‘Amnesia’: Young kicker frees streaky Box Elder from Fremont’s grasp in rumble
Onside kick, field goal lift Bees over Silverwolves 17-16
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- Left to right: Fremont’s Kenden Green (4), Box Elder’s Judd Howells (0), Fremont’s Krew Hannum (2), and Box Elder’s Ricki Jones (66) collide during a region football matchup at Fremont High School on Friday, Oct. 2, 2026, in Plain City. (BRIAN WOLFER, Standard-Examiner)
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- Left to right: Box Elder’s Kadyn Reyes (16), Fremont’s Kenden Green (4), and Kyran Majors (11) fall to the dirt during a region football matchup at Fremont High School on Friday, Oct. 2, 2026, in Plain City. (BRIAN WOLFER, Special to the Standard-Examiner)
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- Box Elder’s Josh Pugsley (11) attempts to shake Fremont’s Krew Hannum (2) during a region football matchup at Fremont High School on Friday, Oct. 2, 2026, in Plain City. (BRIAN WOLFER, Special to the Standard-Examiner)
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- Fremont’s Calvin Cooper (9) races around for a pass during a region football matchup with Box Elder at Fremont High School on Friday, Oct. 2, 2026, in Plain City. (BRIAN WOLFER, Special to the Standard-Examiner)
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- Box Elder’s Bracken Hester (18) latches onto Fremont’s Titan Jordan (26) during a region football matchup at Fremont High School on Friday, Oct. 2, 2026, in Plain City. (BRIAN WOLFER, Special to the Standard-Examiner)
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- Box Elder’s Judd Howells (0) takes off with the ball during a region football matchup at Fremont High School on Friday, Oct. 2, 2026, in Plain City. (BRIAN WOLFER, Special to the Standard-Examiner)
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- Box Elder’s Rhet Richards (12) drops a Fremont punt during a region football matchup at Fremont High School on Friday, Oct. 2, 2026, in Plain City. (BRIAN WOLFER, Special to the Standard-Examiner)
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- Box Elder’s Judd Howells (0) collides with Fremont’s Krew Hannum (2) during a region football matchup at Fremont High School on Friday, Oct. 2, 2026, in Plain City. (BRIAN WOLFER, Special to the Standard-Examiner)
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- Fremont’s Ben Delbridge (47) puts up the game’s first field goal during a region football matchup at Fremont High School on Friday, Oct. 2, 2026, in Plain City. (BRIAN WOLFER, Special to the Standard-Examiner)
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- Fremont’s Payton Hogge (19) switches the field after an early turnover during a region football matchup at Fremont High School on Friday, Oct. 2, 2026, in Plain City. (BRIAN WOLFER, Special to the Standard-Examiner)
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- Fremont’s Titan Jordan (26) runs the ball past a defended Jaxon Jeppsen (8) during a region football matchup at Fremont High School on Friday, Oct. 2, 2026, in Plain City. (BRIAN WOLFER, Special to the Standard-Examiner)
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- Box Elder’s Kadyn Reyes (16) hands the ball off to Judd Howells (0) during a region football matchup at Fremont High School on Friday, Oct. 2, 2026, in Plain City. (BRIAN WOLFER, Special to the Standard-Examiner)
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- Box Elder’s Cole Bushnell (2) watches Fremont’s Kyran Majors (11) haul in a pass during a region football matchup at Fremont High School on Friday, Oct. 2, 2026, in Plain City. (BRIAN WOLFER, Special to the Standard-Examiner)
PLAIN CITY — Tytan Hupp built a reputation as Box Elder’s steady sophomore leg with an 87% success rate, combining for 51 points between field goals and PATs before entering a Week 8 bout with another region contender, Fremont.
His longest kick this season cleared from 50 yards out, but a 24-yard field goal might just define his season.
With a single second remaining, Hupp capped the Region 5 comeback of the week after Box Elder scored and recovered an onside kick off the hands of Fremont senior Payton Hogge with a two-point deficit and 1:26 of clock to work with.
Bees quarterback Kayden Reyes had moved the pile multiple times on Friday as Fremont largely contained Box Elder’s hard-nosed rushing threats, but the senior gunslinger set up Hupp, who’d missed two field goals from 44 yards or more in the first half, with a chance to win the game, and Hupp delivered.
Box Elder snuffed out Fremont on the subsequent kickoff, and after clearing the handshake line, Hupp was quick to commend his trusted snapper, senior Davis Lloyd, before patting himself on the back amid the madness of a gritty, 17-16 road win Friday.
“That is the man, right there,” said Hupp, pointing to Lloyd. “I practice with him every day.”
A turbulent first half featured 13 possession changes, including six different fumbles, and tested both sides of the region affair. But it certainly tested Hupp, who missed two opportunities to get his team on the board after his defense came up with two takeaways through the second quarter.
Fremont (5-3, 3-1 Region 5) — a team marred by multiple injuries including to sophomore linebacker and running back RJ Fonoti — has managed to keep winning and place itself in a winning position. Calvin Cooper, off target near the end zone for much of Friday night, put his team in another winning position with a short touchdown strike to Krew Hannum with just 3:27 left to play.
The final result hit hard, Cooper said, but Friday’s opportunity existed without a doubt.
“A lot of guys had to step up,” Cooper said. “It’s a lot of injuries and some of our great players, but our coaches coach us so well we have guys that come up, fill those spots and are ready.”
The answer Box Elder (7-1, 4-0) so desperately needed — a 38-yard touchdown pass from Reyes to senior Josh Pugsley — set up Fremont’s consequential special teams blunder and an opportunity for Hupp to amend those missed chances and provide his team with quite the tale.
“Bad things happen, you just gotta erase your mind,” Hupp said. “It’s all in the past. It’s always the next one. I always tell myself it’s always the next one — amnesia.”
The spectacle keeps Box Elder a perfect football team in region play with just two regular-season dates remaining, including another road trip to Clearfield next week.
After Friday, Bees head coach Carson Mund has faith in his team’s ability to adapt and seize even the slimmest of odds.
“We’ve been pretty efficient running the ball over the last seven weeks, and tonight they did a great job of defending us,” Mund said of Fremont. “These guys had a hell of a plan put together defensively.”
Tricky turnovers
Six fumbles shook Friday’s region bout like a Magic 8 Ball. Well, a misleading one.
Reyes threw two interceptions, but his first came on the game’s opening drive and resulted in a 27-yard Ben Delbridge field goal for an early 3-0 Fremont lead.
The next two drives, Reyes and Cooper traded picks and both sides adopted a theme of turnovers right through the second quarter. Cooper fumbled again after Hupp’s first missed field goal (from 44 yards), and Rhet Richards muffed away a punt later, only for backup running back Sam Rasmussen to cough it up again with 9 minutes to play.
Backed up on third down, Hupp failed his second field goal try from 49 yards away, and Box Elder ended the half with no points. The poor start fueled a second-half reset for the Bees, Mund said.
“(Reyes) struggled early; he just couldn’t get a grip on the ball for some reason,” Mund said. “And so, in the second half he started finding his rhythm and that last drive, I think he got in a great rhythm, and we were able to throw. Ball and give a little double move there to Josh Pugsley.”
Cooper shakes rust with big 2nd-half throws
Fremont surely received a similar halftime pep talk, addressing the turnovers and asking everyone around the locker room to reset. In large part, Cooper met the call in leading his team into an opportunity to win the game.
Cooper shared a bit of what Fremont head coach Nate Tuatagaloa shared at halftime:
“(Tuatagaloa) told us to scratch our minds,” Cooper said. “Forget about it. Goldfish mind. He told us to execute and focus in on every play, do your job 100% every play. We did, and we got some points on the board in the second half.”
Up 9-0 following a Titan Jones goal-line touchdown punch, Fremont relented on a 15-yard Judd Howells scamper, reeling the contest back within one score. Cooper completed two dynamite throws to Wyatt Bennett, getting his team inside the Box Elder 39-yard line, but a Jaxon Jeppsen sack spurred two faulty throws and a turnover on downs.
A delay of game penalty took the wind out of Box Elder’s sails, and Cooper, with the football in his hands once again, hit his man Bennett for two first-down throws, setting up the Hannum score.
“It did feel good; we needed one right there,” Cooper said. “I’m glad he caught it.”
Despite dropping in the region race with Friday’s loss, Fremont isn’t losing sight of what it can do come postseason time. The mission ahead, beginning with a Week 9 test against West Field, is the first step toward pursuing a late-season run, Cooper said.
“This game stings for sure,” Cooper said. “There’s nothing we can do about it now but bounce back next week. We’ve got another tough team, West Field, and we’ve gotta bring it to them. … This loss, it’ll help us. I think it’ll make us determined to go on throughout state and win. That’s our next goal, state. Scratch this game once again, and it’ll help us for state for sure.”
Connect with Standard-Examiner sports reporter Conner Becker via email at cbecker@standard.net, X @ctbecker and Instagram @standardexaminersports.
