CLASS 3A QUARTERS: Mobile Christian ends Trinity playoff run
Trinity’s Ross Sanders is upended by Jason Todd of Mobile Christian in Friday’s Class 3A quarterfinal game at Ragsdale-Boykin Field. (Tim Gayle)
By TIM GAYLE
Trinity fought evenly with Mobile Christian for a half, rallying for a touchdown with just over two minutes remaining in the second quarter to tie the game.
The Leopards responded with a five-play, 61-yard drive in just 62 seconds to grab the lead and the momentum in a 42-21 win over Trinity in the quarterfinals of the 3A state playoffs at Ragsdale-Boykin Field on Friday night.
“That was really important,” Mobile Christian’s Michael Moore said. “It gave us a lot of energy. It was a close game and it just gave us a lot of energy.”
The final score didn’t reflect the battle through the first three quarters. Trinity (11-2) took an early lead, then answered every challenge for much of the first three quarters before Mobile Christian scored two late touchdowns to seal the victory and send the Leopards (13-0) into the semifinals against the team that ended their season last year, St. James.
“We challenged our kids, that we wanted to get to a fourth-quarter game because nobody really got them into the fourth quarter this year, nobody’s really played them close,” Trinity coach Brian Seymore said. “I’m proud of our kids, played super physical, super hard. You hate to go out like this, but sometimes you’ve just got to tip your hat. That’s a really good football team. Coach (Ronnie) Cottrell does a tremendous job.”
A pair of 1-yard touchdown runs by Ross Sanders, who finished with 144 yards and two touchdowns on 30 carries, helped the Wildcats tie the game against the larger Leopards, but that’s when Damien Gatson worked his magic, completing 4 of 5 passes, including a 12-yard touchdown pass to Jordan Woullard with 1:04 left.
“We just haven’t had many situations this year where we had to be under pressure,” Cottrell observed. “They were and they answered. It was phenomenal.”
Gatson had thrown just three passes in the first quarter, but the Leopards had trouble moving the ball against the Wildcats. His ability to throw the ball to speedy receivers, along with Mobile Christian’s ability to run the ball behind a trio of offensive linemen over 300 pounds, left the Trinity defenders fighting a losing battle.
“They were humongous,” Seymore said. “They’re very physical and have a lot of talent. Their running back (Anthonio Brown) is dynamic and No. 13 (Moore), their slot receiver, is a phenomenal athlete. I thought we had a great plan, but they’re tough to tackle. And when they wanted to run it between the tackles, they put a pad on a pad and were hard to deal with.”
Brown had 119 rushing yards on 26 carries, while Gatson was 13 of 16 for 179 yards and two touchdowns. In the second quarter, he was 7 of 8 for 117 yards, loosening up the Trinity defense as he targeted four different receivers on his five-play march in the final two minutes of the half.
“It set the tone, knowing we would get the ball back (to start) the second half,” said Gatson, who is committed to play baseball at South Alabama. “I had to put the offense together and lead them. All of (my receivers) are play makers. I try not to force the ball. We’ve got speed all over the field, so I try to use it.”
The Wildcats had a shot to tie the game midway through the fourth quarter, but a sack by Christopher Fillingim forced a Trinity punt. By that point, Mobile Christian’s line was wearing down the Wildcats and eight running plays found the end zone, the last five coming on a Woullard run at left end for a 35-21 lead with 2:57 left.
Gatson’s keeper on fourth and three kept the drive alive.
“That was important, too,” Moore said. “We’ve got to give credit where it’s due. They’re a great team and they’ve worked hard for it. We just had to push it in there and get that touchdown.”
“Probably a smart coach would have kicked a field goal,” Cottrell said, “but our team wanted to take a shot at it and Jordan Woullard just made a great run.”
Moore would join the highlight reel moments later, taking the ball away from Xavier Boswell on a completed pass over the middle.
“He caught it in his hands and I ripped it out because he didn’t have full grasp of it,” Moore said.
On the next play, Moore raced 66 yards down the sideline for the game’s final touchdown.
“We knew they were talented,” Seymore said. “The film doesn’t lie. They’re a very talented team, but I thought we fought tooth and nail with them the whole time. They (Trinity players) showed a lot of heart and a lot of guts and that’s all you can ask for. Coming in, as a first-year coach, and going 11-2 and making it to the quarterfinals and getting beat by a team like Mobile Christian? It hurts, but I’m super proud of our team, the coaching staff and the way the school rallied around these players.”
Cottrell, the former recruiting coordinator at Florida State and Alabama who is the Leopards’ winningest coach with 83 wins in nine years, praised the performance of the Wildcats.
“Hats off to Coach Seymore,” he said. “He’s done a great job with this program and it’s an outstanding football team. I thought they just outplayed us in the first half. But I think the drive right before the half, my quarterback just did a masterful job leading us to the score.”
Seymore, who won more games than any first-year coach in the history of the program, deflected the credit to his players.
“You’ve got to throw it back on the 10 seniors,” Seymore said. “The leadership they had, coming in and accepting me and accepting the coaches as a staff, making those changes that were necessary to be one of the better teams in 3A football. Week in, week out, I feel like we could play with anybody and our kids proved that throughout the year. We’ve got to replace a lot of good players, but I feel like this program is moving in the right direction.”