The RPI era in Utah high school football has taken a bit of the shine off of winning a region championship.

Then again, winning a title in the state’s toughest region does mean something.

American Fork claimed the 6A Region 3 crown on Friday, getting a game-ending interception from Zane Edwards in the end zone to preserve a wild 34-27 overtime victory against defending state champion Skyridge.

“I’m not even sure they all know yet,” AF coach Aaron Behm said in his post-game interview. “I’m super proud of the kids. What a high school football game. To come out on top, we’re fortunate. You can’t create a more intense atmosphere than playing Skyridge in overtime.”

American Fork (9-1 overall, 4-1 Region 3) took a 27-20 lead with 2:21 to play on a 15-yard touchdown pass from Dylan Story to tight end Josh Andrus, who made huge plays for the Cavemen all night (eight receptions for a 117 yards). A mistake on the kickoff return set Skyridge back on its own 3-yard line but Jackson Stevens directed a brilliant 97-yard scoring drive. Stevens connected with Trent Call on a 7-yard touchdown pass as time expired and Foxton Dovey’s extra point sent the game into overtime.

The Cavemen took first possession and Davis Andrews gathered in a perfectly thrown ball from Story in the corner of the end zone for a 25-yard touchdown and a 34-27 lead.

“I just had a nine (route) and Dylan put the ball right where it needed to be,” Andrews said. “He put it where I could catch it. It was such a great throw.”

Skyridge managed to overcome two holding penalties during its overtime possession to reach the 12-yard line. Stevens looked for Call again in the end zone but Luke Higbee managed to get hand on the ball, deflecting it to Edwards to end the game. It was American Fork’s third interception of the night.

“I knew my boys were going to clutch up,” said Andrews, who also plays safety. “I mean, we were tired but Coach Behm has run us hard all year. We worked for this. It wasn’t like, ‘Crap, we’re in overtime.’ We wanted that and we knew we were going to get it done.”

There were plenty of bonus gifts from the win, including what might be the biggest perk: Clinching the No. 1 seed in next week’s state playoffs. It was also the first time the Cavemen had beaten Skyridge in five meetings as well as Behm’s 100th victory as a head coach.

“Overtime wins are probably the sweetest,” Behm said. “I’ve never had a home win in overtime for the region championship. So this is way up there. But this isn’t the end. We’re going to celebrate like crazy and we’re super proud of the win. But these guys have higher goals. We’re looking forward to the next five weeks.”

American Fork jumped out to a 14-0 first quarter lead, cruising through the Skyridge defense to score on its first two possessions. The Falcons finally broke through with a 45-yard Stevens to Call scoring play with 1:53 to go to cut the deficit to 14-6. After forcing a 3-and-out, Skyridge drove swiftly down the field and into the red zone. But with 20 seconds to go, Higbee intercepted a Stevens pass to end the half.

The Falcons managed to tie the score at 20-all with 7:57 to play on a nifty 12-yard screen pass from Stevens to Brett Buhler to set up the game’s final sequence.

“I mean, this night was just perfectly set up,” Andrews said. It’s almost like a movie. We were meant to win this game. It’s just huge for this program. We haven’t done this for a while and it’s just awesome to see the kids I grew up with start doing something special for American Fork.”

Story finished with 301 passing yards, three touchdowns and zero interceptions. Stevens had 375 passing yards and three touchdowns but also three interceptions for Skyridge (8-2 overall, 3-2 Region 3). The Falcons dropped their second straight overtime game after suffering their first loss last week to Pleasant Grove.

The Cavemen will get a bye into the second round of the 6A playoffs and will host the winner of the Westlake at Fremont first round matchup. Skyridge, the No. 4 seed, also has a bye and will host No. 13 Farmington on Oct. 27.