Boca Raton football beats Santaluces to win first district title since 2001

BOCA RATON — One year to the day after suffering the ultimate heartbreak, Boca Raton High's football team celebrated its greatest victory in years.

The Bobcats scored 10 fourth-quarter points and weathered a late rally to defeat Santaluces 24-21 and clinch the District 11-4M title Friday night, flipping the script from their one-point loss to the Chiefs under similar circumstances last year.

When it was over, Boca Raton players doused first-year coach Alex Savakinas with a bucket of ice water.

"It just means everything for the kids," Savakinas said. "Kind of the pressure that we've put on them is 'Hey, the job wasn't done last year.' We needed to find a way to get it done this year."

The Bobcats (5-2, 3-0) won their fourth in a row and wrapped up their first district title in two decades. But they had to sweat it out when the Chiefs (5-2, 1-1) converted a fourth-and-21 play and then scored with 1:03 remaining to close to 24-21.

Boca Raton recovered the ensuing onside kick, but the Bobcats faced a fourth-and-1 at the Santaluces 48 with 42 seconds left and the Chiefs out of timeouts.

"I was going to punt, but our defensive coordinator (Brandon Knight) said to go for it, so I trusted him," Savakinas said. "We lined up, we got that first down and we knew the game was over."

Under the lights: An essential guide to Palm Beach County high school football

Here are three takeaways from the game:

Santaluces loses star QB

Senior quarterback Shyeia Deveaux, who has been the catalyst for Santaluces' high-scoring offense, was helped off the field late in the second quarter and driven away in an ambulance.

Deveaux was fighting for yardage on a third-down play from the Boca Raton 16 but was stopped short and landed awkwardly. After the game was delayed for several minutes, the Chiefs missed a 33-yard field-goal attempt that would have given them a 10-7 lead.

After the game, Santaluces coach Hector Clavijo had little information on Deveaux's condition.

"I haven't heard anything yet," Clavijo said. "I know it was a lower-body injury."

Deveaux completed nine of 13 passes for 117 yards, with one interception, and ran six times for 25 yards. He was replaced by Anatay Smith, normally a wide receiver and cornerback.

Smith, a junior, threw a pick-six on his first pass attempt. He bounced back to throw touchdown passes of 18 yards to Jamar Browder and 4 yards to Israel Marion, but Clavijo acknowledged the offense wasn't the same without Deveaux.

"He knows the playbook," Clavijo said. "It's what we do, it's what we rep. It's my fault. I didn't get a lot of repetitions with the backup ... that's on me."

Bobcats feel vindicated

Picking up on Savakinas' theme last week, when Boca handed Spanish River its first loss of the season, junior cornerback Markeece Johnson played the "no respect" card.

"People have been counting us out the whole season," Johnson said. "I feel like we should definitely get our respect after this game."

After the Bobcats suffered early-season losses to Palm Beach Central and Atlantic, two of the county's best teams, they felt they were pretty much written off. But beating Santaluces and winning a district championship are sure to make people take notice.

After the Chiefs took the opening kickoff and drove for a touchdown, on a 10-yard run by Derrick Williams, the Bobcats responded quickly. Ryan Platten ran 64 yards on their first offensive play, setting up a 1-yard scoring run by quarterback Chance Routson.

Early in the third quarter, Johnson victimized Santaluces' new quarterback by picking off Smith's first pass and racing 58 yards for a touchdown.

"I saw the quarterback scrambling, I read the 'out' route perfectly, I jumped it and I did what I do best," Johnson said.

With the score tied at 14, the Bobcats drove 60 yards for the go-ahead score, a 13-yard pass from Routson to a wide-open Braedon Avery. Santiago Cortes kicked a 19-yard field goal to make it 24-14 with 3:28 left.

"I am so (expletive) proud of you guys!" Savakinas told his players after the game.

Mistakes doom Chiefs

The Chiefs, whose only previous loss was to Louisiana state champion John Curtis Christian, were penalized a whopping 21 times for 166 yards. Throw in two turnovers, and it's easy to see how they lost their first district game in two years.

"We played soft, we laid down," Clavijo said. "They wanted it more than us, and that's what it came down to."

Clavijo leveled some criticism at the officiating, although the Bobcats also had their share of flags, drawing 106 yards in penalties and seeing a 97-yard kickoff return called back.

"Some of (the calls) were our fault, some of them were phantom or ticky-tack," Clavijo said. "I just think when you're refereeing a game like this, you know the implications, you know the situation, there's just some calls you shouldn't make."

Santaluces still can qualify for the playoffs as a wild card, much as Boca Raton did last year. But the Chiefs probably will need to beat their remaining district opponents, Spanish River and Park Vista, and may have to do so without their starting quarterback.

"We can still make it," Clavijo said. "At this point, I've got to be prepared with or without (Deveaux). Hopefully, we can get him back at least for the playoffs." 

Week 8 Scoreboard

Friday

• Benjamin 35, Pahokee 0

• Boca Raton 24, Santaluces 21

• Atlantic 43, Seminole Ridge 13

• Somerset-Canyons 35, American Heritage 14

• Cardinal Newman 70, St. John Paul II 6

• Coconut Creek 42, West Boca 28

• Wildwood 38, Spanish River 34

• Jupiter Christian 40, Avant Garde 14

• Coral Springs 36, Olympic Heights 24

• Oxbridge Academy 42, Somerset-Key 12

• All Saints Academy 46, Berean 0

Thursday

• Jupiter 42, Palm Beach Lakes 12

• Palm Beach Gardens 34, Royal Palm 0

• Palm Beach Central 48, Forest Hill 12

• Boca Christian 28, St. Edward’s 26

• St. Andrew’s 42, Boynton Beach 7

• Park Vista 26, Lake Worth 0

• Wellington 28, John I. Leonard 6

• Glades Central 7, Inlet Grove 6

• King’s Academy 49, Suncoast 7

• Glades Day 29, SWFL Christian 26

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Boca Raton football wins first district title since 2001