3 takeaways: How Palm Beach Gardens football stunned Glades Central
PALM BEACH GARDENS — Palm Beach Gardens football earned a nail-biting 13-12 win over Glades Central in a game that looked like it was going the Raiders' way early on Friday night.
Behind Glades Central running back Nick Workman's steady rushing and the poise and strength of quarterback Casey Felton, who avoided sacks by shaking off would-be tacklers in the backfield, the Raiders (1-3) marched down for an opening score.
That came courtesy of Felton, and a bold call by head coach Travis Moore. On a fourth-and-22 at the Gators' 30-yard line, the quarterback hit receiver Victor Butts for a touchdown.
Leading 6-0, the Raiders' second touchdown was a 7-yard run by Workman. Both two-point conversion tries failed.
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Palm Beach Gardens (3-1) cut the lead to 12-7 after Felton fumbled one of several high shotgun snaps deep in Gators' territory. Malcolm Tucker's 7-yard run, and subsequent kick, narrowed the score and signaled that the second half might be a different story.
"I felt like the second half was when we finally got it together," Gators defensive backs coach Andrew Rice said after the game. "Our first half was what happens when you get no practices all week because of rain."
After a couple of Raiders first downs on their opening second half drive, a Workman fumble, recovered by the Gators' Niko Piatt, kept things close.
Gators quarterback Brand Campbell got on track in the fourth quarter, tossing a 13-yard touchdown to receiver Keyon Stevens. A two-point conversion failed, but the touchdown resulted in a one-point lead that head coach Tyrone Higgins' Gators wouldn't relinquish.
Campbell also carried several Raiders on a late 15-yard quarterback sneak. And Landon Carr rushed for 24 yards and two important first downs to help seal a most unlikely win.
Special teams, special player
Malcolm Tucker, with his second quarter touchdown run and extra point kick, scored more than the rest of his team. But his 41-yard punt in the third quarter, pinning Glades Central at its own 1-yard line, helped the Gators dominate field position throughout the second half.
"Malcolm had a great game," said coach Rice, "on offense and special teams. That punt might have been the biggest play of the game."
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Taking advantage of miscues
Glades Central is a storied program, but this year's Raiders squad has often been its own worst enemy, and Palm Beach Gardens preyed on that factor to squeak out its win.
Despite having less yards and time of possession, the Gators benefited from the Raiders' nine penalties and two lost fumbles — one each by its two most dependable players, Felton and Workman.
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Victory from the jaws of defeat
The 13-12 Gators win almost felt like an illusion. Glades Central looked dominant building a 12-0 first half lead, and likely to score again up 12-7 near the end of the half. But an end zone drop by Semaj Demps, and Jerrious Chavers' interception of Felton, seemed to demoralize the Raiders as much as it energized the Gators.
Late in the fourth quarter, Glades Central's sloppy tackling, whether through fatigue, surrender, or both, helped earn them a loss that easily could've been a win.
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Box Score
Palm Beach Gardens 0 7 0 6 13
Glades Central 6 6 0 0 12
Palm Beach Gardens
Rushing: Rumph 10-43, Tucker 6-53, TD Campbell 5-18, Butler 2-12, Johnson 1-(-6), Carr 2-24
Passing: Campbell 6-10-68-0, TD
Receiving: Tucker 5-55, Stevens 1-13, TD
Punts/ avg.: 2-33.5
Penalties: 5-58
First downs: 14.
Fumbles/lost: 3/1
Glades Central
Rushing: Workman 18-67, TD, Felton 9-6, Davis 2-(-7).
Passing: Felton 15-24-172-1, TD,Davis 2-34-0.
Receiving: Luckas 4-44, Bartolo 3-44, Demps 7-71, Butts 1-30, TD, Ray 1-16, Louis 1-1.
Punts/avg.: 1-27
Penalties: 9-60
First downs: 17
Fumbles/lost: 4/2
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Palm Beach Gardens football stuns Glades Central in Week 4
