Keegan Sullivan's two-point conversion lifts Scituate High football to Super Bowl title

FOXBORO – Scituate High football coach Herb Devine knew exactly what he was going to do following a Sailors touchdown to bring them within a point with 27 seconds left in the Division 4 state final.

Instead of looking to level the score with an extra point against Patriot League rival Duxbury, Devine sent his offense back onto the field for a two-point conversion attempt, and the risk gave Scituate the ultimate reward.

Star senior Keegan Sullivan took a handoff into the end zone to score on the gutsy play call, completing a stunning last-second comeback and lifting the top-seeded Sailors to its second Super Bowl title since 2018 with a thrilling 14-13 victory over No. 2 Duxbury at Gillette Stadium on Friday night. Duxbury (10-2) hadn’t lost to a league opponent since 2008.

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“The perfect moment, perfect time, perfect ending, perfect play, perfect blocking and to get the two-point conversion and unbelievably beat Duxbury, 14-13, in the state title game, I can’t even believe we just did that,” said Devine as Scituate was on the other side of a one-point loss to Duxbury in the middle of September.

Devine was emphatic that he never doubted going for the two-point conversion despite the repercussions if Scituate (11-2) fell short of the goal line. Devine had extra time to think about the play call, too.

After senior running back Andrew Bossey scored on a 10-yard touchdown run to set up Sullivan’s heroics, Devine called a timeout followed by Duxbury calling a timeout. Despite the build up of the moment, Devine and Scituate never lost conviction in their decision.

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“Kicking an extra point is a risk anyways,” Devine said. “To me, it’s like I’m going to run behind my offensive line and we’re going to give it to our best player on the field and we’re hoping he gets in and we execute and they did. That’s what was in my head.”

Sullivan, who scored on a one-yard touchdown run on fourth-and-goal in the second quarter, was one of three players lined up in the backfield on the two-point conversion along with tight ends Jamieson Hodlin and Shea Morley. They provided the lead blocks for Sullivan, who ran to his left through a seam and into the end zone.

Devine said he had that play call in mind since the last time Scituate faced Duxbury in Week 2.

“I was confident in the line,” Sullivan said. “We rode them all year. They’ve given us some big holes, and, once again, they did and was just able to get in.”

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For Duxbury coach Matt Landolfi, Scituate going for the win in that moment with a state championship on the line came as no surprise.

“I know Herb, he’s definitely going to go for it. Why wouldn’t you?” Landolfi said. “That’s what you’re supposed to do. Credit to them. They executed at the end.”

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After Sullivan’s conversion, the Dragons still had one more chance despite long odds. Scituate made sure to seal the win by forcing an incompletion and recording a sack to set off a celebration frenzy.

“We kept fighting to the end and same with Duxbury,” Devine said. “It wasn’t easy going for those guys offensively, either. It was just a battle and I couldn’t believe with 27 seconds left that there’s a chance here. They got no timeouts, but I still wasn’t comfortable and we found a way to get the W. An unbelievable feeling right now.”

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Scituate struggled to generate offense in the second half and turned the ball over twice in the fourth quarter, but showed an immense amount of poise to orchestra an eight-play, 82-yard scoring drive following senior Deenan Sullivan’s 25-yard field goal that gave Duxbury a 13-6 lead with 2:03 left.

Scituate’s final offensive possession got the jumpstart it needed when senior quarterback Henry Gates (16-of-32, 206 yards) hit Sullivan while being wrapped up by a Duxbury defender for a 27-yard gain.

The next five plays for the Sailors all went at least 10 yards – Gates was 5-for-6 on the drive – with Bossey, who played through a knee injury, putting the finishing touches on the series by bulldozing his way into the end zone on his longest run of the game.

“They dropped a lot so we just took what they gave us and tried to get out of bounds, stop the clock,” said Sullivan of the game-winning drive. “We made some good plays. Henry led us on a great drive and James (Cannon) had a couple good plays, Andrew ran hard and worked out well.”

Duxbury put together a 10-0 lead as a 21-yard touchdown pass from junior quarterback Matt Festa (14-of-29, 184 yards) to junior wide receiver Chris Walsh got the Dragons going early in the first quarter. Deenan Sullivan added a 33-yard field goal in the final minute of the frame as well.

The Dragons’ defensive unit protected that advantage with a goal-line stand midway through the second quarter while senior Michael Graham’s interception on the first play of the fourth quarter in Scituate territory presented a terrific opportunity for Duxbury. But the Dragons weren’t able to cash in with Sullivan picking off a pass at the goal line three plays later.

”I’m proud of all the guys,” Landolfi said. “They played hard. That’s a good football team. What else can you ask for? It was a great game.”

Scituate’s defense, which came into the title bout allowing just 11.5 points per game, slowed down Duxbury’s vaunted attack in the second half.

The Sailors' defense held Duxbury, which averaged 39.9 points per game in its previous three postseason games, to just three first downs over the final 24 minutes to be a driving force in the monumental victory.

“Just to end it here is like a storybook ending,” Sullivan said. “It’s really awesome.”

This article originally appeared on The Patriot Ledger: Scituate High football beats Duxbury for Super Bowl title