- Buchholz rallied from behind to defeat Forest, 38-20, at Citizens Field on Thursday, improving to 6-0 and 2-0 in district play.
- Forest led 20-14 in the third quarter, but Buchholz scored 24 unanswered points to secure the win.
- Buchholz faces Santa Fe next Thursday in the 'War on I-75' after back-to-back comeback victories.
The Buchholz Bobcats looked up at the scoreboard late in the third quarter at Citizens Field on Thursday night and saw a rare sight. Trailing in the second half.
For the second week in a row, Buchholz closed well for another win. The Bobcats trailed at Jesuit (Tampa), 17-3, at halftime before rallying for a 20-17 win on Sept. 18.
Buchholz scored the final 24 points of the game and rallied past Forest (Ocala), 38-20, in a District 3-5A matchup between two unbeaten teams at Citizens Field.
Buchholz improves to 6-0 and 2-0 in district play while handing Forest (5-1,1-1) its first setback of the season.
“Forest put up 45 points on a few teams, and to do that you have to be a quality football team,” Buchholz coach Mark Whittemore said. “They’ve got some guys who can play. The revamping of Forest is apparent, so credit to them.”
Following a Forest punt on the opening possession, the Bobcats drove 61 yards for a 7-0 lead as junior quarterback Andrew Whittemore found senior wide receiver Dominik Harvey on a 34-yard touchdown pass.
Forest answered, though, getting a 35-yard field goal from kicker Zane Waldren to cut the deficit to 7-3. Forest then got the ball back near midfield after a Buchholz punt. But on the first play of that drive, Forest senior quarterback Caleb Sanford was intercepted by junior defensive back Cam Burse, who scored on a 45-yard return for a 14-3 Bobcats lead.
Buchholz was driving for another score when Andrew Whittemore threw an interception to Forest senior free safety Christian Neal. Neal took it back 85 yards for a score and Forest was within 14-10 with 7:44 left in the second quarter. Neal also had a pick-six in a win against Eastside at Citizens Field last month.
“I had him (Neal) at Trinity Catholic (Ocala) when I was there and I’ve known his family and everything,” Forest coach John Brantley said. “He’s an outstanding player and we’ve got a bunch of Christian Neals, but everyone has to raise their game.”
Forest (5-1) trailed only 14-13 at halftime.
Forest then took its only lead of the game as senior running back Kez Rivers scored from 11 yards out and the Wildcats led 20-14 halfway through the third quarter.
“Our kids played their butts off,” Brantley said. “I am extremely happy the way they came up here with the big buildup to this game with two 5-0 teams and we were leading in the third quarter.”
Buchholz then took over the game. The Bobcats drove down the field led by Andrew Whittemore on the ground, and he ran it in from five yards out to put Buchholz back in front 21-20 late in the third quarter.
Andrew Whittemore then hit Harvey for a 35-yard scoring pass on the second play of the fourth quarter for a 28-20 advantage. Senior kicker Radley Ruland hit a 26-yard field goal and junior running back Josh Menefee scored from six yards out for the final touchdown.
Mark Whittemore said his team needs to start making it easier on themselves after they rallied from deficits for the second week in a row.
“We would like to not be in this situation,” he said. “It’s good that we can dig down and that’s all fine and good, but we don’t want to be in that situation.”
Buchholz faces another challenge next Thursday as the Bobcats head to Alachua for the “War on I-75” against county rival Santa Fe. The Raiders are 4-0 heading into their Friday matchup at 0-5 North Marion.