High school football: Corner Canyon backup QB Bronson Evans continues to impress in win over Bingham

Box score

Season-ending injuries to numerous star players are not something Corner Canyon coach Eric Kjar has really ever had to deal with in his 16 season as a head coach.

But that has become the dominant storyline for the Chargers in 2024.

The most significant has been a season-ending foot injury to starting quarterback Helaman Casuga, who had 1,617 passing yards and 18 TDs in five games before the injury.

Casuga’s absence has opened the door for junior Bronson Evans to step into the most coveted position in Utah high school football, and he’s now 3-0 as a starter after leading the Chargers to a 37-21 win at Bingham on Friday night.

Evans completed 11 of 16 passes for 241 yards and three touchdowns as Corner Canyon scored 16 unanswered points to pull away for the win.

“He just keeps getting better. Practice stuff has been huge for him, and that’s where you see it the most. He’s still learning,” Kjar said. “But the thing I love about him is he’s tough as hell. He’s a really tough kid, and he listens to everything we are asking him to do.”

The coaching staff has definitely had to adjust the playbook without a legit dual-threat QB, but Friday’s win was another step in the right direction for Evans.

“We’re doing different stuff for sure as you can tell. We’re pretty different. We’ll be multiple like we have been and try to mix stuff up a little bit and try to keep people on their toes. That’s just how we’re going to have to be, but I think we can get really good at it for sure,” said Kjar.

Evans ripped off two runs of 14 yards and 12 yards to earn first downs on two different scoring drives for Corner Canyon against Bingham’s strong defensive front.

Kjar believe Bingham’s defensive line is the best in the state, so he always knew Friday’s game was going to be a grind. Even when Corner Canyon scored two late TDs in the first half to go up 21-7, Bingham answered back quickly in the third quarter to tie the game 21-21.

Corner Canyon responded from there with points on its last three scoring drives to pull away and clinch at least a tie for the Region 2 championship with one game remaining next Friday against Herriman.

“We hung in there and tried to keep running it and stayed consistent, and I think it paid off a little bit in the fourth quarter. We were able to get some run game going again and make a few plays in our pass game when we needed to,” said Kjar.

Weston Briggs in particular got stronger as the game went on finishing with 20 carries for 107 yards — with 69 of those yards coming in the second half.

Corner Canyon jumped out quick on Friday as Evans connected with Kai Meza on a 74-yard TD pass on just the third play of the game for the 7-0 lead.

“Bronson’s for sure stepped up after losing Helaman, but he’s been doing great,” said Meza, who finished with six catches for 171 yards and three TDs.

Bingham’s offense responded two series later to tie the game 7-7 as Lincoln Tahi’s 2-yard dive capped a 16-play, 69-yard drive that included two fourth-down conversions.

Corner Canyon went back ahead 14-7 with 2:24 remaining in the half on Zion Finau’s 3-yard TD run.

The first of two key Bingham turnovers changed the entire complexion of the game. The Miners fumbled three plays later, and Corner Canyon made quick work on the short field as Meza hauled in a 19-yard TD pass from Evans for the 21-7 halftime lead.

Bingham only needed four plays into the third quarter to get on the board as Filisi Filipe scored on a 2-yard TD run on play after a 72-yard run by Teki Finau set up first and goal.

The Miners’ defense came up with their own big play on Corner Canyon’s next drive as Gabe Bloomfield’s interception set his offense up with great field position.

Filipe pounded it into the end zone six plays later, tying the game at 21-21 with 3:36 remaining in the third quarter.

It was all Corner Canyon from there. Meza caught his third TD reception from Evans late in the third quarter to push the lead to 27-21 after the failed extra point attempt, and then after another key fumble by Bingham, Davis Nelson kicked a 27-yard field goal early in the fourth for the 30-21 lead.

Finau iced the win late with another 1-yard TD run.