East coach Brandon Matich gathered his team into a giant circle, and stepped up to say a few words of consolation in the wake of Logan's 18-11 win over East in Friday's Class 4A state title game at Rice-Eccles Stadium.

The words, however, wouldn't come out. There were only tears. Eventually, Matich left the huddle and put an arm around his star running back, Liti Molisi. The two cried together.

Logan's offense was held in check for the first time this season, and it was the Leopards who were able to accomplish that.

East came into Friday with the game plan of running the ball, getting pressure on D.J. Nelson and carrying a lead late into the matchup, and it was almost flawless in its execution.

Almost.

"We should've won the game," Matich said. "The kids came in here and played their behinds off. That's the bottom line."

In many ways, the Leopards' defense dominated. Before Nelson's game-winning 40-yard touchdown pass to Jameson Hartman, he was 7-for-22 throwing the football. Logan, one of the most prolific offenses this season, was held to 182 total yards. The East defensive line harassed Nelson all game, sacking him three times, not letting him get into a rhythm and intercepting him in the second half.

Offensively, the Leopards controlled the clock, putting together long drives on the ground and mixing in a surprisingly effective passing game.

It all came together, as the Leopards held an 11-10 lead going into the final minute. But that is when Nelson, a Utah State commit, worked his game-winning drive. East tried to put together a rally of its own, but couldn't muster anything on its final possession.

"This hurts because we knew that we could win this game," sophomore defensive lineman Korey Rush said.

"We're emotional because the guys were playing for East and not themselves."

tjones@sltrib.comTwitter: @tonyaggieville —

Big rebound … big letdown

• East lost the first matchup between the schools 46-14.

• This time, the Leopards limit Logan star quarterback D.J. Nelson to 8-for-23 throwing for 135 yards and sack him three times.

• East leads 11-10 in the final minute, only to see the Grizzlies rally back.