KPCW, November 8, 2023--South Summit to face San Juan in 2A championship.
Saturday's matchup may be the Wildcats' toughest yet.
South Summit will head down to Cedar City Nov. 11 to face the Blanding-based Broncos in Southern Utah University's Eccles Coliseum.
The last time South Summit won state was with back-to-back championships in 2017 and 2018.
This year, the 10-2 Wildcats have momentum from a major come-from-behind win over the Layton Christian Eagles in the semis, but the Broncos are unbeaten. San Juan is tied for the third-longest winning streak in state history at 36.
South Summit Head Coach Mike Ruf said his team’s defense has proven itself this year, being stingy and tough. In eight of the team’s 10 wins, the Wildcats held their opponents to 14 points or less.
“We can't play with fear,” he said. “We've got to come out and take it to them and, and be aggressive, and I think at that point, it becomes anybody's ballgame.”
On the offensive side of things, Ruf reiterated that if the team plays their own game and stays relaxed, they’ll be in a good position.
“[Bracken] Lassche is a great quarterback. He makes great decisions,” the coach said. “I trust him fully, and he's got a whole lot of weapons around him that he can go to.”
The senior quarterback helped lead the second half comeback in the semifinals last week. The Wildcats were down 14-0 to the Eagles at the half.
“We just talked to the boys, saying, ‘Hey, look, this is not you. This is not how you played all year long. And you have 24 minutes now to decide if you're going to continue to play that way, or if you're going to give it everything you've got,’” Ruf said.
The Wildcats did give it everything, and they scored 17 unanswered points: two third-quarter touchdown passes and a game-winning field goal in the fourth.
South Summit’s defense forced multiple fumbles in the second half and picked off Layton Christian in the red zone too.
Between that semifinal win, a tough regular season schedule and a hard-fought loss to the 3A Juab Wasps, Ruf thinks his team is ready.
“Playing that schedule, it really feels like it's prepared our guys to be able to fight and win,” he said. “If they're in the game, they know they can fight and win a game.
The championship kicks off at 4 p.m. Nov. 11 at Southern Utah University. It will be broadcast at teamhive.live and on KSL Sports.