McQueen’s 6 overall TDs lead Miami Central to rout of Booker T. Washington
A year ago junior quarterback Anthony McQueen entered in relief for Booker T. Washington after an injury to their starter at the time.
McQueen had his share of growing pains at the time as he directed the Tornadoes to the playoffs.
Fast forward to Saturday night and McQueen was on the same field as Booker T. again. But this time, he was wearing the green and white of Miami Central.
And McQueen haunted his former team with a fantastic performance that propelled the Rockets to a 55-25 victory over the Tornadoes at Traz Powell Stadium. It was Central’s ninth consecutive win over Booker T.
McQueen threw for over 300 yards, four touchdowns and one interception, and ran for two more as Miami Central continued to pick up momentum following an opening week loss to Lakeland.
The Rockets (2-1), who entered the season with senior Bekkem Kritza as their starter, made the change to McQueen last week and he led them to a 54-7 rout of Miami Edison. Kritza entered the game in the fourth quarter on Saturday and threw one touchdown pass with under four minutes left.
“(McQueen)’s done exactly what we’ve asked him to do since we put him in there,” Central coach Jube Joseph said. “For him, the game is already won on Sunday in terms of preparation and he keeps doing the right things. He and Bekkem are both supporting each other.”
The lopsided final score overshadowed a valiant effort by the Tornadoes (1-1), who kept the game close for a half.
Booker T.’s two quarterbacks, Nylan Maine and Dontavious Kinchens, each threw two touchdown passes. Maine threw two touchdown passes in the first half, but was injured during a tough scramble for a first down on Booker T.’s final drive of the half. Kinchens completed the drive and threw a 2-yard touchdown pass to Anton Smith to cut the Rockets’ lead to 21-19 at halftime.
McQueen’s first two touchdowns came on plays made primarily by his pass catchers as Sekou Smith caught a screen pass and raced 91 yards for a touchdown down the sideline. Jayden Ford scored from 13 yards out early in the second quarter on a similarly-designed play.
But McQueen showed off his arm early in the third quarter when he hit Khaleal Sterling on a deep ball down the sideline for a 58-yard score. Sterling stretched out and made a spectacular diving catch on the play.
Following an interception by senior Jalen Labranche, McQueen found Anjuan Coleman open in the end zone for a 30-yard touchdown and the Rockets were speeding their way to outscoring Booker T. 34-6 in the second half.
Labranche’s interception was one of three turnovers forced by Central’s defense, which was led by senior Tony Williams, who had an interception and a sack.
“I think our best football is still ahead of us,” Joseph said. “We faced some adversity and you know that when you face Booker T., it’s a rival and they’re going to fight and they have a lot of pride. It’s always a good thing with our receiving corps. The kids are building. We have some things to work on but we’re building.”
Central will travel to Pompano Beach for a district matchup on Friday while Booker T. will next host La Salle at Traz on Thursday in a district game.
This story was originally published September 8, 2024 at 8:35 AM.
