Cinderella’s witching hour was midnight. Had she been from Georgia, it likely would have been 11:30. With just under 2 minutes remaining in a hard-fought battle between Sandy Creek (Ga.), the number 5 ranked team in the county, and the Plant Panthers of Tampa, the game was stopped because of an 11:30 curfew with the score tied at 27.
In approving the out-of-state contest, Georgia officials already had determined that no overtime would be played. The Plant-Sandy Creek was the second game of a double-header and part of a weekend series of high school football games orchestrated by UnderArmor to honor the Wounded Warriors program. The first game ran long causing the marquee matchup to start late. The late start resulted in the late finish and left both teams kissing their sister. But for the Panthers, a tie in a game that they had the chance to win at the end against a top-ten nationally ranked team, on the road, five days after struggling in their pre-season game, was a bit of redemption.
It didn’t take long for senior defensive back Bernard Rogers to redeem himself personally. Beat twice with passing TD’s by Tallahassee Godby in the Kickoff Classic only five shorts days ago, Rogers picked off a Sandy Creek pass on the first play from scrimmage. And in an instant, Plant had better starting field position than any of its drives against Godby. And the field position got even better when Plant’s opening drive stalled, the ensuing punt was fumbled and the ball was recovered by the Panthers on the Patriot 30 yard line.
Sparked by an 18-yard completion from Senior Colby Brown to Junior Jordan Reed and a roughing the kicker call on a field goal attempt, Plant capitalized when Brown found Junior Clarke Miller all alone in the end zone with a 13-year scoring strike. The extra point appeared to slide inside just inside the right upright, but was ruled no good and the Panthers settled for an early 6 – 0 lead.
The Panther defense forced a three-and-out, lead by a nice tackle from Senior safety/receiver Austin Hudson. Stymied by a pair of penalties, the ensuing Plant drive stalled quickly; but a terrific open field tackle by Senior Fletcher Barnes on the punt penned the home team back deep in its own territory.
Behind junior defensive tackle Kyle Henderson, the Panthers forced another three-and-out. A short Patriot punt gave Plant the ball just inside Sandy Creek territory. A couple of runs from Senior Alexander Jackson, operating out of the wildcat formation, and a 20-yard completion from Brown to Reed, gave the visitors from Tampa a first down at the Patriot 14 yard line. A couple of miscues, combined with an early taste of what can only be described as some southern ‘home cooking’ from the Georgia officials, pushed the Panthers out of field goal range and into punting range.
A Henderson sack keyed another strong stand by the Panther defense, another short punt from the hosts, and more good field position for Plant. Jackson and Brown moved the ball on the ground down to the Sandy Creek 20. From there, Brown hit Hudson with Brown’s second TD pass of the night. Plant’s 2-point conversion attempt was stopped inches short and the lead stood at 12 – 0.
This time, the Patriots answered the call as top recruit Delvin Weems punctuated a 66-yard drive with a 42 yard touchdown run to cut the lead to 12 – 7 with less than five minutes remaining in the opening half. Reed’s 35-yard return gave Plant an opportunity to close out the half with a score of their own. Instead, the tables were turned when Brown’s pass ended up in the hands of the opposing team. Riding the momentum swing, fellow top recruit, Eric Swinney, capitalized with a 5 yard scoring run. Suddenly, the team that had been trailing all game, was up 13 – 12 at halftime.
The momentum swung right back in favor of Plant in a matter of seconds when Reed raced 98 yards with the opening kick of the second half to give the Panthers the lead. Clarke Miller’s extra point was good and the Panthers led 19 – 13. The ensuing kickoff appeared to be fumbled (and recovered by Plant), but an official came in from the far side and ruled the ball down. Sandy Creek made the best of the situation, handing the ball over to Weems, who followed a 45 yard run with a six yard TD run to tie the game. A successful extra point gave the Patriots the lead.
The Panthers fought back. A 20 yard completion from Brown to Miller gave Plant a first down at the Sandy Creek 15 yard line, but a Jackson fumble was recovered by the team in red, white and blue. Weems then showed why he is high on recruiting list of several colleges when he galloped 71 yards for a score – a run in which Weems successfully stiff armed not one, but two, Plant defenders. The extra point was good and halfway through the third quarter Sandy Creek had a 27 – 19 lead.
On its next drive, a long pass from Brown to Jackson was negated by another phantom call, forcing the Panthers to punt. Two Patriot defenders collided with Plant’s punter, but only a 5-yard penalty was called, leading to several objections from the Plant bench, leading, in turn, to a 15 yard penalty — on the Plant bench. But perhaps a bit of a fire was lit under a tiring Plant defense and Senior linebacker Andrew Back came up big with a tackle for a loss. Then, Seniors Jackson Kilcoyne and Kyle Henderson combined for a defensive hat trick: a sack (by Kilcoyne), a fumble and a recovery (by Henderson).
Starting at the enemy 32 yard line, Brown and Jackson moved the Panthers inside the Patriot 5 yard line. Brown then hit Fletcher Barnes with a 4-yard scoring strike to bring the Panthers within 2. Jackson knotted the score at 27 with a successful two-point conversion.
The 4th quarter featured some stout defense by both teams. The Plant defense made an adjustment that kept Weems, Swinney and company at bay. But the Patriots responded in kind. A promising Plant drive in the closing minutes was thwarted when Miller’s 34 yard field goal was blocked. As the game clock started to tick down, and the time-of-day clock neared the Georgia witching hour, the Plant defense held firm, forcing the Patriots to punt. The Panthers took over on their own 42 with 1:50 left on the scoreboard clock. Plant’s offense took the field determined and confident that it would be able to move the ball down the field and put the winning points on the board. But the Panthers never got the chance. Before a single play could be run, the referee (who’s watch may be running just a tad fast) picked up the ball, walked over towards the Plant sideline, passed along the disappointing news to the Panther sideline and then held the ball up in the air — signaling that the game was officially over. A 27 – 27 tie.
Plant head football coach Robert Weiner summed up the sentiments of his team after the game. “In what had to be one of the titanic heavyweight battles in the country, this was high school football at its finest, with two proud programs putting their best foot forward. It was a shame it had to end without a conclusive result.”
Reminded of Saturday’s game, Coach Weiner added: “There are very few times in my career as a head coach that I have been more proud of our guys. They played with heart and guts and pride against an incredible team of talent, coaching, and effort. Sandy Creek is worthy of the number 5 national ranking. Hopefully, the inspired play of our Panthers, particularly after such a poor showing last week, represented Plant, Hillsborough County, and Florida as well as possible.”
With redemption in hand, and Cinderella’s cleats back in the locker room, Plant players and coaches were ready to set their sights on another successful year. Or, as Weiner put it: “We are looking forward to this catapulting us into an exciting season.” Hopefully one without any more ties or curfews.
– Robert Barnes