CEDAR CITY — Dorsey (Calif.) High School has several former players in the NFL and quite a few current Dons who are being recruited heavily by major NCAA schools.
Ask anyone who saw Fremont defeat the Dons 27-7 Saturday night and they'd probably say the school that produces stars would be Class 5A's third-ranked Silver Wolves.
Fremont running back Derek Monkres took the opening kickoff for a 91-yard touchdown, tipping off a 20-point first quarter that Dorsey could never recover from. The Silver Wolves' defense did its part as well, forcing three turnovers and constantly disrupting the Dons' plans throughout the night.
"They had a little on us size-wise, but our guys weren't intimidated," Fremont head coach Blaine Monkres said after the game, which was played at Southern Utah University. "But we came to play tonight. I'm proud of our team."
Running back Colton Aiken also played a key role for the 3-0 Silver Wolves, with 78 yards rushing and pinpoint punting that kept Dorsey pinned deep in its own territory most of the night.
After the long kick return, things progressively got worse for the Dons. While trying to punt from deep in their own territory on their first possession, the punter received the ball with a knee on the turf, thus rending the play dead and giving Fremont the ball on the 15-yard line. The Silver Wolves took just four plays to score, capped off by an 11-yard screen pass from quarterback Chase Moore to Aiken. Less than three minutes into the game, Fremont was already ahead 12-0.
After stopping Dorsey on a fourth-and-6 from the Fremont 22, the Silver Wolves methodically drove the length of the field on the legs of Moore and Aiken, with Moore eventually finding tight end Mike Hatch for an 11-yard touchdown pass.
Bad fortune continued for Dorsey near the end of the quarter as two consecutive penalties forced them into a third and 25 from its own 5. The Fremont defensive line surged into the backfield, where tackle Kyle Norman sacked quarterback Nicholas Stephens for a safety to bring the score to 20-0.
Dorsey finally got on the board halfway through the second quarter when Stephens connected with receiver Rahim Moore to pull the score to 20-7 going into halftime.
"It was Dorsey's first game, and I think they'll do well in California," said Blaine Monkres. "Utah teams are as good as any in the country, but sometimes we just don't get the hype."
The Dons changed quarterbacks throughout the night but were never able to consistently generate yardage outside of handing the ball off to Jonathan Franklin, who finished with 122 yards on 24 carries. Fremont added an extra touchdown in the fourth when Moore connected with Justin Brown for a 9-yard reception.