Cowboys defeat Beaver for 1A State Football title

Samantha LeFevre
23 hours ago
5 min read

The Kanab High School football team defeated the Beaver Beavers last Friday for the 1A State title. The two teams met up on the campus of Southern Utah University for the state showdown, along with a surplus of spectators.

Left to right, photos by Matt Brown:

KHS cheerleaders and crowd celebrate after a touchdown.
Latimer Glover embraces teammate Brayden Johnson after their hard-fought win.
Quarterback Brogun Virostko blitzes up the field, aided by a block from Walker Baird as Bryce Szymanki looks on in the background.
Kolton Blomquist lays out for a tackle, tripping up a Beaver receiver.
Hayden Gubler finds an opening to the endzone with help from a block by Degan Swapp (4).
Senior Kyle Brown elevates for a pass in the end zone, resulting in a Cowboy touchdown.

The game was a defensive battle, with the Cowboys holding the Beaver Beavers scoreless in the first and third quarters and only allowing one touchdown apiece in the second and fourth.

With 1:34 remaining in the first quarter, the Cowboys punched the ball across the goal line in the hands of Degan Swapp, aided by a huge block by Senior Bryden Johnson for the Cowboys first points of the game. The point after attempt by Ray Capson was good, putting the Cowboys up 7-0.

Kanab furthered their cause in the second quarter, with a field goal by kicker Ray Capson, bringing their lead to ten with a score of 10-0. The Beavers tried to even things out in scoring one touchdown of their own, but the Cowboys weren’t having it. A phenomenal catch in the back corner of the end zone from Brogun Virostko to Kyle Brown resulted in another Cowboy touchdown. With another point after attempt complete, the Cowboys led 17-7 at the half.

A defensive third quarter ended in a stalemate and left both teams scoreless.

The Beavers made things interesting, blocking a punt and marching the ball down the field. They eventually found the endzone again with nine minutes left in the fourth quarter, but the point after went wide and brought the score to 17-13 in favor of the Cowboys.

Left to right, photos by Matt Brown:

Ozzy Williams (one) and Latimer Glover (11) take down Beaver’s Bridger Blackner.
Latimer Glover finds teammate Brayden Johnson after securing the State Title.
Brayden Johnson takes on three Beaver defenders.
A pile of Cowboy blockers lies in a heap as Hayden Gubler spins for more yardage. Gubler (27), Bryce Szymanski (53), (76) Brayden Johnson, (11) Latimer Glover.
Hayden Gubler, doing Hayden Gubler things, somehow stays on his feet after an attempted tackle.
Kanon Virostko causes a fumble as he takes down Beaver quarterback Davin Orton.

Hayden Gubler put Beaver back on their heels with a 49-yard run, avoiding two tackles and eventually being forced out of bounds at the 25, but a flag on the play took them back to the line of scrimmage and it was back to the drawing board.

Some patience and well executed plays brought the Cowboys to the red zone and after several intense red zone plays, Kanab was able to get the ball across the goal line in the hands of Hayden Gubler. Another successful point after by Capson put the Cowboys up 24-13 with just 2:11 left on the clock.

With the win in sight, the Beavers tried to take the game back with a 58-yard pass, completed to Emmit Lurth, but he was hawked down by Grady Anderson before reaching the goal line.

With 33 seconds on the clock, Beaver threw to the endzone but were intercepted by Senior Ozzy Williams to prevent the touchdown.

Senior quarterback Brogun Virostko was able to take a knee to run the clock out for a Cowboy state victory.

In what was truly a team effort, the Kanab Cowboys took down the Beaver Beavers to become the 2025 1A Football State Champs.

Senior quarterback Brogun Virsotko threw from 162 yards in his swan song game, completing 10 of 13 passes to Kyle Brown (four receptions for a total of 64 yards), Hayden Gubler (three receptions for a total of 66 yards), Latimer Glover (two receptions for a total of 24 yards) and Ozzy Williams (one reception for a total of eight yards).

Hayden Gubler capped of his phenomenal high school career with an astounding 21 carries for 77 yards, and truly had to work for every inch he gained on the field for his team. He is leaving things in the capable hands of Junior Degan Swapp, who totaled nine carries for a total of 48 yards.

Defensively, the Cowboys suffered a huge loss when senior Brayden Johnson went down with a broken leg at the end of the first quarter, but through the efforts of his teammates, the Cowboys were able to step up and remain a defensive force. He was the first person his fellow teammates went to went the time ran out and victory was in sight. Junior powerhouse Latimer Glover put up a total of 12 tackles (seven solo and five assists), senior Kolton Blomquist added 11 (6s : 3a), and first-time footballer, Kanon Virostko added 10 (7s : 3a). Cowboy defense was also aided by Grady Anderson with nine (6s : 3a), Degan Swapp with nine (5s : 4a), Hayden Guber with eight (7s : 1a), Ozzy Williams with eight (5s : 3a), Walker Baird with seven (4s : 3a), Bryce Szymanski with six (4s : 2a), Cam Cartwright with five (3s : 2a), Levi Stewart with five (2s : 3a), Degan Allen with two solo, and Kyle Brown, Brayden Johnson and Brogun Virostko adding one solo a piece.

Senior Levi Stewart added one sack to his stats with a loss of eight, and Kanon Virsotko contributed one as well for a loss of five.

Senior Ozzy Williams added an interception to his final stats, with Latimer Glover nabbing one as well.

Kicker Ray Capson ended his sophomore season with a perfect game, completing three for three point after attempts and one 27-yard field goal.

The win rounds the Cowboy’s season out with an undefeated region record, and an 11-1 record on the season as a whole.

The state title is the first for head coach JR Quarnberg and caps off the phenomenal careers of seniors Cam Cartwright, Kolten Blomquist, Kyle Brown, Hayden Gubler, Brayden Johnson, Kyan Lyman, Levi Stewart, Kooper Swindlehurst and Ozzy Williams.

Congratulations boys, you did it as a team and we are so proud of the way you represent Kanab. Thanks for the ride.