Things didn't exactly look rosy for the Orem football team early in the second half at Provo Friday night.

But it wasn't time to panic; it was time to get back to the basics.

Orem used a resurgent defense and a relentless ground game to get back in control, pulling away for the 40-28 victory in the big Region 7 showdown.

"We had to have this win," said Tiger coach Bob Steele. "Since we threw one away at Tooele, we needed this one if wanted to have any chance at getting home playoff games. But we still need to fix quite a few things."

Steele wasn't thrilled with the way his defense allowed Provo to roll down the field to get back in the game, but he was glad to see his team bounce back strong.

It didn't take long for Orem to take back the lead after a 10-yard pass from Bulldog junior quarterback Matt Griner to junior tight end Josh Roberts and the ensuing two-point conversion had put Provo in front 22-19.

The Tigers needed four plays to move the ball 51 yards in just 1:22, capped by a perfect 29-yard pass from Orem senior quarterback Josh Hamblin to senior wide receiver Lance Chatterly, to go back on top.

That was when the Tiger defense regained it's toughness and the Orem running game started pounding out the yards.

"That allowed us to run some time of the clock and get some safe yards," Steele said. "We threw the ball well at times but we also struggled at times."

The visitors racked up 140 yards on the ground in the second half to bring their total to 210 for the game -- which also turned out to be the exact number of passing yards the Tigers put up on the board.

"We gained quite a few yards, so our offensive guys did well," Steele said.

A 13-yard touchdown run by Orem senior running back Jon Huntbach early in the fourth quarter appeared to give the Tigers some breathing room, but it didn't last long.

Provo used a reverse on the ensuing kickoff to spring senior wide receiver Anthony Miles, who thanks to a great block from senior fullback Sam Vave was able to race down the sideline for an 85-yard kickoff return for a touchdown. Ironically, the official time on the return was only one second due to a clock operator mistake.

The exciting play gave Bulldog fans some hope but Orem didn't allow it to take root. The Tigers marched 72 yards on 11 plays and used up six minutes off the clock on their way to a 17-yard Hamblin-to-Jordan Egbert touchdown pass -- their second of the game.

Provo tried to rally but saw its next two possessions end with a turnover on downs and an interception that gave Orem the win.

Miles was the workhorse for the home team as he totaled 123 yards receiving and two touchdowns on seven catches and at least that many yards on kick and punt returns.

The Bulldogs (0-5, 0-2) will now try to bounce back when they host Payson on Sept. 26, while the Tigers (3-2, 1-1) are using their bye week for a non-region game at Judge the same evening.

Both games are scheduled to start at 7 p.m.

• Jared Lloyd can be reached at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it