Bartram Trail (Florida) outscores Navarre, 67-55, in playoff opener
NAVARRE, FL – Friday’s 4S Regional playoff game between Bartram Trail and host Navarre was all about offense.
The teams came out of the locker room scorings points, combining for 122 on the night, in a wild back-and-forth affair, in which Bartram Trail ultimately prevailed, 67-55.
Navarre got the scoring going as it jumped out to a quick 14-0 lead. Connor Mathews scored first on a rushing touchdown followed by Nate Hanson’s touchdown reception in the corner of the end zone.
Bartram Trail found itself looking for answers, and that’s when Laython Biddle took over. He scored two touchdowns in a matter of minutes to tie the game. Early in the second quarter, Army football commit, Julian Porter, made an excellent read as he intercepted the Raiders and returned it for a pick six to give the Bears a 21-14 lead.
The scoring was just getting started.
Bartram Trail quarterback Riley Trujillo, a University of Central Florida commit, completed a touchdown pass to De’Andre Caldwell to extend the Bears’ lead to 28-14, but Navarre bounced right back to tie the game heading into halftime thanks to a pair of touchdowns from Mathews and quarterback, Hunter Pfiester.
Bartram Trail was also the first to score in the second half when Biddle found the end zone for his third rushing touchdown. Mathews then responded with his own 54-yard touchdown run to deadlock the game, 35-35, halfway through the third.
Only 52 seconds went by on the game clock as each team scored yet another touchdown to make it 42-42. Biddle added his fourth and fifth
rushing touchdowns of the night to make it, 55-42, Bears.
In the fourth quarter, Navarre cut the lead to six when Pfiester found his tight-end, Braydon Brown, on a misdirection pass play which allowed Brown to be wide open in the end zone. However, Navarre had no answer for Biddle and the Bears rushing attack. The senior running
back found the end zone for his sixth rushing touchdown to increase their lead by 12.
With under five minutes left and Bartram Trail leading 61-49, the game looked to be over. But, Navarre wide receiver Terence Marshall, caught a screen pass and ran down the field for an 80-yard touchdown to cut the deficit back to six.
One more big play finally got Bartram Trail over the hump, as the Bears responded with a 69-yard touchdown run by Trujillo to put the game on ice.
The Bears will travel back to the Panhandle next week when they take on Niceville.
Riley Trujillo is a Weapon with his Legs
In today’s football, there are quarterbacks at all levels that are quicker, more agile and faster than before. They are able to escape the pocket, find open receivers when they play breaks down, and they will tuck it and run when they have to.
Trujillo, a three-star quarterback and UCF commit for Bartram Trail, is no different.
When the Bears are not feeding the ball to Biddle, Trujillo attacks opposing defenses in a multitude of ways as was evident in their game Friday night.
Bartram Trail's Riley Trujillo is a dual-threat for the Bears. The UCF commit had a big night in the playoff win over Navarre.
Photo by Reed Green
He was able to stand in the pocket when he found Caldwell for the touchdown, but he can also outrun defenses for long gains. He capped the Bears blistering offensive performance with his 69-yard touchdown run late in the fourth quarter.
Standing at 6-foot-4 and 215-pounds, the senior quarterback does not shy away from contact when running the ball. His running-style is reminiscent of former Mississippi State quarterback Nick Fitzgerald, who would either run over you or by you. It will be an interesting match-up to see how the Niceville defense prepares for Trujillo and the Bears’ offense next week.
Navarre falls short despite its own offensive brilliance
The Raiders put on their best offensive show of the season by scoring 55 points, but for the Navarre faithful that still was not enough to secure the victory in this shootout.
There are many some positives that the Raiders can take away from this game on the offensive side. Mathews rushed for three touchdowns and continued to prove that he is one of the best running backs on the Emerald Coast. Terence Marshall caught two touchdown passes while breaking Navarre’s single game receiving record. And, quarterback Hunter Pfiester added a rushing touchdown to go with his four passing touchdowns in the game.
With Marshall and Pfiester graduating in the spring, Mathews will look to be even more of a focal point for the Raiders offense next year.
Despite losing, Navarre quarterback Hunter Pfiester (11) led a record-setting night for the Raiders' offense.
Photo by Reed Green
Laython Biddle, the Workhorse
Entering Friday night’s quarterfinal game, Biddle proved to be one of the best running backs in all of class 4S football in the state. The senior running back rushed for 1,545 yards on 226 attempts for an average of 6.8 yards a carry in the regular season. He also rushed for 19 touchdowns for the Bears.
Unfortunately for the Raiders defense, they had no answer for Biddle
on Friday night. He continued his great form by possibly having the best individual performance of any high school player in the entire state on Friday night. Biddle rushed for an astounding six touchdowns as he helped lead his team to victory.
