Brighton High School enters the 2026 fall sports season without the coach who led its football program to three Region 6 championships in four years.

Casey Sutera left Brighton in February to take the head coaching job at Corner Canyon High School, ending a run that produced a 35-14 record, two semifinal appearances at Rice-Eccles Stadium, and the 2024 5A Coach of the Year award. His departure also cost the Bengals their starting quarterback: Ryce Palepoi, who completed 141 of 258 passes for 1,833 yards and 18 touchdowns during the 2025 season, followed Sutera to Corner Canyon.

"The Brighton community will always be in my heart because of the memories and great success that we had here," Sutera said in February upon his departure.

Brighton has not publicly named a replacement head football coach as of mid-July. The Bengals finished 7-6 in fall 2025, sharing the Region 6 title with Woods Cross before falling to Springville in the state semifinals.

Other Brighton coaching moves

The football vacancy isn't the only roster change in the coaching staff. Brighton hired Brayden Stevens as the new boys head wrestling coach in May, replacing four-year coach Burke Gappmayer. Stevens, 26, is a Brighton alumnus and two-time state wrestling champion (2017-18) who also joins the school's science faculty.

"Leading the program at Brighton is the fulfillment of a long-held dream," Stevens said in May. "I feel honored to continue the legacy of successful coaches, including my father."

The school also brought on John Gygi as boys soccer head coach and Chris Opheikens as softball head coach in March, according to Athletic Director Garrett Wilson.

Olympus cross country returns top runners

In Holladay, Olympus High returns two standout runners for cross country this fall. Adria Favero, who placed in the top three at the state championships in each of the past two seasons, leads the girls team. Will Towers, who transferred from Texas before the 2025 season, anchors the boys squad.

Head coach Chris Humbert led the girls team to the Region 6 championship in 2024, which he called the first region title for Olympus girls cross country in school history. Heading into fall 2026, the program faces a realigned region that added Viewmont, Woods Cross, and Bountiful.

Cottonwood High's Dan Fergusson returns as boys soccer head coach under AD James MacIntyre, who joined from the University of Utah's NIL compliance office last fall.

Fall practice for Utah 5A programs typically begins in August. Official schedules and rosters have not been released.