FORT LAUDERDALE – Dylan Rizk and the Cardinal Gibbons crew have been mission focused for the duration of their Class 4A playoff run.
The Chiefs do not allow double-digit deficits to deter them. They do not allow any kind of adversity – not even a halftime deficit – to get them off track.
They are quite possibly the masters at making adjustments at both halftime and throughout the second half of games.
This certainly rang true in last night’s (Dec. 3) 36-18 comeback win at home over the Lakewood Spartans in the 4A state semifinal game.
“We have to play four quarters,” Cardinal Gibbons head coach Matt DuBuc said. “We just have to execute and do our thing.”
Down 18-13 in the third quarter, Gibbons (10-2) chipped away, play by play. One offensive drive ended with a field goal made by kicker Adrien Alfieri at the 7:49 mark.
With the lead now cut down to 18-16, Lakewood (10-3 final record) had Gibbons in position to punt later in the pivotal frame. But the very next play changed the entire game for both teams.
At the 2:32 mark, Gibbons senior safety and Iowa State commit Mason Thomas ran off a 55-yard fake punt run en route to the end zone. This exhilarating play put the home team out in front, 22-18.
“It was a designed play and as soon as I can get around the corner, I said I am going to score,” Thomas said to Sun-Sentinel reporter Alex Kushel. “We do it in practice and I was ready in a big game. It was so surreal.”
The game’s last two touchdowns were dagger plays by Rizk – both of which came in the fourth quarter.
At the 9:47 mark of the final frame, Rizk somehow found senior wide receiver Elisha Edwards in the right corner of the end zone for a perfectly placed scoring pass. This play held Gibbons extend its lead to 29-18.
“In the process of running the route, it was either win or go home,” Edwards said. “If I make this catch, I seal the game for us. If not, then I have a chance of going home as a senior without winning another state championship. That’s how I was thinking. Either catch it and keep going, or I just go home.”
Not long after the scoring sequence, Gibbons got an opportunity to seal the deal even more. This happened when Rizk powered through the line of scrimmage for a 5-yard touchdown run that helped to make the final score at the 7:03 mark.
With the victory, Rizk will be making his first 4A state title game appearance – something the junior quarterback was aiming for last year when he was playing at American Heritage (Delray Beach).
“Winning is awesome,” Rizk said. “We came out here and took care of business. We were down in the second half. But we got our momentum back. We got an awesome fake punt, and we just kept going from there.”
As for Gibbons, this will be the program’s second straight state title game appearance and third one in the last four years.
“It’s nothing new,” DuBuc said. “We just gotta go out there and continue to execute. We have a little bit of time off now to get our guys healthy.”
The next and final opponent for Cardinal Gibbons will be Cocoa (11-1), which got past Bolles (Jacksonville) (8-3 final record) in a 35-24 win to win the other 4A state semifinal game.
“I haven’t really watched Cocoa all year,” DuBuc said. “I don’t really know anything about them other than the fact they have a very good coach and we beat them in the playoffs last year. That’s really all I know until I get to the film.”
NOTES: The other two Gibbons scores were 1-yard touchdown runs in the first half by junior running back Kamari Moulton.
This year’s 4A state title game will be a rematch of last year’s 4A state semifinal, which turned out to be a 45-15 win in favor of Gibbons. It will be held at DRV PNK Stadium in Fort Lauderdale on Thursday, Dec. 16 with a kickoff time set for 7 p.m.
