SPANISH FORK — Westlake's football team showed up late for a pregame meeting on Friday night, prompting coach Jason Walker to order the players to do push-ups.
It obviously worked.
The Thunder didn't show up late for the game itself, scoring on the opening kickoff and nearly every opportunity after that in a 48-8 rout over Maple Mountain.
"To get us focused before the game we had to do a bunch of push-ups," said junior Brandon Aldsfedt, who scored on a 99-yard kickoff return. "We were real focused after that."
That focus led a swarming Westlake defense, as well as a quick offense that Maple Mountain couldn't keep up with, to the first win in school history.
"We believe that a key to our success is being disciplined," Walker said. "I think that helped us get in the right frame of mind."
The Thunder (1-1) led 48-0 at halftime, holding the Golden Eagles (0-2) to minus-2 rushing yards in the first half and allowing only 40 total yards. The defense also forced Maple Mountain, another first-year school, into four turnovers.
Westlake brought pressure from the start, with three to four Thunder players swarming to the ball carrier in the backfield on nearly every play. Westlake sacked Maple Mountain quarterbacks Jacob Watson and Jace Edmunds five times.
"We saw on film that bringing pressure on the outside would be effective tonight," Walker said. "We did a good job getting there."
Meanwhile, Aldsfedt took the opening kick and broke through a wedge of blockers up the middle, cut to the left sideline, and finally sprung free after a strong block from Eric Gustafson. "That really sparked our team to go out and get a good drive," said Thunder quarterback John Ursua.
After the defense forced a punt, Ursua found Aldsfedt wide open down the left sideline. Aldsfedt then sprinted untouched into the end zone for a 58-yard touchdown reception.
"We challenged them and said from the opening kickoff we need to be ready to go," Walker said. "They took me at my words."
In fact, it seemed Westlake's only mistake was a fake punt with a 48-0 lead that Walker said shouldn't have happened. The second string punt team was in, and the ball was snapped to the running back, which Walker said he told the Maple Mountain coaches after the game was not his intention.
"That was a mistake," he said.
Ursua accounted for four Westlake touchdowns, throwing for two and running for two more.
The 5-foot-9, 150-pound sophomore threw for 101 yards and picked up 49 yards on the ground on six carries. He hooked up with Gustafson on a 36-yard score and ran for touchdowns of 30 and 5 yards.
Maple Mountain, playing its inaugural home game, finally scored in the fourth quarter, with backup quarterback Edmunds connecting with Jake Varney on an 8-yard touchdown pass.