Photo By Steve Conner - #27 Mason Fullmer
Preseason Coaches' Poll
1. Rigby
2. Highland
3. Thunder Ridge
4. Madison
5. Idaho Falls
Written by: Brandon Baney
You can almost set your watch by it. Every two or three years, the Highland Rams lose a loaded senior class to graduation. And questions begin to emerge: Is this the year Highland finally slips a little? How are they going to replace all of those guys? How will these new players handle the pressure of varsity ball?
And yet, despite the persistent doubts, Highland is doing just fine. Head coach Gino Mariani has proven time and again that Highland doesn’t rebuild, they simply reload. Sure, the offensive and defensive schemes may differ slightly as Mariani tailors the playbook to suit the new varsity personnel. But the winning never ceases.
“We have had tremendous participation this offseason in our preparation for 2021,” Mariani said. “This team has a cohesiveness about them. Great chemistry.”
Highland said goodbye to several talented playmakers from last year’s 8-3 squad, including two-time All-State running back Kaleb Demuzio, defensive end Logan George (who moved on to Idaho State University), defensive tackle Luke Togiai, and quarterback Easton Durham.
The one spot that wasn’t hit hard by graduation was the offensive line, which has Mariani excited. “I believe our strength will be up front with our offensive line, which returns 3 starters from a year ago,” Mariani said. “We should be a very balanced team running our West Coast offense with some aspects of the spread.”
Kyler Williams and Ian Allen earned All-Conference honors last season, and are joined by returning starter Mason Summerill to give the Rams three seniors to build around at the line of scrimmage. They’ll be tasked with protecting senior quarterback Jack Whitmer, who shared playing time last year with Durham.
Whitmer will lean on senior running back/slot receiver Jaxon Shuman and senior wide receiver Raimon Barela. Those two will lead a receiving crew that also includes senior tight ends Colton Sneddon and Fischer Anderson.
Overall, the success of Highland’s offense will boil down to one key factor, according to Mariani. “We need to get better at making plays in tough situations,” he said.
On the other side of the field, Highland’s defense will be anchored by junior Mason Fullmer, a returning All-Conference selection at linebacker.
Up front, Mariani says that despite the losses of George and Togiai, “Our defensive line is still our strength. We need to continue to play physical and create turnovers.”
Seniors Sloan Lambson and Kody Colvin are returning starters at defensive tackle and defensive end, respectively, and each earned All-Conference status a year ago.
The secondary is relatively untested, but does return senior cornerback Adam Jones. Jones is also an excellent kickoff and punt returner.
Along with Jones in the return game, Highland’s special teams unit will once again be one of the state’s best. Senior Ian Hershey earned 1st Team All-State honors at both kicker and punter last year, and his name is already heavily featured in the Rams’ record books.
Highland begins its season by hosting defending 5A champ Rocky Mountain at Holt Arena on August 21st. That’s followed by a matchup with Utah’s Alta High at the Rocky Mountain Rumble, and home games with Logan (Utah), Century and Pocatello.
“We have some early games that will be a great measuring stick for us,” Mariani said. “We need to play well in those games to set the tone for the rest of the season.”