St. Thomas Aquinas caps perfect season with win over St. Louis in GEICO State Series
One week after winning a record-tying 11th state championship, St. Thomas Aquinas wasn’t quite done.
The Raiders, ranked No. 5 in the nation (Max Preps) made a last-minute decision to make the long trip to Las Vegas to participate in the ESPN Geico State Champions Bowl Series and put their perfect 14-0 record on the line against No. 7 ranked St. Louis High School from Honolulu, Hawaii.
Thanks to a second-half surge, St. Thomas pulled away from a 21-19 halftime lead to defeat the Crusaders 35-19 at Bishop Gorman High School late Saturday night.
The loss ended a 38-game winning streak for St. Louis, which had just won its fourth consecutive state title in Hawaii’s largest classification.
Meanwhile St. Thomas, also ranked No. 3 in the country in the USA Today Power 25 poll, completed its first perfect season since 2010. The Raiders will likely move up from their No. 5 spot in Max Preps but not likely to the top spot.
The Raiders might have a shot at the top spot in USA Today as No. 2 Duncanville (Texas) lost but No. 1 St. John Bosco (Bellflower, Ca) did not play.
“We decided to accept the invitation to go out there and play last Monday night,” said St. Thomas head coach Roger Harriott. “Once it was confirmed that this game had national championship implications, we felt it necessary to play for our school, county and state.”
St. Thomas jumped out in front early when St. Louis fumbled on the second play of the game. Raiders quarterback Zion Turner turned it into a 32-yard touchdown pass to Antonio Johnson.
St. Louis quarterback and Hawaii Gatorade Football Player of the Year Jayden de Laura then answered back with a pair of touchdown passes to put the Crusaders (13-1) up 13-7.
But Turner then answered with a touchdown pass to Georgia-bound wide receiver Marcus Rosemy. Running back Travis Dixon scored on the next possession putting the Raiders up 21-13 before St. Louis cut the lead to two on a de Laura 22-yard touchdown run just before halftime.
Led by last week’s hero, running back Anthony Hankerson, St. Thomas then turned to its power running attack in the third quarter to take control of the game. Hankerson and Jaedon Henry both scored touchdowns to open up the 35-19 lead entering the fourth.
Things were then turned over to a defense that dominated opponents all season long. Led by University of Florida signee linebacker Derek Wingo, who had two-and-a-half sacks, the Raiders kept the St. Louis off the board in the second half as Jaden McBurrows, Isaiah Taylor (son of former Dolphin and Hall of Famer Jason Taylor), and Landon Grier each had interceptions.
Said Harriott: “With little time to prep, our coaches and players represented STA, Broward County and Florida with class, integrity and a great effort. In my opinion, I believe that the ESPN Geico State Champions Bowl should be a practical platform to dictate the national champion for those willing to play in the postseason.”
This story was originally published December 22, 2019 at 12:32 PM.
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