Olympus football: Cole Benson profile

In early May, I interviewed Cole Benson, who played defensive back and wide receiver for the Olympus Titans football team. This is the article that will appear in Oly's 2011 football yearbook.

Cole

Benson

Three-year starter made a difference

for Titans in all aspects of the season

By Bruce Smith

Matchup

            For many years, Cole Benson practiced playing football in his yard. He and his longtime friends, Nate Sorensen and Nico Bronzati, as well as his younger brother, Tait, they prepared for the day they would all be playing for the Olympus Titans.
            All those games came to fruition this year. The summer camps and practices, and then all 11 games were the results of all that practice time in the yard. They appreciated what this season meant and relished the memories it brought.
            “It was a great year. I had so much fun,” Benson said. “I got to play with in the same (defensive) backfield as my brother and that’s the only time that ever happened.
            “Our best memories would definitely be the Skyline game or the camps we went to in California.”
            The camps – in Las Vegas, Southern California, the “Ute Shoot” at the University of Utah and then another 7-on-7 tournament at Weber State – were big successes for the Titans, who had a returning quarterback (Scott Porter) and several good receivers.
            In addition, they had experienced defensive backs like Benson.
            “Seven-on-sevens are my favorite. You know it’s going to be a pass and you there will be some action on every single play,” Benson said.
            It was the same way during the regular season. Besides being one of Oly’s top DB – with four interceptions – he also spent time at receiver and on kick returns.
            Benson was the Titans’ fourth-leading receiver (20 catches) and sixth-leading tackler (45). He made the all-region team and was named Oly’s defensive MVP at the team banquet.
            “My forte was a defensive player,” he said. “I started for three years, but this was the only year I played offense. If something needed to be done, I felt I was the guy that needed to do it.”
            That showed on several occasions.
            One of the biggest was Oly’s Region 7 opener against Westlake. The game was played at Cottonwood High School and Benson was anxiously awaiting the opening kickoff. He said the two teams had met at the “Ute Shoot,” which created some bad blood.
            “They were big, and this was a more-physical game,” Benson recalled. “We took a some cheap shots from a few of their players, and there was all this talk about how good they were. We couldn’t wait to play them.
            Benson accepted the opening kickoff and, with the help of a great block from Chandler Thornton, he found a hole and wasn’t tackled until he was across midfield. The return set up the Titans’ first touchdown, and they went on to a 26-20 win at Cottonwood High School.
            “The first thing I looked for is for a lane and I knew Chandler would always throw a great block to spring me,” Benson said. “He’s was only 5-10 yards ahead of me when he takes a guy out. Chandler is definitely not scared to hit.”
            Other big games included Northridge and Herriman and, of course, Skyline. Benson said what he remembered most about playing Skyline was the excitement. The Titans won in overtime, of course. They scored the winning touchdown on a short pass from Scott Porter to Ryan Rasmussen. Benson was on the sidelines when it happened.
            “When Ryan caught that pass, everyone was going crazy,” he said. “Half the kids (on the sidelines) couldn’t even watch. It was the biggest play of our season.”
            It also put the finishing touch on the regular season, where the Titans couldn’t practice on their home field for much of the season, but came back to play Hillcrest on a special night that was homecoming, “Senior Night” and had playoff consequences.
            Benson loved the excitement there, too. He said the players talked about it the week prior, and each wanted to be the first to score on the field. It turned out the sophomores got that honor (they played there day before). Rasmussen eventually earned the honor for the varsity.
            “It was a great night,” Benson said. “We had been practicing on the new field all week, and it was a great atmosphere. I saw the second half of the sophomore game, too. I just wanted to be there.”
            Oly’s season lasted until the second week of the playoffs. Benson, who had played basketball, too, chose not to be part of the Titans’ team this season because there was virtually no break and he wanted to prepare to play college football.
            Benson received a scholarship offer from NAIA power Carroll College (Mont.), but chose to accept one from Redlands College (Calif.). He said he planned to major in psychology.