Note: East finished with a 5-6 overall record in 2014 and was fourth in Region 6 with a 3-3 record. It lost to Timpview 18-8 in the 4A first round.
SALT LAKE CITY — With 16 starters returning from last year, including several key skill players, East is one of the most talented teams head coach Brandon Matich has ever been around.
However, it is also an extremely young and inexperienced team, and while he loves what he’s seen and is excited about the upcoming season, he knows it remains to be seen whether its talent or its inexperience will shine brighter.
“I love this team. Talent wise, this is as good as a good I’ve ever had, physically. Mentally, they are going to be very young, and to me that plays a bigger role than the physical part of it,” he said. “We’ll see — we are going to be tested pretty early. We’ll see how these young kids respond to the mental aspects of football. Physically, they can handle it. Mentally, we’re going to find out really fast.”
After struggling to establish a starting quarterback and pass game last year, East seems to have the opposite problem this season.
Last year, the Leopards had a hole at quarterback, which held them back from reaching their full potential and forced them to be a one-dimensional team.
Now, after working all summer with their quarterbacks and focusing on the passing game, the Leopards are in the middle of a heated five-player quarterback competition, and Matich couldn't be more excited with what he has seen so far in the offseason.
"Our quarterback coach has done a phenomenal job with the kids this offseason. I feel really confident in four or five of them schematically. A couple of them are pretty young, but we’re feeling a lot better where we are now at quarterback than we were last year. We made that a point of emphasis this offseason that our quarterback position will be well managed and well coached and it is,” he said.
East returns a solid core of nine starters on offense, led by running backs Jalen Warren, Sione Molisi and Hunter Conley along with an extremely dominant offensive line and wide receiver Cole Peterson.
The Leopards are extremely strong and talented up front on the O-Line, led by Johnny Maea, Fusi Teisina and Napa Nu’usa, which should be the foundation of what looks to be a powerful and balanced offensive attack.
"My expectations are higher this year than I have ever had for an offensive line. If they’re all healthy and all is well, then they should be as good as I’ve ever had. But health is the key component — football is a funny game, especially in high school. If you don’t stay healthy, it can become a lot harder,” Matich said.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the ball, East returns a total of seven starters and have a number of young key contributors stepping up to lead the defense.
Up front, Tangaloa Kaufusi, Soni Fonua and Teisina are set to lead the way while Nu’usa and Maea are also expected to have big impacts on defense this season. Peterson (safety), Molisi (cornerback) and Conley (strong safety) also will be looked upon to make some plays.
Matich has liked the progression and effort he's seen from his defense early on and expects it to be one of the team's strong points.
"Defense was our other point of emphasis this offseason and we look really solid. We have changed who we are identity wise. We have been a pretty aggressive blitzing team and we are going to step away from that and let our guys up front, who we feel are extraordinarily talented, do their job and be athletes. We’re going to play a lot of zone behind them. We just want to let them play and not make them think so much,” he said.
Competing against teams such as Bountiful, Highland and Woods Cross was difficult enough, but now with the new UHSAA alignments kicking in, Region 5 has become even more daunting for the Leopards.
With Clearfield moving to 5A (Region 1) and Cyprus and Kearns staying put in Region 6, Box Elder and Bonneville have joined to create an ultra competitive regional powerhouse.
Along with its tough preseason schedule against Syracuse, Centennial High (California), Clearfield and Valor Christian (Colorado), East will have to go toe-to-toe with an extremely tough opponent week in and week out for a spot in the postseason.
“People don’t realize how physical these teams are in our region and how much we beat up on each other. There’s no question our region is the toughest in 4A, top to bottom. Now, by adding Box Elder to the mix, we have five really good teams for just four spots and Bonneville will make that push, too. There are no off weeks and our region is just a black-and-blue gantlet,” said Matich.
East Leopards at a glance
Head Coach: Brandon Matich is entering his sixth season as East’s head coach. He’s amassed a 43-20 record and has led East to the playoffs in all five of his seasons. He’s a graduate of Brighton High School and the University of Utah.
Offense (8 returning starters; Triple Option offense)
Offensive coordinator: Brandon Matich (5 years as assistant)
Returning offensive starters
Johnny Maea (OL)
Fusi Teisina (OL)
Napa Nu’usa (OL)
Tangaloa Kaufusi (OL/TE)
Jalen Warren (RB)
Helaman Suesue
Sione Molisi (RB)
Seni Folou (OL)
Offensive newcomers to watch
Hailawe Feletoa (RB)
Defense (7 returning starters, 4-2-5 defense)
Defensive coordinator: Gary Bowers (5 years as assistant)
Returning defensive starters
Soni Fonua (DE)
Tangaloa Kaufusi (DE)
Moa Heimuli (DT)
Jordan Anderson (CB)
Hunter Conley (S)
Cole Peterson (S)
Fusi Teisina (DT)
Coaches’ preseason 3A South straw poll: Third
Deseret News 3A South prediction: Second
Bottom line: There’s little doubt that East has the necessary talent to be one of the top four or five teams in the state. However, it remains to be seen if it has the experience and mental capacity to be as good as it can be. With 16 returning starters, much of the pressure lies on whoever winds up as the starting quarterback. Last year, the Leopards struggled more at quarterback than any other position and became a one-dimensional team. If a game manager can step up and lead this team while the younger skill players improve, the sky's the limit. With the new UHSAA alignments kicking off this season, East will have its work cut out for it in a highly competitive region. Ultimately, the Leopards’ season will come down to how healthy they can stay.
Last 5
2014 — 5-6 (3-3 in Region 6 – 4A First round)
2013 — 13-1 (6-0 in Region 6 – 4A Runner-up)
2012 — 5-8 (2-3 in Region 6 – 4A Semifinals)
2011 — 12-2 (5-0 in Region 6 – 4A Runner-up)
2010 — 8-3 (4-2 in Region 6 – 4A Quarterfinals)
East coaching history
2010-current — Brandon Matich (43-20)
2009 — Sean Knox (1-8)
2008 — Larry Eldracher (8-3)
2003-2007 — Aaron Whitehead (39-21)
2001-2002 — Jim Hamblin (6-13)
1993-2000 — Chris "Keeko" Georgelas (48-33)
1992 — John Holladay (2-6)
1989-1991 — Mike Kernodle (4-24)
1986-1988 — David Jenson (4-25)
1985 — Jerry Haslam (1-8)
1981-1984 — Jay Vesterfelt (7-30)
1978-1980 — Dale Simons (13-21)
1956-1977 — Grant Martin (140-63)
1950-1955 — Floyd C. "Tally" Stevens (47-8)
1926-1949 — McKinley "Mickey" Oswald (104-47)
1922-1925 — Leroy E. Warthman (27-3)
1918-1921 — G. Ottinger Romney (31-1)
1914-1917 — Tommy Fitzpatrick (21-11)
Deseret News Mr. Football recipients
2013 — Ula Tolutau, RB
Deseret News First Team all-staters the past 10 years
2014 — Christian Folau, LB
2014 — Avery Hopkins, DB
2013 — Preston Curtis, RB
2013 — Joe Tukuafu, TE
2013 — Sione Tuikolovatu, OL
2013 — Tennessee Su’e Su’e, OL
2013 — Christian Folau, LB
2013 — Lorenzo Manu, DB
2012 — PJ Nu’usa
2012 — Merrill Taliauli, OL
2012 — Korey Rush, DL
2012 — Zach Swenson, DB
2011 — Jason Cook, QB
2011 — Liti Molisi, RB
2011 — Tevita Hafoka, OL
2011 — Vaha Vainuku
2011 — Sione Lea'aetoa
2011 — Sione Makoni, DB
2010 — Tanner Curtis, QB
2010 — Vahu Vainuku, OL
2010 — Ofa Hautau, DL
2007 — Sam Fulton, DL
2006 — Jake Cook, RB
2006 — John Tauteoli, LB
2006 — Sean Swenson, DB
2005 — Jake Cook, RB
To view second team and honorable mention all-staters through the years, check out the Deseret News All-State Archives.
Ryan Love is a full-time student and has been a part-time sportswriter for the Deseret News since Oct. 2012.
Follow him on Twitter @RLove7724
EMAIL: rlove@deseretnews.com