Kragthorpe: Bingham’s Langi too much for Hawks

By Kurt Kragthorpe

Tribune Columnist

The way Bingham running back Harvey Langi glides, strides and accelerates, he’s a joy to watch.

Tackling him in the open field is another matter.

Alta caught Langi for an 8-yard loss on his second carry Saturday night. Otherwise, the Hawks were doing a lot of chasing of No. 21, while the Miners were riding Langi’s 223 yards and four touchdowns to a 49-26 victory at Rice-Eccles Stadium.

The Saturday Night Special edition of the Alta-Bingham rivalry, traditionally booked for the Fourth Friday of August, was certainly more than a one-man show. The Miners are diverse, deep and talented all over the field, justifying their national ranking and looking like one of the best high school football teams in Utah history.

In its own way, Alta illustrated Bingham’s power. The Hawks did enough good things to make Bingham agonize.

Yet every time this game was about to become interesting, the Miners took over.

The difference-maker was the 6-foot-2, 220-pound Langi, running behind a formidable offensive line and through an Alta defense that was geared to stop him — only to give up three runs of 45 yards or longer.

Led by linebacker Nik Wolford, the Hawks had some success in containing Langi in the third quarter. But in the final 30 seconds of the period, Langi took a pitch to the right, then suddenly cut into the middle of the field and dashed 45 yards for a touchdown.

That was Saturday’s signature play, the moment when Bingham’s dominance was clearly established, no matter how Alta tried to stay in this game.

Just like that, the Miners owned a 28-12 lead. No matter how the Hawks kept battling back, Bingham always had answers.

Midway through the fourth quarter, Langi responded to another Alta score by sprinting 50 yards along the right sideline for his fourth touchdown, breaking the 200-yard mark for the night. The Miners’ defense took over from there, creating more scoring opportunities.

Bingham needed every bit of Langi in first half. Without quarterback Stefan Cantwell completing any passes, the Miners still took a 15-6 lead as Langi broke a 57-yard run, leading to his first of two 4-yard touchdowns (plus a two-point conversion).

Cantwell found his game on the opening possession of the second half, hitting Josh Smith for a 34-yard score. His passing eventually helped reopen the running lanes for Langi, who took full advantage. In future years, the August meeting of these teams would be better suited to Rio Tinto Stadium in Sandy, where 20,000 fans would create a more intimate atmosphere. Then again, Langi belonged on the bigger stage of Rice-Eccles, where he may be appearing for Utah or another Pac-10 school in the seasons to come.

Last November, after Langi rushed for 120 yards on this field in the state title victory over Davis, Bingham coach Dave Peck forecasted him to become “one of the greatest backs to come out of Utah.” Langi sure looked that way Saturday.

He’s relentless, always a threat to break off a long run. He was known for wearing down defenses last season, but now he’s punishing them with breakaway speed. Get ready for some big numbers from Langi this season, because Alta presents one of the better defenses he will encounter.

If the trend of recent years continues, Alta will have another shot at stopping him in the playoffs. That gives the Hawks three months to figure out some way to deal with Langi, or face more of the same treatment.

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