Back and bolder: No rust holding back Fremont’s Salesi Moa during 48-30 region brawl at Box Elder
Utah's No. 1 2026 prospect keeps Silverwolves unbeaten in region play with 2 weeks left
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- Fremont’s Taggart Burton, left, and Salesi Moa celebrate a touchdown during a region football contest at Box Elder on Friday, Oct. 3, 2025, in Brigham City.
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- Box Elder’s Jacson Lifferth, left, breaks up a pass intended for Fremont’s Slade Parker, right, during a region football contest on Friday, Oct. 3, 2025, in Brigham City.
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- Box Elder’s Kadyn Reyes calls out before taking a snap during a region football contest vs. Fremont on Friday, Oct. 3, 2025, in Brigham City.
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- Box Elder’s Judd Howells falls forward for a touchdown during a region football contest vs. Fremont on Friday, Oct. 3, 2025, in Brigham City.
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- Fremont’s Manase Tuatagaloa is wrapped up by the Box Elder defense during a region football contest on Friday, Oct. 3, 2025, in Brigham City.
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- Fremont’s Salesi Moa steers through traffic during a region football contest at Box Elder on Friday, Oct. 3, 2025, in Brigham City.
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- Box Elder’s Bridger Ricahrds is wrapped up by Fremont’s defense during a region football contest on Friday, Oct. 3, 2025, in Brigham City.
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- Fremont’s Salesi Moa catches a pass during a region football contest at Box Elder on Friday, Oct. 3, 2025, in Brigham City.
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- Box Elder’s Judd Howells rushes the ball during a region football contest vs. Fremont on Friday, Oct. 3, 2025, in Brigham City.
BRIGHAM CITY — The absence of five-star Tennessee commit Salesi Moa was certainly felt a week ago during Fremont’s nonregion football loss to Farmington at home, and perhaps felt even more following his return for a 48-30 road win Friday night at Box Elder.
Moa, along with senior running back Cade Hadley, each returned to the field for substantial dividends after both must-have skill players missed Week 7’s one-possession loss to the former region neighbor Phoenix.
Both would find the end zone twice in the first half and set the stage for the Silverwolves (6-2, 4-0 Region 5) to outgun the Bees (6-2, 4-1) for the region chair.
Another high-stakes region matchup with West Field awaits Fremont next week, and Moa knows every snap without him is irreplaceable next season when his prep career is long over.
“It means a lot for us, setting ourselves up for the playoffs and the rest of the region,” Moa said. “I’m ready to play my game the day it is, and then I’m ready for the next game. I’m already ready for West Field. We can play them tomorrow (and) I’d be ready.”
Any doubts regarding Moa’s health were squashed on the game’s opening drive, resulting in a 35-yard touchdown from senior quarterback Manase Tuatagaloa, striking the senior target for the first of three times for six points on Friday night.
The Wolves’ defense backed it up with a stop and, a drive later, kicker Cam Graves made it a 10-0 contest in the first quarter from 41 yards out.
Box Elder’s rushing combo of Judd Howells and Bridger Richards, filling in for injured senior Jaxen Cool, answered on the offense’s second drive. Howells powered over the goal line for a touchdown and junior quarterback Kadyn Reyes kept it on the ground for a two-point conversion.
Atop the second quarter, Hadley properly reintroduced himself with a touchdown scamper, catching the corner of the end zone and a 17-8 lead. Howells and the Bees answered right back 3 minutes later on the senior’s second rushing touchdown, then added another successful two-point conversion on a quick dish from Reyes to Howells.
This theme maintained itself for another series.
Hadley broke through the Bees’ red-zone defense for a 6-yard touchdown run, and Howells lit up Box Elder’s subsequent drive with a 51-yard house call on the ground, leaving 1:21 left to play in the half.
That would be all Fremont needed for another scoring drive, and Moa squeaked out his third touchdown reception and a 31-22 lead with just 9 seconds left.
“We should’ve eaten more time but sometimes when you get down there, you’re like, ‘Well, we got to punch this in right now,'” Box Elder coach Carson Mund said. “That’s probably more a coaching error on my part. We could’ve erased some more clock and did things like that. But sometimes you just need to go get a score, and we did what we needed to do.”
Passing thunderstorms didn’t stall progress coming out of the second half, but Box Elder’s second-half opening possession also had a minimal effect on the game itself.
The underwhelming return saw Fremont pounce with a Tuatagaloa short-yardage rushing touchdown, followed by a fourth-down sack from junior tackle Jak Masters. Graves then added his second, and longest, field goal (42 yards) for a 41-22 lead early in the fourth quarter.
Box Elder sniffed the red zone thanks in part to a chunk return by Howells, setting the offense up near Fremont’s 40-yard line. But a scrambling Reyes threw an interception into the hands of a well-placed Masters a few short plays later, and the result began to write itself on the wall.
Forcing such a decision to throw was at the crux of Fremont’s halftime debrief.
“We made some pretty critical adjustments from the run game and their overload,” Masters said. “All our guys did their jobs, played together as a team and we ended up forcing them to throw the ball more than they wanted. They have very strong runners. They hit the gap and they’re gone. No arm tackles, you gotta hit them low in the knees or they’re going to break it.”
The Bees kept Fremont immediately after the stop, and a 6-yard Richards touchdown run moved the margin to 11 with 3:59 remaining. Moa’s third touchdown reception followed, an 11-yard completion coming with 1:33 to go, as payment for a late Box Elder onside kick attempt.
Box Elder slides into second place, region-wise, as the regular season narrows to just two games. Despite injuries and fatigue, Mund remains passionate about what the Bees offense can achieve through its rushing attack and a less liable pass game.
“We have to be different up here,” Mund said. “We can’t just sit back and throw the ball because it’s us. We don’t get transfers, we don’t get anybody moving out. … That’s different from what you see across the state, like Weber County, Davis County, those guys are getting guys from different schools or different areas to come and play, and we’re pretty lucky to just focus on us.”
Box Elder hosts Clearfield next week for their home finale. Fremont and West Field meet for their first matchup as region neighbors, and for the first time following the latter’s inaugural season in 2024.
Connect with reporter Conner Becker via email at cbecker@standard.net and X @ctbecker.
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