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PROVO — Plenty of times this season, Gehrig Orchard has found a way to find Provo teammate Oliver MacKay and let the shifty running back do his thing, all the way to 894 yards and 15 touchdowns in the Bulldogs' 4-2 start.
On Friday night, Provo put its trust in Orchard — and the 6-foot-1 junior repaid his pack ten-fold.
Orchard threw for 448 yards and five touchdowns, and Crew DeMartini pulled down two interceptions and scored the game-winner on a 60-yard strike with 4:11 to go as the Bulldogs rallied to upend Spanish Fork 46-42 and seize control of the Region 8 race Friday night.
MacKay ran for 131 yards and a touchdown for Provo (5-2, 4-0 Region 8), which took a one-game lead on the Dons with two games to play via their fifth consecutive win (and a canceled game against rival Timpview).
"We felt that we could pass protect and give Gehrig time to go, and our guys downfield were doing a good job of getting open," Provo coach Kirk Chambers said. "We felt they were restricting our running lanes for Oliver, and that was their emphasis. They came into this game thinking they're gonna stop Oliver.
"But as soon as we recognized we could pass protect, we decided to air it out a bit. That was a pivot made by our offensive coordinator, and it ended up working out really well for us."
Kaden Vest ran for 340 yards and three touchdowns for Spanish Fork (6-2, 3-1 Region 8), and McKay Smith threw for 185 yards and two touchdowns with two picks while the Dons by as much as 28-16 at halftime and 35-26 after three quarters.
"Kaden Vest, my hat goes off to him. What a stud," Chambers said. "The Jacobson kid, what a stud. And we're just lucky we contained them just enough, just enough.
"We were close to not doing it, but we did just enough."
The Dons couldn't have started much faster, scoring two touchdowns on their first three plays from scrimmage when Kaden Vest split off tackle for a 72-yard score and McKay Smith found Brock Jacobson for a 71-yard TD strike 5:51 left in the first quarter.
Mackay ran for 98 yards in the first half, including an 8-yard TD plunge midway through the first quarter.
Orchard pulled the Bulldogs within 21-16 with a 25-yard touchdown to Bryant Larsen with 1:24 left in the half.
But Smith ran Spanish Fork's hurry-up to perfection, capping a late drive with Vest's 19-yard score en route to a 28-16 halftime advantage.
"Our coach came in and just gave us that talk, when you're not doing well. But he just said, do your jobs and lock in better," Orchard said. "I feel like in that second half, we came out throwing a little more — which of course, I like. I love how the coaches put trust in me."
But this one was just getting started. Or at least, that's what the Bulldogs had to believe.
Bronson Kalauli found Brock Jacobson with a 37-yard touchdown on a double pass in the third, and Vest opened the fourth quarter with a 75-yard touchdown that put the Dons on top, 42-26.
🚨 Double Pass Alert 🚨 pic.twitter.com/cNgO1Oy2MA
— Sean Walker (@ActuallyDSW) October 5, 2024
But the Bulldogs weren't done. Neither was MacKay.
The electric rusher sparked Provo with a 56-yard touchdown, pulling down a short pass from Orchard near the Spanish Fork sideline before spinning out of a tackle and rumbling into the end zone.
"I love Oliver, too," Orchard said. "He's done such a great job establishing the run, and that opens up everything for me to do my job, too."
Orchard connected with Ronnie Wright on a 9-yard strike to pull the hosts within single digits. After a long punt, Orchard led a touchdown drive from near his own end zone before finding DeMartini with a score that the two-way standout took 60 yards to the house with 4:11 remaining.
"I feel like our defense really stepped it up that second half," Orchard said. "Defense wins championships, and we got it done.
"All my wide receivers and my O-line played amazing. I wouldn't be here without them."
Provo travels to Uintah next Thursday before wrapping up the regular season Oct. 16 at home against Mountain View.
The Dons return home Thursday to host Payson before capping the regular season at Timpanogos.
