Skyline built a 10-0 halftime lead Friday night, then watched it disappear as Stansbury rallied for a 14-10 victory in the season opener at Skyline High School.

The loss spoiled head coach Brandon Matich's first game on the Eagles' sideline. Matich, who compiled a 164-71 record across 19 seasons at East High and Park City, took over a program picked by Region 10 coaches to win the league title this fall.

Skyline came out firing. Liam Whitworth-Hosea returned the opening kickoff 49 yards, and a facemask penalty on Stansbury gave the Eagles immediate field position. Quarterback Tate Johnson, a transfer from Mountain View who threw for 1,973 yards and 18 touchdowns last season, connected with Tui Will Taholo on a 38-yard touchdown pass. Matthew Payne added a 27-yard field goal to make it 10-0.

Then the sky opened. A heavy thunderstorm forced a 75-minute delay.

When play resumed, the Stallions found their rhythm. Senior brothers Brighton and Lincoln Reutzel took over. Brighton, Stansbury's quarterback, hit Lincoln on a 4-yard touchdown pass late in the third quarter to cut the deficit to 10-7. The duo connected again on a scoring strike that capped a 60-yard drive, aided by defensive holding and pass interference penalties against Skyline, to give Stansbury a 14-10 lead with 7:22 remaining.

Skyline mounted a final drive. Johnson scrambled for a key gain and completed a long pass to Will Black, pushing the Eagles to the Stansbury 10-yard line. But on fourth-and-eight, Lincoln Reutzel stepped in front of Taholo and intercepted the pass near the goal line to seal it.

"The first half was a struggle. We had to flip on the switch," Lincoln Reutzel told the Deseret News. "There was a lot of buildup to this game and it meant a lot to our players."

Stansbury head coach Jason Walker said his team went in knowing nothing about Matich's new-look Eagles but that the players simply needed to settle in and play their game. Payne nearly extended Skyline's lead in the third quarter with a 33-yard field goal, but an offside penalty on Stansbury nullified the kick. His subsequent 28-yard attempt sailed wide left.

Both teams reached the 4A quarterfinals last season, and Stansbury edged Skyline 26-23 in their 2025 meeting. Friday's result gives the Stallions two straight wins in the series.

"Skyline made a lot of strides last year and we hope to build off what Coach Mailei started," Matich told the Deseret News on Aug. 1, when the Eagles were named Region 10 favorites. That building project resumes Friday, Aug. 21, when Skyline travels to Olympus for a 7 p.m. non-conference game. The Eagles return home Friday, Aug. 28, against Lone Peak.