Two Away: Can Palm Beach Central win a state championship?

WELLINGTON – 34 reasons, 0 excuses.

Following last season, Palm Beach Central head coach Kevin Thompson and his coaching staff had T-shirts printed out with those exact words. Then, they handed those shirts to their players as a constant reminder of what happened last season.

On Nov. 26, 2021, Treasure Coast defeated Palm Beach Central in the Class 8A-Region 2 championship game. That loss not only ended Palm Beach Central’s season, but it was another game where it came up just short of the ultimate goal.

While some coaches would have wanted his players to forget about that moment, Thompson wanted it to serve as a reminder.

“Kids have a magical power to forget,” Thompson said. “Sometimes, you want to let them know, … ‘You got to remember how that felt that day,’ and ‘How close you thought it should’ve been or how you thought it should’ve went, and you got to fight your heart out. Remember what this feeling was.’”

Less than a year later, Palm Beach Central (12-1) has a different feeling compared to Black Friday 2021.

On Nov. 25, Palm Beach Central defeated Palm Beach Gardens 14-10 in Class 4M Regional Finals.

As a result, the Broncos will play in the state semifinals for the first time in school history.

That last sentence almost seems unlikely.

Palm Beach Central has long developed top-end talent. From Jon Bostic to Akeem Dent to Bryan Robinson and countless others in between, Palm Beach Central has always had talent.

None of those players accomplished the same goals as this season’s team, though.

“We got some of the greats. We got like Akeem Dent, my brother Jon Bostic, all came through here. Five-stars and four-stars, and they never made it this far,” senior Justin Bostic said. “It’s just a blessing to know that we’re the first team to have ever done this. We made history, we didn’t become history.”

Bostic, who had a game-winning interception to seal the win against Palm Beach Gardens, is a part of a senior class for Palm Beach Central that has seen it all.

In 2019, their freshman season, the Broncos season ended in the regional semifinals to Deerfield Beach.

In 2020, they didn’t participate in the FHSAA playoff due to the ongoing COVID-19 season.

Then, last season, the loss to Treasure Coast ended their season early.

“It was kind of like a repeating pattern,” senior quarterback Ahmad Haston said. “We just wanted to get over that hump so bad. We knew coming in if you want to be the first to do something in history, it’s never going to be easy.”

This senior group can be frustrating sometimes because they “always seem so relaxed,” according to Thompson.

Thompson, though, was not short of praise for the group that has left so much on the field.

“They really bought in and really accepted the challenge and the mission of wanting to be great, and wanting to make history,” Thompson said. “That’s what they break down on, so I’m really proud of them for that.”

Throughout this season, Palm Beach Central has relied on seniors on both sides of the ball.

Offensively, Haston leads the way. His two leading wide receivers, Javorian Wimberly and Luby Maurice, Jr., are seniors, as is running back Tyler Young.

Bostic is the standout name on defense, but plenty of other seniors have made impacts. In the front seven alone, the likes of Aden Haston, Agustus Mckoy, and Devin Wygnat have all been critical pieces in the success of the defense.

“That d-line and inside linebacker crew, they’re well coached and those guys really want it. They don’t get enough credit,” Thompson said. “They’re not these 6-4, 6-5 guys. They’re just these really stout guys that are just holding their anchors. If you don’t block them, they’re going to make a play.”

While winning the regional championships allows for a short period of celebration, there are still games to be won for Palm Beach Central.