Controversial call keeps Southridge from a last-second miracle in loss to West Boca

Was he down? Or was it a fumble?

Southridge linebacker Joshua McDowell sure thought he was down. So did the Southridge coaches later on when they saw the video.

But the bottom line for the Spartans was, after receiving a gift from the heavens and nearly pulling out an incredible miracle victory on a miracle play, the call on the field did not go their way.

Their dream season that saw a return to prominence came up one game short of a berth in the state final as Southridge dropped a 14-11 heartbreaker to host West Boca Raton in a Class 6A state semifinal on Friday night.

After Southridge turned the ball over on downs around midfield with 1:50 left in the game and armed with only one timeout, they could only watch as the Bulls drained all but 16 seconds of the clock and were faced with a fourth-and-5 at the Southridge 35.

West Boca coach Kyle Potts (formerly the offensive coordinator at Belen Jesuit) tried something that nearly backfired when quarterback Trey Moran took the shotgun snap and took off running to the right (and backwards) to try and kill seconds off the clock.

But when Southridge defensive end Kamron Wilson chased him down from behind, he stripped the ball. McDowell scooped up the loose ball at midfield and took off running down the sideline heading for the end zone.

Just before he got there, West Boca wide receiver Jordyan Walters managed to bring him down a yard short of the goal line. That’s when the ball came loose and a West Boca player recovered in the end zone for a touchback with three seconds left.

Video footage of the play showed McDowell’s knee might’ve been down before he lost the ball but to no avail, the call went against the Spartans and the Bulls took a knee at the 20-yard line to burn off the last three seconds and the celebrating from the overflow home crowd began.

Had McDowell been ruled down, Southridge head coach Pierre Senatus would’ve had to decide whether to go for the win from the one yard line or kick a chip shot field goal to send the game to overtime. It’s a decision he never had to make.

“I really didn’t get a good look at it because it was on the opposite side of the field but it is what it is, the call didn’t go our way so we’ll have to live with that,” Senatus said. “I feel bad for our kids because they really gave everything they had all season long and again tonight and things ultimately just didn’t go our way.”

Having already gone farther than any West Boca team had ever gone, the party will continue for the Bulls and their fans as they remained unbeaten at 14-0 and will now take on Kissimmee Osceola in the 6A title game next Friday, Dec. 6 at 12:30 p.m. at Pitbull Stadium on the campus of FIU.

“I don’t understand, the ground can’t cause a fumble – I was down before the ball came out,” said a disconsolate and inconsolable McDowell, tears streaming down his face, voice barely audible. “When I saw the ball, I just grabbed it and took off running as fast as I could. I tried to reach the ball out over the goal line as I went down when the ball came out but my knee was down. This hurts so much. We should’ve won this game tonight. It should’ve never come down to that last play.”

McDowell was right about that because while the Spartan faithful might have nightmares of that last play into the offseason, the one that might haunt everybody just as much came late in the first quarter.

After McDowell broke through and blocked a West Boca punt on the Bulls’ first possession, the short field allowed Marcus Rosado to boot a 39-yard field goal and early 3-0 lead.

One possession later, thanks to a pair of 21-yard completions from quarterback James Perrone to James Gatewood and Darius Clements, the Spartans drove from their own 28 to the West Boca 3.

Ready to go in and take a 10-0 lead, disaster struck when Perrone and running back Shandon Smith missed connections on the handoff leaving the ball on the ground. West Boca linebacker Marc-Sanchtz Lordeus scooped up the loose ball and rambled 92-yards to the end zone for the scoop-and-score touchdown.

“That’s a 14 point swing right there,” Senatus said. “And when you ultimately lose a game by three points, the math is pretty simple.”

The remainder of the first half turned into a defensive battle on both sides and wasn’t helped when Perrone got his right ankle rolled early in the second quarter. He would spend the rest of the night limping, trying to play through the pain, perhaps missing some throws he normally wouldn’t miss.

Thanks to a 31-yard Moran-to-Walters hookup and another 21 yard completion to Jaccorion McCary, the Bulls put together their only sustained drive of the night to open the second half, marching 56 yards in seven plays before Moran skirted around the right side on third-and-goal from the one putting West Boca up 14-3 with 6:14 left in the third.

Southridge continued to struggle on offense and when the Spartans took over at their own 13 with 6:41 to play still down 11, things looked bleak.

But Perrone then found Clements down the middle for 31 yards for their biggest offensive play of the night to that point putting the Spartans near midfield.

Then came an even bigger play. Facing a fourth-and-three at the West Boca 49, Perrone dropped back and fired a dart over the middle to McDowell who had slipped behind both Bulls defenders and took off for the end zone for the 49-yard score.

When Perrone found Gatewood for the ensuing two-point conversion, the Southridge sideline came alive as there was still plenty of time (5:05) left to pull out the win.

“We had double slants called and their middle was kind of weak as they had one backer,” said Perrone who downplayed his tender ankle after finishing his night 13-for-24 for 178 yards. “Darius ran a nice route, I put it right in there, he split the seam and he was gone. I really thought we were going to win the game at that point.”

Next came a three-and-out by the Ridge defense, a Bulls punt, and Spartans possession at their own 28 with 3:48 to play. Faced with a fourth-and-seven at the West Boca 46, Perrone went to Gatewood over the middle, Even though the Southridge sideline screamed for pass interference, the pass was incomplete and West Boca took over with 1:50 left.

“Credit West Boca, they’re well-coached, basically played a clean game and deserve to be moving on,” Senatus said. “I’m still proud of the season we had. We went 12-3 and all three of those losses were to teams still playing tonight. We’ve put Southridge football back on the map and our program is back. I’m sure this season will be a great memory these kids will never forget and hopefully we can use this tough loss tonight as off-season motivation to get back here again next year.”