In a back and forth game Tooele had many chances to come out on top of Springville. In the end though the passing game of the visiting Red Devils did in the Buffs as Springville squeaked by with a 23-21 victory.

Zac Clausing did it on the ground with 85 yards rushing while Chase Banks came in during the second quarter to throw for 169 yards and two touchdowns to pace the Buffaloes.

The downside for Tooele is that they allowed Springville quarterback Issac Allred to throw for 377 yards and two touchdowns while he had two targets, Ben Doxey and Colton Ramon, each obtained over 140 receiving yards, exploiting the Tooele secondary.

Springville started the game in the air as their only real form of success. Tooele did apply pressure to Allred during the drive only to have the Red Devil quarterback find Ramon waiting for a screen pass and rumble 52 yards to set up a 31-yard field goal by Sam Hickman to go up 3-0.

Tooele countered with a strong running attack with Clausing taking the ensuing kickoff 27 yards. However from there the Buffalo drive stalled as they failed to convert on fourth down.

On their next series Tooele started their drive in Springville territory and did not come up short thanks to great catch from Jordan Clemente that nearly turned into a touchdown. From there Jordon Biorge punch in the score from two yards away to put the Buffs on top 7-3.

Springville's Doxey took it upon himself to put the Red Devils back on top as he hauled in three receptions for 72 yards and the touchdown catch all in one drive to put the score at 10-7.

Biorge found some blocks on the ensuing kickoff and carried the ball all the way across the goal line, but a blocking penalty erased the score and Tooele turned the ball over on downs.

Springville took advantage of the stalled offense of Tooele as Allred faked a short pass then bombed a throw downfield to Ramon for 53 yards to get inside the Tooele 10 yard line.

The Buffalo defense held strong and forced the Red Devils to a field goal attempt but Trever Jeffers took the high snap and ran it into the endzone for a surprising touchdown and a 17-7 lead.

Tooele got the ball with just under seven minutes to play and that is when the game got out of hand. Two plays into the drive starting quarterback Trifon Gochis was ejected on a personal foul call as emotions boiled over for both teams.

Chase Banks came on to fill in for Gochis at quarterback and after Springville was called for a facemask to keep the Tooele drive alive Banks threw a ball which Clemente wrestled away from a Red Devil defender for a 23-yard touchdown to cut deficit to 17-14 at halftime.

In the second half Springville again methodically marched down the field with precision passes from Allred and he hooked up with DJ Martindale for a 19-yard touchdown reception to go back up 23-14.

Banks started off Tooele's next possession with a 35-yard strike to Clemente and a 16-toss to Jai Nighton to get right around Springville ten yard line but then disaster struck.

On second down Banks looked to his left while the ball was prematurely snapped catching Banks off guard and a Springville defender was able to recover the ball to spoil an almost sure Tooele scoring opportunity inside the red zone.

The secondary was finally showing signs of life cutting down on the big passing plays of Springville and giving their offense a chance to come from behind.

On third down Clausing needed two yards for the first down and picked up 30 in a momentum changing run. From there Clemente and Matt Gochis each hauled in a pass as Gochis grabbed a tipped ball in the endzone to get the Buffs within two points.

Unfortunately that was as close as Tooele would get as Springville's Thomas Eastman was able to pick off a Banks pass to seal the win for the Red Devils.

"I take complete responsibility for this loss," said Tooele coach Sam Elliot. "All the mistakes we made in this game are from lack of practice and that is one area we are going to focus and improve on. We need to take full advantage of the three hours that we are allowed to practice each day"

Jordan Clemente had a great day making big catches all day as he totaled 95 yards and a touchdown on five receptions.

Tooele 2-3 (0-2) travels to Orem to face top ranked Timpview 5-0 (2-0) Friday at 7 p.m.

Jake Gordon: jgordon@tooeletranscript.com