Central regroups to blow out Baker County
Miami Central trailed by a touchdown in the second quarter, but overwhelmed Glen St. Mary Baker County with 41 unanswered points to win a 5A state semifinal 54-21 on Friday at Traz Powell Stadium.
The victory gives Central (11-2) a chance to win its third consecutive state title and eighth championship overall.
“It means a lot to these kids, the staff and this community,” coach Roland Smith said. “We put in a lot of work. ... We’ve done it before, but we have the chance to do it again. I’m very excited about it.”
Baker County (11-3) took a six-hour bus trip from near Jacksonville and gave Central an early fight, but the Rockets, ranked No. 24 in the nation by MaxPreps, ignited their offense before halftime and remained hot.
Quarterback Keyone Jenkins completed 19 of 24 passes for 276 yards and three touchdowns in the win. Running back Ghana Oboh ran for 114 yards and two scores.
Wide receiver Joshisa Trader had 12 catches for 189 yards and a score for the Rockets, who outscored the Wildcats, 40-7, in the second half.
“We should have done that in the first half,” said star defensive lineman Ruben Bain, who totaled two sacks. “It was about want. Wanting to go back
Chaminade is only the third team in state history to make it to six consecutive state title games, joining Glades Day (198288) and Pahokee (200308).
The Lions will also look for redemption from a year ago when they were less than a minute away from becoming the first Broward County team to win four consecutive state titles before Jacksonville Trinity Christian Academy scored with 30 seconds left to crush their dream.
“Six in a row now, and it never gets old,” coach Dameon Jones said. “I really feel blessed. I’ve got great coaches, great kids, great administration and to do something like this six times in a row is really something, but we all know we have to finish the to state.”
Jenkins threw a 30-yard touchdown pass to Corey Washington for a 7-0 lead on the Rockets’ first possession. deal this time. I’ve been reminding all of the kids since the playoffs started to not forget how we felt last year when we saw it all slip away in that last minute and all of that crying that went on in the locker room after the game.”
On Friday, Florida High battled Chaminade-Madonna to a scoreless first quarter, but it was just a matter of time for the Lions’ offense, led by quarterback Cedric Bailey, to get going. Facing a secondand-23 at the Seminoles’ 40, Bailey dropped back on the first play of the second quarter and found Edwin Joseph for 38 yards down to the 2. Running back Davion Gause scored on the next play to put Chaminade-Madonna ahead 7-0.
After the Lions defense The Wildcats forced a fumble on Central’s next drive and later tied the game with a 58yard touchdown pass from Noah Ray to Jaymodd Ruise with 3:50 to go in the first quarter.
Baker County then took the lead on a 2-yard touchdown run by Jamarian Baker in the second quarter. Central tied the score when Ean Pope answered with a 5-yard touchdown run just before halftime.
The Rockets opened the second half with a long drive, which ended with a 16-yard touchdown run from Oboh.
Jenkins connected with Trader and star wide receiver Lamar Seymore for passing scores on consecutive drives in the third quarter to break the game open.
Oboh added a 60-yard touchdown run at the start of the fourth. Cataurus Hicks scored twice in the final eight minutes to add to Central’s lead.
The Rockets will face Merritt Island in the 5A state championship on Dec. 17 at DRV PNK Stadium in Fort Lauderdale. got a three-and-out, it took Bailey just one play to find the end zone when he dropped back and found a star wide receiver Jeremiah Smith for a 57-yard score to make it 14-0. Bailey wasn’t done: After one more three-and-out, he hit Smith again for a 12-yard touchdown to give the Lions a 21-0 lead with 7:41 left in the half.
“It was a great night; we had fun out there,” said Bailey, who finished 11 of 18 for 229 yards and two touchdowns.
Florida High (12-2) put up its only points of the night when Brooks Hickman kicked a 36-yard field goal as time expired in the first half, but the Lions quickly squashed any momentum the Seminoles hoped to build.