Published on Thursday December 08, 2007 in The Miami Herald
FOOTBALL CLASS 5A STATE SEMIFINALS ST. THOMAS 35, LARGO 13
Aquinas rallies past Largo
St. Thomas scored 35 unanswered points to beat Largo and make the Class 5A state championship game next week.
BY BOB EMANUEL JR.
St. Thomas Aquinas' season was teetering on the brink of extinction in the first half of Friday night's Class 5A semifinal at Largo.
The Raiders, the state runner-up the past three seasons, trailed by 13 and their defense looked incapable of stopping Packers back Brynn Harvey, who entered the game with 2,432 yards on the season.
But, as has been the case so often over the past 17 seasons, the Raiders rallied with 35 unanswered points to claim a 35-13 victory and advance to their 11th championship game since 1991.
''It means a lot,'' said Aquinas defensive back Rodney Gillis, whose team will play Kissimmee Osceola next Friday night in Orlando for the Class 5A title.
''The past three years, everybody's been doubting us about going to the state championship. We've been proving them wrong every year. The only thing we've got to do now is bring home the state title.''
BIG DRIVE
Trailing 13-0, the Raiders (13-1) drove 66 yards in 11 plays to cut the lead to six on a 2-yard run by Ronnie Kennedy.
On the play, St. Thomas Aquinas quarterback Ryan Becker faked the handoff to Jeremiah Harden, who drew the defense to the left.
Kennedy took the delayed handoff and went untouched off right tackle.
St. Thomas failed to take the lead right before the half when its drive stalled at the Largo 31.
The Raiders, booed by the home fans when entering the locker room at halftime, came out with a vengeance in the third quarter.
58-YARD CATCH
On the first play of the half, Becker found a streaking wide receiver Philip Pierre-Louis, who beat safety Reginald McCray down the middle of the field, for a 58-yard touchdown.
It was another in a series of big plays the senior made during the postseason.
When asked is Pierre-Louis made the biggest impact of any player in Broward this season, Gillis said, ``I really think he [has] because he can change the game by himself, on special teams, on the offensive side of the ball, from anywhere on the field.''
''Big-time,'' St. Thomas Aquinas coach George Smith said of Pierre-Louis' score.
''It was a big-time play.''
St. Thomas Aquinas added to the lead on its next possession when Becker found wide receiver Duron Carter across the middle for a 21-yard score.
Carter dove at the goal line and just extended the ball over for the touchdown.
NICE SCORE
St. Thomas Aquinas running back Jeremiah Harden, playing with an injured shoulder, scored on a 15-yard romp with 5:22 remaining in the game.
Harden, who finished with 104 yards, ran up the middle before he burst to the outside and ran untouched into the end zone.
THE FINAL SCORE
Two minutes later, Becker scored on a 1-yard run to seal the contest.
''The coaches helped us game plan at halftime,'' Becker said. ''They figured out [Largo's] strategy. We figured out a way to exploit their weaknesses and came out on top.''
The win advanced the Raiders to their fourth consecutive title game, the longest streak of any Broward team.
The past three seasons, St. Thomas was defeated by Lakeland for the 5A title.
''The fourth time, I think it's a great honor to be involved with this team,'' Smith said.
''I think it's a great effort on their part to get it done like they did. I'm very proud of them.''
Harvey scored on runs of 3 yards and 15 yards and finished the game with 136 yards rushing for Largo (13-1) in the loss.
© 2007 Miami Herald Media Company. All Rights Reserved.
