s team total. He accounted for three touchdowns in the first quarter and scored the last one himself, running 18 yards with 11:18 left in the fourth. “I’ve really been pleased with him all year in terms of just how much passion he plays with and how much he loves the game,” Rebels coach Tyson Larsen said.

Rich started its first two possessions in Water Canyon territory and turned both into touchdowns. Weston opened the scoring with a 16-yard run at the 9:23 mark of the first quarter. On the next drive, he kept the ball on fourth down to extend the possession, then found Jasper Johnson for a 14-yard touchdown pass.

The Rebels then went 68 yards on their third drive, with Weston hitting Paxton Nicolodemos for a 53-yard touchdown to make it 21–0 with 3:12 left in the quarter. Water Canyon answered with its longest scoring drive of the game. Deagan Williams completed a 20-yard pass to Justin Cooke, and Alma Barlow broke off a 21-yard run on the same possession.

Williams finished the 87-yard drive with a 24-yard touchdown run in the final minute of the first quarter. His pass to Cooke on the two-point try fell incomplete. The Wildcats had a chance to draw closer in the second quarter after Riley Barlow recovered a Rich fumble at the Rebels’ 32. Water Canyon came away empty though, and Rich took over on downs at its own 35.

Alma Barlow sacked Weston for an 11-yard loss on the ensuing drive, but the Rebels recovered. Weston found Bode O’Mealy for 29 yards down to the 3 and eventually scored from a yard out with 1:20 left in the half. Nicolodemos made the extra point to give Rich a 28–6 lead at the break.

Nicolodemos extended the lead with a 27-yard field goal on Rich’s opening possession of the third quarter before Water Canyon responded by converting twice on fourth down. Williams found Sawyer Horsley for 27 yards to set up first and goal, then threw a 3-yard touchdown pass to Riley Barlow on fourth-and-goal. Barlow was stopped on the two-point try, leaving Rich ahead 31–12.

Rich recovered the ensuing onside kick, and Weston’s 40-yard run put the Rebels at the Water Canyon 5. An illegal block wiped out his apparent touchdown run, and Rich eventually faced fourth and goal from the 13. Weston went back to Nicolodemos, who caught his second touchdown of the game with 1:34 left in the third quarter and kicked the extra point for a 38–12 lead.

Nicolodemos finished with five catches for 131 yards, two touchdowns and six extra points. He and Weston helped Rich average 8.3 yards per play and outgain Water Canyon 421–221. The Rebels did it despite 14 penalties for 119 yards. The Wildcats entered the semifinal on a seven-game win streak with one of the state’s most productive running backs.

Alma Barlow had rushed for more than 2,500 yards coming in, but Rich held him to 60 yards on 13 carries. His 21-yard run on the Wildcats’ first scoring drive was his longest of the game. He also recorded two sacks before leaving with an injury in the fourth quarter. “We knew…

Originally published by Google News Sports