1 / 8

Skyridge defenders make a tackle during the Region 4 game against Corner Canyon in Lehi on Friday, Sept. 23, 2022.

Jared Lloyd, Daily Herald

2 / 8

Skyridge quarterback Trent Call throws a pass during the Region 4 game against Corner Canyon in Lehi on Friday, Sept. 23, 2022.

Jared Lloyd, Daily Herald

3 / 8

Skyridge running back Carter Sheffield dives for the end zone during the Region 4 game against Corner Canyon in Lehi on Friday, Sept. 23, 2022.

Jared Lloyd, Daily Herald

4 / 8

Skyridge receiver La'akea Kalama gets tackled during the Region 4 game against Corner Canyon in Lehi on Friday, Sept. 23, 2022.

Jared Lloyd, Daily Herald

5 / 8

A Skyridge defender makes a tackle during the Region 4 game against Corner Canyon in Lehi on Friday, Sept. 23, 2022.

Jared Lloyd, Daily Herald

6 / 8

Skyridge players take the field before the Region 4 game against Corner Canyon in Lehi on Friday, Sept. 23, 2022.

Jared Lloyd, Daily Herald

7 / 8

Skyridge head coach Jon Lehman watches his team during the Region 4 game against Corner Canyon in Lehi on Friday, Sept. 23, 2022.

Jared Lloyd, Daily Herald

8 / 8

Skyridge receiver La'akea Kalama runs the ball up the field during the Region 4 game against Corner Canyon in Lehi on Friday, Sept. 23, 2022.

Jared Lloyd, Daily Herald

❮ ❯

It was one of those moments that was sure to be on the Skyridge football highlight reel at the end of the season.

The Falcons were backed up on their own 4-yard line against Class 6A powerhouse Corner Canyon on Friday night in Lehi, but Skyridge chose to take a huge risk.

Falcon junior quarterback Trent Call dropped back and lofted a deep pass to where junior wide receiver La’akea Kalama was running a fade pattern down the near sideline in front of his own bench. He managed to elude the hand-fighting of the Charger defensive back, hauled in the pass and raced the rest of the way for the stunning 96-yard score.

On the Skyridge sideline it was all smiles, since the TD would put the home team up 21-0 in the first quarter and really put a lot of pressure on Corner Canyon.

But then they saw the yellow flag on the field and could only watch in stunned disbelief as a questionable offensive pass interference penalty wiped the big play off the board.

It wasn’t the first call of dubious accuracy of the game, since earlier in the contest Charger quarterback Isaac Wilson was ruled to have fumbled the ball when it appeared from another angle that he was clearly down before the ball came out (Skyridge turned that turnover into a touchdown).

But the pass interference would turn out to be a surprisingly accurate foreshadowing of the rest of the game.

The Falcons would hurt themselves with penalties throughout the contest and never get in the end zone again. Those miscues aided Corner Canyon as it rallied to tie, then rallied again with a touchdown in the fourth quarter to get the 21-17 win.

“We had too many penalties and unforced errors,” Skyridge head coach Jon Lehman said. “When you make those unforced errors, they are going to take advantage of them. It’s within our control and we can correct those things. We’ll get better.”

The Falcons, who are still without injured star senior quarterback McCae Hillstead, pounced on Chargers mistakes early.

Skyridge forced an interception on Corner Canyon’s second drive and took advantage of the great field position. The Falcons took the lead on a tough four-yard touchdown run by junior running back Carter Sheffield.

Wilson’s ruled fumble came on the next Charger offensive play, giving the home team another golden opportunity. Call drilled a pass to junior Jackson Fenton for a 22-yard touchdown and Skyridge appeared to be completely in control.

The Falcon defense forced a punt on the next Corner Canyon possession, but the Chargers pinned Skyridge deep. That set the stage for the big play that didn’t count and things started shifting to favor the visitors.

Aided by a 15-yard facemask infraction, Corner Canyon marched down the field to narrow the gap on a one-yard run by senior running back Drew Patterson.

The Chargers would tie the game on their next drive — helped by a questionable 15-yard personal foul call — as Wilson hit junior wide receiver Tate Kjar on a screen pass for a five-yard score.

Skyridge caught a break right before the half when Corner Canyon bungled a fourth-and-4 play from its own 32-yard line. The Falcons turned that into a 42-yard field goal by senior kicker Ian Keeslar that just cleared the crossbar.

The three-point Skyridge lead held up throughout the third quarter, but the Chargers finally got the drive they needed early in the final period.

With the help of another debatable personal foul penalty, Corner Canyon rumbled back down the field and Patterson scored from four yards out to put his team in front.

Skyridge had time to answer but an interception and then a turnover on downs in the final minute snuffed out the Falcon hopes of a comeback.

Lehman said the message to Call — who had some big plays but also had a couple of interceptions — is to focus on moving forward.

“We’ll tell him to keep learning, keep growing, keep competing, keep having fun, keep doing all that,” Lehman said.

It was the first loss of the season for Skyridge (6-1, 1-1) but Lehman said he isn’t too worried about the record.

“We know it’s a long season,” Lehman said. “The loss is not our major focus. Our major focus is just getting better. We’ve got plenty of stuff that we need to go and watch the film and address. We need to improve on our execution and improve on our mindset and improve in all those things.”

The Falcons face another tough test when they play at Lone Peak on Sept. 30, while the Chargers (5-2, 2-0) host Westlake the same evening.

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

Newsletter