Cardinal Gibbons QB out for 5A regional finals
Cardinal Gibbons will be without one of its most important players when it takes on American Heritage in the Class 5A football regional finals on Friday.
Quarterback Nik Scalzo will miss Friday’s game with a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee that he suffered in the Chiefs’ 30-27 victory against Orlando Jones last week.
Scalzo, a Kentucky commit, suffered the injury after catching a pass on a trick play.
“My knee buckled,” Scalzo said. “I knew right when it happened because you know the pop? I felt the pop.”
He came out of the game but returned after missing three offensive drives. He helped lead the Chiefs down the field on a drive that ended with a Vincent Davis rushing touchdown and put Cardinal Gibbons ahead 30-21. That was enough to secure the victory.
“I went back in and played through it,” Scalzo said. “I had to do most of my stuff with just straight arm strength; I couldn’t use my feet at all. I dropped back like Jay Cutler. You know how he used to do his backpedal steps? I had to do that because I couldn’t cross over.
“But I stayed in game. I’m glad I did.”
Cardinal Gibbons coach Matt DuBuc put backup quarterback Brody Palhegyi in the game, but after Palhegyi threw a pick-six, Scalzo limped back onto the field and refused to leave.
“I didn’t really convince [DuBuc)]; I just kind of the walked on the field, and I wasn’t getting off it,” Scalzo said.” He was calling the backup in, and I was like, ‘I’m sorry. I’m not coming off the field.’ ”
DuBuc did not comment on Scalzo’s injury.
Scalzo has thrown for 2,185 passing yards, 24 touchdowns and eight interceptions this year, and his absence comes at an inopportune time for the Chiefs. Cardinal Gibbons is aiming to make a run to the state title game, but the Chiefs need to get past rival American Heritage to do it.
Cardinal Gibbons had an 11-game losing streak against Heritage, but the Chiefs snapped it in October. When they played each other in the playoffs last year, the game went to triple overtime before the Patriots prevailed.
“It’s hard,” Scalzo said. “I worked these past four years for this moment right here, for this game, and it sucks just not being able to play. But I’m not going to get mad or anything because everything’s God’s timing, and I trust in him.”
Scalzo is committed to play for Kentucky next season, and the injury won’t change that, he said.
“They’re all with it,” Scalzo said. “They know that usually when you tear your ACL, the therapy after makes your leg strong and you become a little faster, actually. … I’ll be ready for when I go up to Kentucky.”
Scalzo ends his high school career with his name written all over the Cardinal Gibbons record book. He is the Chiefs’ record holder for career passing yards (6,471) and passing touchdowns (74), according to his father, Gibbons assistant coach Jerry Scalzo. He also holds the single-season Chiefs record for touchdown passes (44) and the singlegame record for touchdown passes (six).
“Probably changing the culture here at Gibbons [is the most memorable part],” Scalzo said. “My freshman class came in … our class just stuck together, and now we’re a top-10 team. That’s a huge twist. I honestly wouldn’t change anything.”