Cardinal Gibbons makes quick work of Gulliver Prep to advance to regional finals
It was billed as a game between a pair of likely state title contenders.
It didn’t take long, however, to turn into a one-sided affair.
For the second consecutive week in the FHSAA playoffs, the Fort Lauderdale Cardinal Gibbons Chiefs rolled to a victory, this time a 29-7 win over Miami Gulliver Prep in a Region 4-4A semifinal Friday at FIU’s Riccardo Silva Stadium.The Chiefs, 5-1 on the year and now slated to play at Delray American Heritage next week in the Region 4 final, have outscored their two playoff opponents 66-14 after defeating Clewiston 37-7 in the regional quarterfinals.
“I mean, all I’ve heard all week, and probably for months was how great they were,” Cardinal Gibbons coach Matt DuBuc said of Gulliver Prep, “and nobody was talking about what we’ve done or what we did. It was a bit of a personal game for us. ... We had a little chip on our shoulder.”
Cardinal Gibbons, ranked as the No. 12 team in the state by MaxPreps, made quick work of Gulliver Prep, holding a Raiders team that averaged 47.6 points per game — albeit against a schedule of Belen Jesuit, Somerset Academy South Homestead, Palm Beach Benjamin, Dade Christian and Monsignor Pace — to just one touchdown.
The Chiefs jumped out to a 19-0 halftime lead, extended the advantage to 22-0 midway through the third quarter before giving up its only points of the game and dominated on both lines of scrimmage while taking advantage of Gulliver Prep miscues.
Cardinal Gibbons turned a pair of missed Raiders field goals and a third-quarter Isaiah Farris interception into 16 of their 29 points. Running backs Kamari Moulton and Torrence Miller each scored first-half touchdowns. Moulton’s came from 2 yards out to complete an 80-yard opening drive. Miller scored from 50 yards after breaking a pair of tackles and finding an open lane down the left sideline. Both scores came after Gulliver Prep’s Will Bettridge missed a pair of field goals, including a 52-yard attempt in the second quarter that hit the right goal post.
Sandwiched between those scores was an 8-yard shovel pass from quarterback Brody Palhegyi to tight end Bryson Williams that capped a 70-yard scoring drive.
Chris Silverstein’s 24-yard field goal following Farris’ interception of Gulliver Prep’s Carson Haggard made it 22-0 late in the third quarter. Gulliver broke up the shutout two minutes later when sophomore Jalen Brown hauled in a one-handed grab between a pair of Cardinal Gibbons defenders for a 36-yard touchdown.
Two drives later, Cardinal Gibbons quarterback Mason Polivka, who played the bulk of the second half while Palhegyi was sidelined with cramps, put the game out of reach with a 16-yard rushing touchdown with 4:50 left to play. Senior safety Hugo Silsby intercepted a Haggard heave to the end zone with 2:48 remaining on the clock to seal the game.
“I knew they were just going to chuck the ball up for there season,” Silsby said of the interception, his second in as many playoff games. “We’re up by twenty. Just stay back.”
And now, Cardinal Gibbons is moving on once again, reaching the regional finals for a third consecutive season.
“Our minds are on state,” Silsby said.
Gulliver finished its season 5-1 and saw a perfect season end in the regional semifinals for the second consecutive season. The Raiders lost to eventual state champion Booker T. Washington in the second round of the playoffs in 2019 after going a perfect 10-0 in the regular season.
This story was originally published November 21, 2020 at 12:04 AM.
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