Socolive - Latest Sports News & Updates

High school football: 1A South preview

Beaver’s Andrew Hollingshead (10) and Jex Bradshaw (32) celebrate after a interception by Hollingshead during the high school football 1A semifinal between Milford and Beaver at Zions Bank Stadium in Herriman on Saturday, Nov. 9, 2024. | Brice Tucker, Deseret News

There is no doubt who the team to beat is in 1A South, with Beaver looking to continue its dominance and prove it’s still a level above all of the other teams in the region.

After taking care of Knab in the state championship last fall, Beaver will be looking to claim the 3-peat this upcoming season.

In order to make that dream a reality, Beaver head coach Jonathan Marshall will rely on a number of returning players, especially on the offensive line, to help continue the team’s dominance.

“Titan Hunter, Maverick Albrecht, Jaxson Lopshire, Mason Holgreen, and Gabe Robinson all saw significant time for us on the offensive line last year. We will greatly depend on them to set the tone offensively,” said Marshall.

“We have a lot of guys at our skill positions that are working through injuries this summer. We are hoping to get everyone healthy and get things figured out before our first game against Moapa Valley.”

Marshall knows that if he wants his team to stay on top this year, it has to avoid getting complacent and come ready to play every week, as each opponent will be coming for the defending champs.

“We have to stay focused on our processes and the things that have helped our program get to this point. We have to keep improving and getting better at what we do,” Marshall said.

“There are some great programs in our classification. There are no weeks off. We know that no one is going to overlook us and not be prepared for us.”

While they may be the heavy favorites to win the region going into the season, it will be anything but easy for the Beavers. While the team may have a lost some key players from the title winning team a year ago, with the amount of returning seniors, Marshall is confident in his team’s ability to have a deep and dominant run again this year.

“We play some great teams in the first few weeks and then there are so many quality programs with great coaches in our classification. We lost some great seniors from last year’s team but we have a decent amount of returning experience, we have around 20 seniors returning,” said Marshall.

If there is any team that can challenge Beaver for the top spot in region, Kanab will surely be up for the challenge. After losing to Beaver in the state championship a year ago, the Cowboys will have plenty of motivation to make a deep run this season.

If they are going to achieve success this year, they will have to lean heavily on returning seniors quarterback Brayden Johnson and running back Hayden Gubler.

“We do return some players in key positions this season following a big senior group that carried a heavy load last season. We are excited to get together and compete and get better,” said Kanab head coach JR Quarnberg.

“We also have some good young players that will get in the mix and make a difference. The 1A classification should be competitive and exciting once again.”

Enterprise is predicted to finish third in the region in the preseason rankings and hopes to improve upon its play from last year. After finishing 1-3 in the region and just 3-8 overall, the team has its work cut out for it and will be hoping that continued continuity will push it forward in a positive direction as the season progresses.

Enterprise has seven returning starters, and head coach Andy Messersmith is excited to see what his team is capable of with several of his players having another year under their belt.

“We are excited for the new season. We have a core group of underclassmen who will have a year of varsity experience under their belt. It will be exciting to see them mixed with our older experienced athletes,” said Messersmith.

Predicted to struggle this year and finish in the cellar are the Parowan Rams.

Parowan went winless in region play last year so the team will need to see improvement in many areas if it wants to take a step forward this year.

Head coach Ryan Heath knows how tough his region is and expects much of the same this season.

“We are looking forward to this season. We have 100% of our starting offense returning, and seven of our 11 starters on defense. We expect to see a lot of growth and maturity from our upperclassmen,” Heath said.

Among those returning are quarterback Hunter Bettridge and running back Chandler Hoffmeier, who will both be heavily relied upon.

Region 1A South projection graphic — Deseret News graphic

1A South projections

(Preseason rankings are based on coaches’ votes

1. Beaver Beavers

2025 Schedule

Head Coach: Jon Marshall

Entering his ninth season as Beaver’s head football coach on top of the 29 years he’s been the girls basketball coach. Beaver’s football teams have an impressive 87-15 record in his eight seasons in charge, including state titles in 2017, 2019, 2020, 2023 and 2024. He’s led Beaver’s girls basketball team to nine state titles, the third most in state history. He’s a graduate of Beaver High School and Southern Utah University.

Coach Jon Marshall’s general outlook

“We lost some great seniors from last year’s team but we have a large and experienced group of juniors returning. We return 4 of our 5 starting offensive linemen which we are really excited about. We play a tough schedule against some very good teams that will test us and hopefully help us to get better. We are excited to see how all the pieces fit together and to find out if we are able to compete with the best teams in our classification.”

Offensive coordinator: Jonathan Marshall

2024 offense: 31.69 ppg (No. 3 in 1A)

Six returning starters
Wing T/Triple option

Returning offensive starters

Davin Orton, Sr., QB/RB
Maverick Albrecht, Sr., OL
Titan Hunter, Sr., OL
Jaxson Lopshire, Sr., OL
Mason Holgreen, Sr., OL
Caleb Carter, Sr., TE

Key offensive newcomers

Gabe Robinson, Sr., OL
Noah Wolff, Sr., RB/WR
Jex Bradshaw, Sr., RB.
Hayzen Albrecht, Sr., WR/RB
Max Albrecht, Sr., WR/RB
Bridger Blackner, Sr., RB
Waylon Pender, Sr., RB
Kohler Laws, Sr., OL
Jaren Webb, Sr., TE
Dominique Tobey, Sr., RB/TE
Sam Smith, Sr., RB
Adrian Bettancourt, Sr., OL
Bryson Atkin, Sr., OL
Micah Cluff, Sr., WR
Davis Carter, Jr., RB
Emmet Lurth, RB/K

Defensive coordinator: Steve Hutchings

2024 defense: 9.23 ppg (No. 1 in 1A)

Four returning starters
4, 2, 5 defense

Returning defensive starters

Jex Bradshaw, Sr., LB
Maverick Albrecht Sr., DE
Noah Wolff, Sr., DB
Davin Orton, Sr., LB/DB

Key defensive newcomers

Titan Hunter, Sr., DL
Jaxson Lopshire, Sr., DL
Hayzen Albrecht, Sr., DB
Max Albrecht, Sr., DB
Davis Carter, Jr., DB
Caleb Carter, Sr., LB
Gabe Robinson, Sr., DL
Bridger Blackner, Sr., LB
Dominique Tobey, Sr., DE/LB
Mason Holgreen, Sr., DL
Waylon Pender, Sr., DB
Jaren Webb, Sr., DE
Kohler Laws, Sr., DE/DL
Adrian Bettancourt, Sr., DL
Sam Smith, Sr., DL/LB
Bryson Atkin, Sr., LB
Emmet Lurth, Jr., LB

2. Kanab Cowboys

2025 Schedule

Head Coach: JR Quarnberg

Is entering his sixth season as head coach at his high school alma mater after leading the team to a 43-18 record the past five years. He’s a graduate of Southern Utah University.

Coach JR Quarnberg’s general outlook

“We do return some players in key positions this season following a big senior group that carried a heavy load last season. We are excited to get together and compete and get better. We will be lead up front by 3 year starter Brayden Johnson and our backfield will be lead by 4 year starter Hayden Gubler. And our defense will lead by returning MLB Kolton Blomquist. We also have some good young players that will get in the mix and make a difference. The 1A classification should be competitive and exciting once again.”

Offensive coordinator: JR Quarnberg

2024 offense: 32.31 ppg (No. 2 in 1A)

Four returning starters
Wing T offense

Returning offensive starters

Brayden Johnson, Sr., OL
Levi Stewart, Sr., OL
Brogun Virostko, Sr., QB
Hayden Gubler, Sr., RB

Key offensive newcomers

Lat Glover Jr., TE
Degan Swapp Jr., RB
Grady Anderson So, QB/RB
Ozzy Williams Sr., WR
Kyle Brown Sr., WR
Walker Baird Jr., OL
Bryce Szymanski Jr., OL
Kolton Blomquist Sr., RB

Defensive coordinator: Brandon Brown

Kanab defense: 18.54 ppg (No. 4 in 1A)

Six returning starters
3-5 offense

Returning defensive starters

Brayden Johnson, Sr., DL
Kolton Blomquist, Sr., LB
Lat Glover, Jr., LB
Hayden Gubler, Sr., LB
Ozzy Williams, Sr., DB
Cam Cartwright, Sr., DB

Key defensive newcomers

Degan Allen, So., DL
Degan Swapp, Jr., LB
Grady Anderson, So., DB
Tavis Barney, Jr., LB
Kaleb Warner, Jr., LB

3. Enterprise Wolves

2025 Schedule

Head Coach: Andy Messersmith

Entering his 10th season as head coach for the Wolves as he’s guided the program to a, 60-41 record the past nine seasons. He’s a graduate of Juab High School and Adams State in Colorado.

Coach Andy Messersmith’s general outlook

“We are excited for the new season. We have a core of group of underclassmen who will have a year of varsity experience under their belt. It will be exciting to see them mixed with our older experienced athletes.”

Offensive coordinator: Andy Messersmith

2024 offense: 10.64 ppg (No. 9 in 1A)

Seven returning starters
Multi Formation offense

Returning offensive starters

Cole Moody, Sr., OL
Makay Banks, Sr., TE
Rigz Anzalone, So, Slot
Gus Albrecht, Jr., WR
Knox Fitzwater, So., OL
Jared Hess, So., OL
Easton Hill, So., WR

Key offensive newcomers

Cash Adams, Sr.
Jake Christensen, So., Slot
Cody Bowler, Jr., OL
Dylan Cram, Jr., OL
Brannoc Davidson, So., FB
Jack Moyle, So., QB
Rylan, TErry, Jr., WR
Ryker Jones, Sr., TE

Defensive coordinator: Mckay Jones

2024 defense: 18.64 ppg (No. 5 in 1A)

Seven returning starters
5-2 defense

Returning defensive starters

Mole Moody, Sr., DE
Mckay Jones, Sr., MLB
Brannoc Davidson, So, MLB
Gus Albrecht, Jr., DB
Rigz Anzalone, So, OLB
Easton Hill, Jr., S
Rylan, TErry, Jr., DB

Key defensive newcomers

Cash Adams, Sr.
Jake Christensen, So., OLB
Dylan Cram, Jr., DL
Knox Fitzwater, So., DE
Jared Hess, SS, LB
Ryker Jones, Sr., DE
Jack Moyle, So., DB/LB
Brayden Holt, Sr., DL
Luke Orr, Jr., DL
Julian Jones, So., LB
Calvin Shrout, Jr., DB

4. Parowan Rams

2025 Schedule

Head Coach: Ryan Heath

Ryan Heath is entering his sixth year as head coach at Parowan after leading the program to an 15-41 record the previous five seasons. He’s a graduate of North Sevier High School and Southern Utah University.

Coach Ryan Heath’s general outlook

“We are looking forward to this season. We have 100% of our starting offense returning, and 7 of our 11 starters on defense. We expect to see a lot of growth and maturity from our upperclassmen.”

Offensive coordinator: Ryan Heath

2024 offense: 14 ppg (No. 8 in 1A)