December 5, 2009

By Greg Dart, Snow College

OFFICIAL STATS 

SANDY, UT - The Snow College football team scored last in a 41-37 slugfest again No. 3 Grand Rapids to nab the Badgers the Zions Bank Top of Mountains Bowl trophy.

In a game with high-powered offenses on both sides, Snow landed the last blow when quarterback Quinn Mecham hit running back Tyson Church for a nine yard touchdown pass with less than two minutes remaining.

"I was hoping Quinn would hit me and when he did I knew it was my job to get in the end zone," said Church.

The win came after two straight Badger Top of the Mountains Bowl losses.

"That was an amazing game for both teams," said Snow College head coach Steve Coburn. "We expected it would be a battle and it was definitely a battle."

Snow College started off the scoring in the first quarter, putting together a 10-play drive that ended with a Church run for a touchdown.
Grand Rapids quickly answered back with quarterback Casey Therriault throwing the first of his four touchdowns to receiver Demonte Collins with five minutes remaining in the first quarter. The missed extra point made the game 7-6.

After Snow added a second quarter field goal by kicker Ryan McNamara, Grand Rapids took its first lead of the game on a four-yard Juwan Hemphill touchdown run.

That was the first of eight lead changes. Both teams racked up more than 460 yards total offense and both quarterbacks threw for over 350 yards in blizzard conditions at Rio Tinto Stadium in Sandy.

The stats for the game showed a lot of parity between the teams. Mecham threw for 352 yards and four touchdowns and ran for 54 yards including for key first downs to gain him offensive player of the game honor for the Badgers. Grand Rapids' Therriault threw for 359 yards and four touchdowns and ran for 19 yards as well.

On the receiving end Grand Rapids Brandon Newbern hauled in five passes for 160 yards and a touchdown and Collins caught 10 passes for 127 yards and three touchdowns to earn offensive player of the game honors for the Raiders.

Mazi Ogbonna caught four balls for Snow, racking up 96 yards and a touchdown. Church caught seven passes for 69 yards and two touchdowns and ran for 61 yards and a touchdown.

Kevin White, executive director of the Zions Bank Top of the Mountains Bowl, said he was very pleased with the game and everything surrounding it.

"Snow College and Grand Rapids are both first class institutions and it showed throughout the game," White said. "The Badgers and the Raiders are perfect examples of the teams this bowl was created to showcase."

As well as the bowl, the team's participated in a banquet Friday night. College football Hall of Fame member Gifford Nielson was the keynote speaker.

PHOTOS BY GREG DART/ COURTESY TOP OF THE MOUNTAINS BOWL

Snow College runningback Tyson Church evades a tackle on the way for the game winning touchdown in Snow's 41-37 victory over Grand Rapids Community College in the Zions Bank Top of the Mountains Bowl Saturday.

Snow College quarterback Quinn Mecham fights for a first down in Snow's
41-37 victory over Grand Rapids Community College in Rio Tinto Stadium Saturday. Mecham was named the offensive MVP for Snow College.

Snow College head coach Steve Coburn accepts the champion trophy from Zions Bank CEO Scott Anderson following nSnow's 41-37 victory over Grand Rapids Community College in Rio Tinto Stadium Saturday.

Other Coverage: 
http://www.sltrib.com/collegesports/ci_13936314