Test of Faith Lifts Armwood Past Gainesville for State Semifinal Bid

Championship seasons take more than star players and good coaching, they require a team with character. Luckily for fans of Armwood high school football, there was plenty of it on the gridiron Friday night.

The Hawks trailed the speedy Gainesville Hurricanes by a score of 14-3 at halftime of the Class 6A region final at Lyle Flagg Field in Seffner. But then a never-say-die attitude formed in the locker room as the seniors stepped into the shoes of leaders to motivate their team for a difficult second half.

It would test their faith.

"They gave us a different look than what we saw on film," senior running back Matt Jones said. "At halftime we had to make some adjustments, but I just told these guys that the most important thing was that we had to believe. We feel like if we have that belief in ourselves we can do anything and you saw what we can do with that mentality tonight."

The Hawks (13-0) came out looking nearly as lethargic on offense as they did in the first half, trading punts with the Hurricanes (10-3) on the first few drives of the second half. Their defense dug in — and kept Gainesville from scoring further — and eventually the Hawks closed in through a 43-yard reception by Jones for a touchdown.

Jones, who usually does his work running the ball, was a crucial target man for junior quarterback Alvin Bailey.

"They put an emphasis on stopping the run but we just kept plugging away until we could open up the passing game," Jones said. "I knew I had to go out there and catch some balls because I'm a versatile player and fortunately I was able to make some plays that way."

Bailey had his struggles. Despite having a ton of time to look at receivers down the field, he often held onto the ball and would have to settle for whatever he could create with his own feet.

A low point came in the fourth quarter when the Hawks went for it on fourth down inside the Gainesville 20-yard line but failed to convert as Bailey was stopped short of the first down. It looked as if Armwood might be up against the odds, but Bailey never stopped believing.

"Everybody was kind of down because we haven't really been in this position before," Bailey said. "But even though our offense was struggling, our defense was making plays. I've always said that we have the best defense, better than teams in the NFL. Tonight they showed it."

His faith in the defense was justified.

With just over four minutes remaining, and Armwood having failed on fourth down, sophomore Kyle Gibson stripped Gainesville quarterback Mark Cato of the ball, giving it back to the Hawks on the 14-yard line. Three plays later, Bailey found Wade Edwards in the corner of the end zone for the go-ahead score with a pass he had been begging the coaching staff to let him throw all night.

"I wanted to run that play the whole game but because of the way they were playing defense we couldn't," Bailey said. "When we got down near the goal line I called for the play and coach said okay. I looked at Wade [Edwards] and we knew. He got open and I hit him with it."

Armwood would see the victory through thanks to the defense shutting Gainesville out in the second half to give the Hawks a 17-14 win.

Ronnie Cohen Sr. was in the stands watching his son Ronnie Jr. play linebacker on that stringent Hawks defense. His reaction after the game was one of near disbelief, but the victory has given him a new found faith in what the team can achieve.

"To be honest I thought they were done after that failed fourth-down conversion," Cohen said. "But they showed a lot of character tonight to come back like that. After tonight, I think this team is going to win the state championship."

For coach Sean Callahan, the victory is a boost as the program endures investigations by the Florida High School Athletic Association (FHSAA) over the eligibilty of offensive lineman Jack Lightsey. While Callahan enjoyed his team's resolve, he'd like to get back to the kind of scores for which Armwood is known.

"This was a great win for us and I'm happy with the way we played," Callahan said. "It was good football, but I'm tired of close games. I'm ready to go back to beating teams by 30 points."

Armwood hosts Bartram Trail from St. John's Florida in the state semifinals Dec. 9 at Lyle Flagg Field.

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• Coach Callahan: 5 Takeaways From Armwood's Class 6A Region Title Win