WASHINGTON TERRACE -- Following last season's non-state 5-A playoff appearance, the Lancers' offseason plan was three-fold: Become more physical defensively, improve on special teams and develop a passing game to alleviate pressure on the running game.
Overcoming 10 penalties and two turnovers Friday, Layton High converted three Lakers' turnovers into 15 points and beat Bonneville 28-7 in a non-league game at Wallace & Thomas Budge Field.
"Not a bad start. The kids played really well and did a good job for the first game," Layton coach Jim Batchelor said. "There are some mistakes we need to clean up, and we had way too many penalties."
The Lancers defeated the Lakers for the fourth consecutive time dating back to 2007, outscoring Bonneville 120-26.
"We gave up way too many points defensively last year, so this was a good start," Batchelor said. "It's still a 4-3 scheme and guys are doing whatever we ask them to do."
Senior quarterback Derek Thomas, who took over full-time QB duties in Week 3 versus crosstown rival Northridge in 2009, completed 6-of-10 passes for 90 yards and two touchdowns with no interceptions. He also threw a two-point conversion pass on Layton's second touchdown.
Thomas also rushed for 28 yards and a touchdown on 11 carries, while also intercepting a pass.
"Derek is a great athlete," Batchelor said. "He did a lot of things last year on pure athleticism. We want to establish him throwing the ball, and we are still going to run Derek. Last year, all we had was Adam Bunting running the ball and teams stacked the box against us."
Senior tailback Grant Walker ran for a game-high 105 yards and a touchdown on 16 carries for Layton, which had 293 total yards, including 203 yards rushing.
Junior wideout/defensive back J.T. Anderson had a 19-yard touchdown catch, a pass interception and a fumble recovery for the Lancers, who have the Region 1 bye next week.
"Our biggest worry is not getting overconfident over what we've done," Batchelor said. "I think we made some progress from last year. The kids made plays, and we need to make more plays."
The Lakers finished with just 185 total yards and committed nine penalties.
Senior defensive back Ryan Anderson had an 85-yard pick-six of a tipped pass for Bonneville's only touchdown.
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