Dozier Field had a different feel to it Monday afternoon, and rightly so. The Park City High School football team is on the wrong end of a 0-2 start after the Miners were bulldozed by Stansbury 41-7 Friday night in Tooele.
Head coach Kai Smalley made sure his team knew where it stood in Monday’s practice as his traditionally laid-back manner turned intense and more vocal.
“I don’t know if I got too comfortable,” he said after practice. “Things were going so well in fall camp, and we go into that first week against Spanish Fork. Maybe it was first-week jitters I didn’t want to push them and overload them with things to do last week this is how I’ve always coached.
“But I want those guys to hear something (in practice). I don’t have the manpower to do it all on my own. I got brilliant coaches, but they have to just like the kids get fired up.”
The Miners committed seven turnovers against the Stallions and Stansbury quarterback Chase Christiansen ran all over Park City for 194 yards and four touchdowns on 20 carries.
“Our defense was on the field all night,” Smalley said. “If you give a good team the ball that many times, they’re going to get something.”
Smalley said the Miners’ defense started the game out strong holding Stansbury to a three-and-out, but once Christiansen found a seam and went 59 yards for a touchdown, things collapsed.
“If one person takes a down off, we’re done,” he said of facing a triple-option team.
Park City’s lone score was a 51-yard fumble return for a touchdown in the second quarter by senior defensive end Jack Rinehart.
The Miners’ offense has scored a total of eight points in two games this season. In Monday’s practice, the offense scrimmaged the defense for quite some time.
“We’ve gotten into the end zone a few times,” Smalley said. “We just get them taken back. When you get into turnovers and penalties, it sets you back.”
The team has had some good news, though. Senior wideout/safety Jono Schettler was able to play Friday after hyperextending his left knee in the season opener against Spanish Fork. Smalley said he had three catches against Stansbury.
“We just can’t keep him off the field,” he said.
Park City also welcomed senior offensive/defensive lineman Jordan Ruda back to the team last week. Smalley said Ruda was weighing whether to play football this year, and he’s ecstatic one of his more athletic players is back on the field.
“I love the kid,” he said. “You see what he can do; his first play in practice today he forces a fumble and falls on it.”
Week Three will present a difficult task for the Miners, which Smalley reiterated to the team Monday. Park City travels to Duchesne to take on the defending 1A state champion Eagles, who ran past North Summit 35-6 Friday night in Coalville.
“They lull you to sleep with that run,” he said. “They have two formations. It’s really just one formation; just flip it around.”
Duchesne quarterback Shiaba Allen has rushed for 213 yards and two touchdowns this season. Running backs Braiden Despain (214 yards, three touchdowns) and Macoy Young (194 yards, three touchdowns) follow close behind.
Smalley said this is a perfect game for his team to respond to the 0-2 start, but wants his team to establish some tenacity.
“There cannot be questioning,” he said. “We can’t slip.”