Coming off its best performance of the season two weeks ago in a win against previously unbeaten Cardinal Newman (West Palm Beach), Buchholz played its best half of football on Friday night.
It was enough.
The No. 2 seed Bobcats raced out to a 42-0 halftime lead and cruised past No. 7 seed Evans (Orlando), 42-21, in an FHSAA Class 6A-Region 1 Quarterfinal at Citizens Field.
“We played really well,” said Buchholz coach Mark Whittemore. “Obviously we had our 2s in the whole second half from start to finish and just stayed with it…that’s why the score ended up like that, but we came out ready to play, we were prepared, we paid attention to the details, and we played hard tonight. I’m super pleased.”
The Bobcats (8-3) had a dominating performance on offense, defense, and special teams in the first 24 minutes.
On the Trojans’ first possession, junior Chris Johnson intercepted a pass at the Evans 41-yard line and returned it to the 25-yard line a little over a minute into the game.
Following an incomplete pass, and an 11-yard pass from junior quarterback Trace Johnson to junior Justin Williams, the Bobcats broke the scoreless tie.
Johnson found junior wide receiver DJ Hicks on a slant across the middle for a 14-yard scoring play and a quick 7-0 lead with 10:24 to play in the first quarter.
“Working on it in practice, we knew we were going to score on that play. I didn’t think we were going to be that far down the field already,” Hicks said with a laugh. “I’m being so honest.”
Following the score, Evans (6-5) drove the ball to the Buchholz 26-yard line, but Buchholz senior Lon’nard McFadden recovered a fumble.
Although Buchholz turned it over on downs at the Trojans’ 37-yard line, Evans was forced to punt and Chris Johnson made his second big play of the quarter with a blocked punt, setting Buchholz up at the Evans 7-yard line.
“He’s a phenomenal athlete, he’s really coming into his own as a junior at the free safety position,” Whittemore said of Chris Johnson. “He really looked comfortable and at this point in the season now that we’re in what we call the second season, the playoffs, he’s looking like a kid who is a real live safety.”
Two plays later, Williams scored out of the wildcat on a 2-yard run for a 14-0 lead with 3:51 to play in the opening quarter.
It was one of two scores for the junior, who scored on a 38-yard run just 19 seconds into the second quarter for a 21-0 advantage.
“Having him in the backfield, coming into the game he was averaging 12-13 yards a touch, he’s as explosive as anybody in the state,” Whittemore said. “There’s nobody more explosive, but let’s remember, Coach (Matt) DiBernardo’s group up front (OL), we’re averaging 310 pounds up front so we’re not a small bunch…he is a phenomenal player, but he knows that that bunch up front is doing their job.”
Following a sack by Buchholz junior Evan Walker, who had a pair in the second quarter, Buchholz was backed up to its 15-yard line.
However, Trace Johnson completed a short pass to Hicks, who broke tackles and zig-zagged his way 84 yards down to the 1-yard before being tackled from behind.
“I thought I had it,” Hicks said. “I should have trusted Justin getting the block and I didn’t really trust him, so I tried to cut off of him and the kid behind me came and got me right at the one.”
Senior lineman and Coastal Carolina commit Kain McDonald lined up in the wildcat formation and completed the 85-yard drive with a 1-yard touchdown run and a 28-0 lead.
The Bobcats secured a running clock following Walker’s second sack and a subsequent punt by Evans, which was returned 54 yards down the right sideline for a score by junior Keil McGriff, and the rout was on.
Hicks did find the end zone for a second time, on a 58-yard catch and run for a 42-0 lead.
Evans, which entered the game with two 1,000-yard rushers, wasn’t able to put points on the board in the first half against the Bobcats’ first team defense.
“We’re playing physical football,” Whittemore said. “They can run the football, they showed glimpses of it a couple of times there in the first quarter, they started looking like maybe they might be able to build some momentum and, especially our linebackers, wow, I mean they came up and stuffed several runs there and stopped the momentum really cleanly.”
Although the Trojans scored three touchdowns in the second half, the game was over by halftime.
“We were pretty much mistake free on the offensive side so we were as clean as we could possibly be there,” Whittemore said. “I don’t really recall right now anything that I would call subpar football. We played really efficient and clean football.”
Buchholz will host No. 3 seed Pace in next Friday’s regional semifinals. Pace defeated No. 6 seed Oviedo, 49-21, to advance.
“You want to be playing your best football, and our first group is playing as good as we’ve played all year,” Whittemore said.
FHSAA football playoffs
Friday, Nov. 15
Area teams in bold
Regional Semifinals
Rural
Hawthorne 56, Branford 0
Williston 10, Chiefland 0
12 Fort White 23, 5 Jay 2
3 Union County (Lake Butler) 42, 14 Holmes County (Bonifay) 20
Rural (Division B)
Trenton 28, Sneads 26
Dixie County (Cross City) 29, Wewahitchka 6
Regional Quarterfinals
Class 1A-Region 1
2 Trinity Christian Academy (Jacksonville) def. 7 P.K. Yonge, forfeit
Class 2A-Region 2
Newberry 24, 6 Palatka 7
Bradford (Starke) 35, 7 The Villages 0
Class 3A-Region 1
2 Godby (Tallahassee) 35, 7 Suwannee (Live Oak) 28
Class 3A-Region 2
2 Bishop Moore (Orlando) 35, 7 Eastside 6
Class 4A-Region 1
1 St. Augustine 28, 8 Columbia (Lake City) 0
Class 6A-Region 1
2 Buchholz 42, 7 Evans (Orlando) 21
SSAA football playoffs
Thursday, Nov. 14
8-Man State Championship – at The Villages
Shorecrest Prep (St. Petersburg) 47, Countryside Christian 12
Friday, Nov. 15
Atlantic 1A ChampionshipSpace Coast (Cocoa) 21, Bell 14