Dillard was leading at halftime, and then COVID-like symptoms ended Deerfield’s night

Just before the start of the second half of the high school football game between Deerfield Beach and Dillard, confusion reigned between Dillard players and their fans in the bleachers.

The Bucks, down 21-0, proceeded to walk off the field in single file straight onto their buses.

The game was officially called as the Panthers celebrated the victory on the field.

Games officials, school administrators from Deerfield Beach High and representatives from the Broward County Athletic Association met near the Deerfield sideline to discuss the situation.

“I’ve seen some bizarre things, but that’s a new one,” said Dillard coach Tyler Tate, of Deerfield’s departure. “We did a lot of preparation for this game and studied a lot of film. When you play teams like Deerfield, who is high powered, you need to be ready.”

A Dillard administrator said it seemed likely COVID was the potential reason that the game was stopped.

A Deerfield coach said it was not a positive COVID test, but the player in question had COVID-like symptoms at the clinic Friday.

The game between the Bucks (1-1) and Blanche Ely in Pompano on Sept. 11 could also be in jeopardy.

Despite the victory, the Panthers still trail the overall series (21-18) that began in 1971.

As for the first half play, Dillard’s strong play made the Bucks look very ordinary at best.

Dillard (2-0) opened the scoring on a 2-yard run by junior running back Jaferris Finely with 3:33 left in the first quarter.

Following a poor Deerfield punt, which gave the Panthers the ball at the Bucks 28, Dillard made it 14-0 on a 17-yard run by junior Christopher Johnson.

Johnson had a hand in the next scoring drive for the Panthers with a halfback pass to Devaughn Mortimer covering 42 yards to the Bucks 3. Finley added his second scoring run of the half on the next play for a 21-0 halftime lead.

Though Dillard completed just 5 of 11 passing attempts, they gained 156 yards. The big plays through the air put the Panthers in position for touchdowns.

The Panthers David Law-Mortimer and Joshua Bowen each picked off two of Bucks sophomore quarterback Michael Merdinger’s pass attempts in the opening half.

Dillard’s defense held its opponent to 12 yards rushing and 64 yards through the air.

Bartram Trail 12, Columbus 6

For the first time in two years, the heavily traveled Explorers didn’t experience a joyous, long bus ride home Friday night following a 12-6, turnover plagued loss at Bartram Trail in a battle of Class 8A heavyweights.

Columbus suffered two fumbles, an interception and a safety over the game’s first 2½ quarters to fall into a 12-0 hole. The loss broke Columbus’s 16-game win streak over a three-season span, dating back to a loss at Dillard on Oct. 18, 2019. The run included the 2019 Class 8A title, the school’s first state championship, and the 2020 tri-county championship after the Explorers opted out of the Florida High School Athletic Association’s state series because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Bartram Trail is 2-0 and Columbus 1-1 this season, with a potential Class 8A title game in December at a site to be determined.

“We thought our defense was good enough to win the game if we didn’t turn the ball over and played good field position and we didn’t do that,” Columbus coach David Dunn said. “We’re just too young on offense right now, with nine new starters, to come back from making those turnovers.”

On Aug. 27, Columbus bused 7½ hours to Savannah, Georgia to take on Benedictine Academy in the season opener, winning 42-27. The trip up I-95 occurred again on Thursday, with a 5½ -hour bus ride and overnight stay before the contest in suburban Jacksonville against St. Johns County’s Bears, one of the favorites in Class 8A this season with Division I players headed to Michigan, Cincinnati, Duke and Florida Atlantic.

Columbus senior QB Fernando Mendoza fumbled after being sacked late in the first quarter, leading to a Bartram Trail 36-yard field goal by Liam Padron and a 3-0 Bartram Trail lead. The Bears took a 10-0 halftime lead on the half’s final play when sophomore quarterback Riley Trujillo found senior tight end Eli Sutherland for a 3-yard, bootleg TD pass. The lead grew to 12-0 midway through the third quarter when Mendoza was sacked in the end zone.

However, Mendoza did keep coming back, passing for 163 yards, as he teamed with junior RB Tremonte Underwood Jr. (112 yards rushing), who was subbing for injured senior Denim Edwards. But the Explorers couldn’t get to the end zone. Luis Palenzuela kicked field goals of 36 and 33 yards to record Columbus’s only points.

Game Report By Ward Clayton

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This story was originally published September 4, 2021 at 1:07 AM with the headline "Dillard was leading at halftime, and then COVID-like symptoms ended Deerfield’s night."