Note: Carbon finished with a 3-7 overall record in 2014 and last in 3A North with an 0-5 record. It did not qualify for the playoffs.
PRICE — Like every team in the state, the Carbon Dinos have aspirations of winning a championship this fall.
But being the third head coach in three years of a team that is a perennial cellar dweller, Josh Huntsman has a more measured goal that he feels can be more attainable.
“Our ultimate goal, as most teams, is to make the state championship game, but we are in the hunt for November,” he said. “We’re looking to get wins within our conference so that we can actually extend our season and play beyond 10 games.”
The Dinos gave up more than 41 points per game in region play last year on defense and passed the majority of the time on offense, so Huntsman is looking to change his team's approach on both fronts in 2015 in hopes that will bring more success.
The defensive side of the ball is where Huntsman is hoping the Dinos can do some damage, and there’s one position group that the new head coach hopes will step up.
“Our strength within our defense is going to be our linebacking corps,” he said. “We feel that most of our athletes fit into that linebacker category. It didn’t make sense for us to waste a position with another defensive lineman. We figure if we put them in the defensive backfield as a linebacker, that’s going to be more beneficial to us.”
Leading the way will be Dallyn Mower, who tallied 99 tackles a season ago. Joining him will be Nate Olson, Taylon Abeyta, Logan Olsen and Tristan Armstrong.
“We will live and die by what our linebackers do,” Huntsman said. “If they trust each other and do their jobs, we’re gonna be in great shape.”
While Huntsman will be relying heavily on his linebackers, it’s the secondary he feels could surprise some people.
Headlining the group is Bradlee Chatterton, Wyatt Wilson and Marcos Castro. They’ll lead a unit Huntsman said is “the hardest working kids that we have.”
“They’re constantly running, constantly moving,” he said. “Those guys have a hard time stopping for water. We actually have to stop practice and tell them to go get water so we can keep them hydrated. They’re doing a fantastic job for us.”
On the defensive line, Kolton Anselmo and Peyton Fausett will look to hold things down.
While Huntsman is looking for a big change in the production of his defense from a year ago, it may not look as drastically different as the offense from a schematics standpoint.
Where Carbon threw the ball about 85 percent of the time in 2014 on its way to averaging just over nine points per game, Huntsman makes it no secret that the Dinos will be moving to a double wing offense this fall, meaning he’ll opt to run the ball a majority of the time.
“We’re gonna try to cram down yards, control the clock and allow our defense to dictate what our offense can do,” he said. “Our offense is more of an extension of our defense than anything. We’ll try to play tough defense and then control the clock on offense.”
Mower will play fullback, Chatterton will be at one wing and Olsen will be at the other. At quarterback is Taylor Rasmussen, who will serve as a lead blocker at that position.
At tight end, Abeyta will see some touches, but a player Huntsman is particularly excited about is the 6-foot-6 Fausett.
“Anytime you’ve got a 6-foot-6 tight end, you’ve gotta get him as many touches as you can,” Huntsman said. “He’s a big body to throw to...when we pop one for a pass, we hope we’re not just catching it for yardage. We’re looking to catch those footballs for touchdowns.”
Huntsman acknowledges that his offensive line won’t have a whole lot of size or depth, although there is one exception — 6-foot-5, 305-pound junior center Ryan Jannoud who will be the anchor.
Playing both ways, Anselmo will be at guard, and he's become an important vocal leader.
“Our style of football is hopefully going to be smash-mouth,” Huntsman said. “We want teams to know that when they come into Price, it’s going to be a battle.”
Carbon Dinos at a glance
Head coach: Josh Huntsman is entering his first year as Carbon’s head coach. He’s a graduate of Sugar-Salem High School in Idaho.
Offense: (7 returning starters, double wing offense)
Offensive coordinator: Ray Brazier (first year at school)
Returning offensive starters
Kolton Anselmo (OL)
Logan Olsen (RB)
Bradlee Chatterton (RB)
Cardon Christensen (OL)
Peyton Fausett (TE)
Taylon Abeyta (TE)
Dallyn Mower (FB)
Offensive newcomers to watch
Taylor Rasmussen (QB)
Jasper Thayn (OL)
Ryan Jannoud (OL)
Tristan Armstrong (OL)
Defense (7 returning starters, 3-5 defense)
Defensive coordinator: John Huitt (second year at Carbon)
Returning defensive starters
Dallyn Mower (LB)
Logan Olsen (LB)
Taylon Abeyta (LB)
Peyton Fausett (LB)
Kolton Anselmo (DT)
Cardon Christensen (DT)
Bradlee Chatterton (CB)
Defensive newcomers to watch
Marcos Castro (DB)
Alan Manzo (DB)
Tristan Armstrong (LB)
Nate Olson (LB)
Coaches preseason 3A North straw poll: Sixth
Deseret News 3A North prediction: Sixth
Bottom line: There’s always a sense of optimism with a new coach, and Huntsman certainly has an idea of what he wants to see happen this fall. The question will be whether or not his players can carry out that plan. If they can run the ball effectively, the nature of the Dinos’ new offense ought to allow them to stay in games. On defense, if Huntsman’s linebackers can be as effective as advertised, Carbon should be better on that side of the ball than it was a season ago. Whether or not that will add up to more wins remains to be seen.
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Last 5
2014 — 3-7 (0-5 in 3A North – Missed Playoffs)
2013 — 0-10 (0-5 in 3A North – Missed playoffs)
2012 — 1-9 (0-5 in Region 12 – Missed playoffs)
2011 — 4-5 (0-5 in Region 12 – Missed playoffs)
2010 — 1-8 (0-4 in Region 10 – Missed playoffs)
...
Carbon coaching history
2015 — Josh Huntsman (0-0)
2014 — Jan Jorgensen (3-7)
2010-2013 — Jeff Blanc (6-32)
2008-2009 — Leo Paur (0-19)
2007 — Tim Tiller (2-7)
2006 — J.P. Salisbury (1-9)
2004-2005 — Lane Herrick (1-18)
2003 — Jeff Jorgensen (3-6)
2002 — Don Gressman (2-7)
1998-2001 — Troy Moynier (15-31)
1991-1997 — Jeff Jorgensen (20-46)
1987-1990 — Don Gressman (14-24)
1982-1986 — Mike Kernodle (10-34)
1979-1981 — Jerry Dyer (4-23)
1974-1978 — Tom Rabb (10-35)
1971-1973 — Boyd Bell (13-15)
1970 — Tom King (2-7)
1969 — Boyd Bell (2-6)
1966-1968 — Louis Mele (1-25)
1962-1965 — Larry Regis (9-27)
1952-1961 — Jackson Jewkes (39-42)
1946-1951 — Preston L "Pres" Summerhays (31-17)
1945 — Jackson Jewkes (4-3)
1944 — George Young (4-3)
1941-1943 — Jackson Jewkes (13-10)
1933-1940 — Preston L "Pres" Summerhays (51-18)
1929-1932 — Vernon Merrill (18-5)
1928 — William Nixon (3-5)
1924-1927 — Carl W. "Stubby" Peterson (29-7)
1923 — Howard N Blazzard (2-3)
1916-1922 — Unknown
1912-1915 — Merrill O. Maughn (6-5)
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Deseret News First Team all-staters the past 10 years
(None)
To view second team and honorable mention all-staters through the years, check out the Deseret News All-State Archives.
Ryan McDonald is a part-time reporter at the Deseret News. Follow him on Twitter @ryanwmcdonald.