High school football: Crimson Cliffs Mustangs 2020 preview

Note: Crimson Cliffs finished with a 1-9 overall record in 2019 and tied for sixth in Region 9 with a 1-6 record. It was RPI seed No. 20 in the 4A playoffs, and was eliminated by Cedar City 21-19 in first round.


ST. GEORGE — Now entering its second year of existence, Crimson Cliffs is in much better position to compete both in Region 9 and in 4A this season.

Head coach: Jaron Tate

Led first-year school Crimson Cliffs to a 1-9 record in its debut season in 2019. Prior to taking over the Mustangs program, he spent 10 years as an assistant at Dixie High School. He’s a graduate of Canyon View High School and Southern Utah University.

Coach Jaron Tate’s team did graduate 10 seniors, but a big chunk of last year’s team were sophomores and physically they’re much better prepared to compete at the varsity level.

Just as important, the coaching staff was reminded toward the second half of last year about the importance of staying consistent from week to week.

“Halfway through the season we stopped worrying about wins and losses and we just tried to improve every day, and that’s kind of the motto again. … Are we better today than we were yesterday, and can we be better tomorrow than we were today, so in that sense last year was a success,” said Tate.

Offensively, Tyler Whittaker will be the anchor of a strong offensive line that will try to open holes for senior returning starter Creed Leonard.

Defensively, Crimson Cliffs returns six starters and got a boost with two linebacker move-ins, Jason Ponausuia from Hawaii and Jackson Griffiths from Lone Peak.

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Crimson Cliffs Mustangs at a glance

Coach Tate’s thoughts on how his players dealt the COVID-19 adversity in the spring and summer:

“Last year we through some adversity as a brand new school and also we had some issues with our turf field getting completed. Last year one of our biggest mottos and one of the things we tried to teach our kids is we can only control what we can control, and everything else is secondary. So I feel like our kids have done well with continuing that thought process and mindset ... and whatever comes up and whatever delays and whatever changes come up we’re just going to keep rolling with that.”

2020 Schedule

Aug. 14 — MANTI, 7 p.m.

Aug. 21 — LEHI, 7 p.m.

Aug. 28 — at Sugar-Salem, Idaho, 7 p.m.

Sept. 4 — CEDAR CITY, 7 p.m.

Sept. 11 — at Canyon View, 7 p.m.

Sept. 18 — HURRICANE, 7 p.m.

Sept. 25 — at Pine View, 7 p.m.

Oct. 2 — at Dixie, 7 p.m.

Oct. 9 — SNOW CANYON, 7 p.m.

Oct. 14 — at Desert Hills, 7 p.m.

Crimson Cliffs offensive snapshot

Offensive coordinator: Keola Loo

2019 offense: 14.6 (19th in 4A)

2019 offensive statistics

• 8 returning starters
• Spread offense

Returning offensive starters

• Chase Hansen (QB)
• Creed Leonard (RB)
• Gunner Orr (WR)
• Tyler Whittaker (OL)
• Cameron Smithson (OL)
• Dillon Coleman (OL)
• Jaxon Richey (WR)
• Davin Adams (WR)

Coach Tate’s keys for offensive success in 2020:

“It will be our run game and being able to control the tempo and the speed of the game. Down here we have some really high-power offenses in Dixie, Pine View and Desert Hills, so for us we’re going to run the ball more. We have a senior running back Creed Leonard that’s going to start for us, so we’ll rely on him quite a bit to dominate the running game. We want to dictate the tempo of the football games and make others teams adjust to us. Having coached with and now against coach (Blaine) Monkres at Dixie, the only way to stop him is to not give him the ball, cause he’ll find a way to score on you.”

Crimson Cliffs defensive snapshot

Defensive coordinator: Wayne Alofipo

2019 defense: 34.8 ppg (16th in 4A)

2019 defensive statistics

• 6 returning starters
• 3-4 defense

Returning defensive starters

• Jaylen Walker (CB)
• Malachi Kaonohi (S)
• Wai Kaonohi (LB)
• Marley Salanoa-Sagapolu (DL)
• Isaac Golder (CB)
• Zach Andrus (LB)

Defensive newcomers to watch

• Corbin Cuff (S)
• Jason Ponausuia (LB)
• Jackson Griffiths (LB)

Coach Tate’s keys for defensive success in 2020:

“Our defense is anchored by Marley Salanoa-Sagapolu on the D-line. He started every game for us last year and he’s going to start every game for us this year, and he’s just a beast. We’re only as good as he can make us. We run that 3-4 defense and so those three down lineman are taking up blockers, and Marley can take up two to three blockers depending on where he’s going, leaving our linebackers to scrape and feel. We’re also strong in the secondary with three returning starters.”

Deseret News outlook for 2020

It’s foolish to judge a football program after its first season, and Crimson Cliffs is no different. Its Region 9 rival Desert Hills is the perfect example. In 2008 Desert Hills went 3-7 in its debut season. The following year it went 6-4 and by 2011 was playing for a state championship. It’s a trajectory that Crimson Cliffs hopes to follow, but realistically it might be a year behind Desert Hills’ curve as it will rely primarily on juniors this season.

Felt’s Facts for Crimson Cliffs High School


• All-time record: 1-9 (1 year)

• Region championships: 0
• Playoff appearances: 1
• All-time playoff record: 0-1

• State championships: 0
• State championship record: 0-0


Last 5 seasons

• 2019 — 1-9 (1-6 in Region 9 ­– 4A First round)

Crimson Cliffs coaching history


• 2019-current — Jaron Tate (1-9)

Deseret News All-State Archives

Check out our archives of Deseret News all-state teams from 1929 to 2019 at Deseret.com.