Blocked PAT costly for Tigers
Momentum shift in Class 6A semifinal leads to overtime loss
PENSACOLA — With 24 seconds remaining in regulation, the Jones Tigers were an extra point away Friday from returning to a FHSAA football state championship game.
Jones senior quarterback Julian Calvez scored on a 2-yard run to tie the score at 13 in the Class 6A state semifinal matchup with host Pensacola Pine Forest.
Also serving as the Jones kicker, Calvez lined up for the attempt. The snap came but the kick was blocked by the Eagles.
The score didn’t change, but the momentum did. Pine Forest won 20-13 in overtime.
“We scored with 20 seconds left and were going to kick the extra point, so in my opinion, I thought the game was over,” Jones head coach Elijah Williams said. “If you can’t make extra points in the semifinals, you’re not going to win and that’s what it came down to.”
The Eagles’ raucous energy following that game-altering moment carried them to an overtime win.
They made quick work of the Tigers there, scoring on the first play as Pine Forest running back Miequle Brock ran for a 10-yard score.
Moments later, while trying to force a second overtime, more disaster struck for the Tigers (11-3). This time, it ended their season.
Rolling out right and then turning back to throw left across the field, Calvez thought he had a man open and tried to pass to Anthony Rucker. But Pine Forest linebacker Lamartaz Odoms stepped in front of Rucker for the clinching interception.
“A team like that, you can’t go into overtime with them for one,” Williams said. “It was not in our best interest to go into overtime with them.”
Pine Forest (12-1) will play Tampa Jesuit (14-0) for the title at night on Dec. 18, a Saturday, in Fort Lauderdale.
Calvez, who passed for more than 3,000 yards this season, was limited to just 5 completions in the first half.
“They have three guys in the middle to stop the run, and they drop eight guys to get you to throw into bad coverage,” Williams said. “We knew that, so we had to pick and choose our time. It came down to one of those games that whoever makes the least mistakes is going to win and we made mistakes.”
The score was tied at 7 at halftime after Jones running back Da’Quan Harris scored on a 29-yard run and Calvez successfully kicked the conversion.
Jones is 60-12 in six seasons under Williams and has dominated its district.
“We’ve already turned a corner. We’ve been to the state finals once and the final four three times,” Williams said. “We just need to win that big one.”
Jones was the Class 5A runner-up to Northwestern in its only FHSAA football championship game appearance in 2019.