Patriots take control of Class 16-5A

Jones rushes for 110 yards and one TD

FORT LAUDERDALE — No. 1 vs. No. 2 lived up to the billing.

In a showdown between the top two teams in the AP Class 5A poll, defending state champ American Heritage edged Cardinal Gibbons 23-19 to put itself in the driver’s seat of District 16-5A.

Cardinal Gibbons attempted an onside kick with 37 seconds left after quarterback Nik Scalzo scored on a 5-yard touchdown run to make it a onepossession game, but the Chiefs failed to recover.

American Heritage running back Tyler Jones was sensational on the night, rushing for 110 yards and one touchdown on just eight carries. The junior scored a back-breaking touchdown with 3:52 remaining, as he escaped a pair of tackles and squirted free for a 31-yard score to give the Patriots a 23-13 lead.

“This kid’s been special [for a while],” said coach Patrick Surtain. “He got his opportunity against Liberty [Nevada] when Jordan [Johnson] was out and he ran with it. He’s a heck of a back. He practices hard, he’s a strong kid and has tremendous balance. He’s going to be a force for us going into the playoffs.”

Cardinal Gibbons’ offense struggled to maintain any consistency until late in the fourth quarter. Despite three American Heritage turnovers, the Chiefs managed just six points on four trips inside the Patriots’ 30-yard line through the first three quarters.

American Heritage’s defensive line, led by standout senior end Andrew Chatfield, dominated the line of scrimmage and frequently harassed Scalzo in the backfield. For the game, the dynamic junior quarterback finished 10 for 24 for 108 yards and one touchdown.

“Scalzo’s a tricky dude,” said Surtain. “He’s mobile, he can get outside the pocket and make some plays which he did tonight. We lost contain a couple times, but when you have dogs [like Chatfield] up front who can get after the quarterback, it makes the job easier on defense.”

For the two district rivals, it was another down-tothe-wire finish after a tight playoff game last year. In the Class 5A regional finals, the Patriots edged the Chiefs 10-7 on their way to their third state title in the past four years.

Cardinal Gibbons struck first after capitalizing on an American Heritage turnover. Backed up at their own 15-yard line, Patriots quarterback Cam Smith had the ball ripped away from him in the pocket and the Chiefs recovered at the 10-yard line. The Patriots defense held strong, however, holding the Chiefs to a 21-yard Griffin Cerra field goal to give the team a 3-0 lead.

American Heritage wasted no time on the ensuing kickoff return. After fielding the return at the 5-yard line, Miles Jones was surrounded by three Patriots teammates, leading to a moment of confusion as to who had the ball. After the scrum, Jones emerged with the ball and sprinted down the middle for a 95-yard kickoff-return score.

Gibbons would add a field goal to cut the lead to 7-6 at halftime.

In the second half, the teams traded touchdowns with Heritage scoring twice on runs by Johnson and Jones. Gibbons added Scalzo’s touchdown run and a 10-yard hook-up from the junior quarterback to Carlos Sandy.

JIM RASSOL/STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER American Heritages’ Miles Jones goes up for a pass during Friday night’s game. He returned a 95-yard kickoff-return to give the Patriots their first score of the game.