After over a month and three postponements, Southridge rallies to beat Columbus
The fourth time was the charm.
After being postponed on three prior occasions, Miami Southridge and Miami Columbus finally finished their season opener on Monday afternoon on the Explorers’ home field.
And after waiting over a month, the Spartans put together two comebacks to secure one of their biggest wins of the season, beating Columbus 28-21 to remain undefeated.
Spartans’ quarterback James Perrone’s 3-yard touchdown pass to Jakhari Johnson with 11 seconds remaining tipped the scales in Southridge’s favor for good. The Spartans added a two-point conversion on another Perrone to Johnson connection moments later.
Southridge (7-0) converted a pair of fourth downs and a pair of third-and-10 situations on its winning drive and held Columbus’ last-ditch comeback attempt with three seconds left after the ensuing kickoff.
On 4th and 5 at its own 45, Perrone found Trae Proctor open for a 7-yard completion and a first down into Columbus territory.
Southridge converted on third down moments later on a 6-yard run by Travis Gamble. Three plays later, facing a fourth and 10, Perrone scrambled for 13 yards and a first down with 2:35 left.
Three plays later, Perrone found Proctor open again on third and 10 from the Columbus 23 to move the ball inside the 5 and set up the winning score.
Southridge is off to an even better start since winning its last state title in 2016 and entered the week as the top seed in Region 4-6A, and third-highest seed in Class 6A overall. The Spartans strengthened those power rankings with the victory as they look to secure home field advantage throughout the postseason.
Columbus (2-5) had won two in a row after losing its first four, and has lost five games in a season for the first time since 2016. The Explorers, however, are the No. 5 seed in Region 4-7A and have three games remaining against teams ranked ahead of them (Coral Gables, Norland, True North) with which to make up ground.
The game, which was initially scheduled to be played at Tropical Park on August 22, resumed with Southridge trailing 14-7 with 3:34 to play in the third quarter.
Following a defensive stop, Perrone led a touchdown drive, which ended with a 25-yard scoring pass to Johnson.
Southridge’s defense forced another punt and Perrone drove the Spartans back into Columbus territory to open the fourth quarter.
A 46-yard catch and run by Johnson would set up a 5-yard quarterback keeper by Perrone to give Southridge a 20-14 lead.
The Explorers blocked the extra point, which at the time, appeared to prove critical after they answered with a touchdown drive of their own. Joseph Triana’s 1-yard dive into the end zone gave Columbus the lead back at 21-20 with 5:02 left in the game.
But Perrone and the Spartans put together their clutch drive in the closing moments to secure victory.
This story was originally published October 7, 2025 at 8:02 AM.
