DELRAY BEACH – There are some things that one will always remember.
For anyone who witnessed the Class 5A-Region 3 final matchup between the No. 1 seed Atlantic (Delray Beach) Eagles and the No. 2 seed St. Thomas Aquinas Raiders, the Nov. 30 showdown had everything that one could think of.
We had a quarterback battle between two seniors who are looking to find college homes soon in Lincoln Graf (Atlantic) and Andrew Indorf (St. Thomas Aquinas).
We had two senior running backs who will soon be signing their letters of intent to Power 4 colleges in Deandre Desinor (Atlantic; West Virginia verbal commit) and Cedric Wyche (St. Thomas Aquinas; Illinois verbal commit).
We had the undisputed star of the entire show in Teddy Hoffman, who is the No. 1 overall player in Palm Beach County and could be signing his letter of intent next week with FAU.
And most importantly, we had a truly memorable comeback effort for as St. Thomas Aquinas overcame an early 21-point deficit to shock Atlantic in a 49-42 road victory that took two overtime periods to settle.
Wyche had three touchdown runs – including what would be the game-winning score in the second overtime – and the St. Thomas Aquinas defense forced and recovered a fumble to seal the deal.
With the win, St. Thomas Aquinas improved to 10-3 on the season and is now one step closer to an FHSAA record-extending 15th state title.
As for Atlantic, the dream season ended with a final record of 11-2.
Down 20-0 in the second quarter to Atlantic, the St. Thomas Aquinas offense got to work as Indorf methodically led his team down the field. After a combination of runs and passes, Wyche powered his way in for his first of three rushing scores.
Atlantic answered back later in the second quarter as Graf found Hoffman for a jaw dropper in the end zone.
And just when one thought Atlantic’s 28-7 lead would be safe, St. Thomas Aquinas gave us a reminder with an Indorf touchdown run as we got close to halftime.
With St. Thomas Aquinas now down 28-14 to Atlantic in the third quarter, Indorf would use his arm this time for his first of three touchdown passes to cut the deficit further.
Shortly thereafter, Atlantic answered back with a score of its own by way of Graf’s touchdown pass to junior athlete James Jones.
As Atlantic took a 35-21 lead, it seemed as if the monstrous breakthrough victory was within reach.
But the fourth quarter was all about St. Thomas Aquinas as we got the following:
•The second of three scoring runs from Wyche
•A beautifully executed touchdown pass from Indorf to sophomore athlete Ahmari Stevens to tie the game up for the first time
St. Thomas Aquinas junior defensive back Justice Fitzpatrick picked off an Atlantic pass to effectively force the game to go into overtime.
Atlantic would get the ball first and execute on its scoring opportunity. Taking the lead back at 42-35, we saw Hoffman’s greatness on display with a touchdown catch from Graf and his extra point as a kicker.
Hoffman would finish this instant classic with five touchdowns accounted for, plus his special teams effort. The true athlete played on offense as a wide receiver, defense as a defensive back, and special teams as a kicker while lining up in both kick returns and punt returns.
But Hoffman’s all-around performance was not enough, as St. Thomas Aquinas answered right back to tie the game up at 42-42 at the end of the first overtime. This was made possible by Indorf’s third touchdown pass to sophomore wide receiver Julius Jones.
The second overtime was all St. Thomas in what turned out to be a textbook display on how to complete a comeback effort.
After the game, we got commentary from several St. Thomas Aquinas players and head coach Roger Harriott.
And now as St. Thomas Aquinas savors this road win to remember, its next opponent will be on the road against Manatee (10-1) in the 5A state semifinal round. This matchup is set for Friday, Dec. 6 at 7:30 p.m.
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