Week 13 Recap
December 3, 2024
The state championship games are set. The games are scheduled. We’re ready for a great weekend of football. Let’s recap the semifinal round of playoffs!
4A Semifinals
The two most dominant teams in 4A over the past decade remained dominant once more. 1-seed Quince Orchard and 3-seed Wise picked up wins with relative ease on Friday afternoon.
QO defeated Broadneck, 48-13, and Wise beat Prince George’s County rival Flowers, 35-0. Neither team was ever really in danger of losing. The Pumas scored just 50 seconds into the game, as DeCarlos Young took a long run to the house. It was his first of second scores of the afternoon, and it propelled his team to victory.
The Cougars got first half touchdowns from Iverson Howard, Travon Jackson, Mason Mizzer, and Aydan West to take a 28-7 halftime lead over Broadneck, and they would not look back from there. The Bruins added a score on their first drive of the second half to cut the lead to two scores, but QO answered quickly and pulled away for the win.
Quince Orchard is headed back to the state championship game for the 10th time in school history, and third time in the last four seasons. Wise looks to defend its 2023 state title as it also heads to its 10th championship game appearance.
4A/3A Semifinals
Stop me if you’ve heard this before: North Point and Mervo will face each other in the state championship game. If that sounds familiar, that’s because we’ve got a rematch of last year’s 4A/3A title game which saw Mervo stage a late comeback to beat North Point, 14-7.
The Eagles will look for revenge from that game, and are coming in on a roll following a 34-6 win over Perry Hall. It’s the third straight year in which North Point has defeated a higher-seeded team on the road in the semifinal round.
Mervo had a back-and-forth game against another SMAC school, but was able to outlast Leonardtown, 42-37. The Raiders led the Mustangs at the end of the first, second, and third quarters, including a two-possession lead heading into the fourth quarter, but the Mervo defense held Leonardtown scoreless in the final period and scored two touchdowns to earn the come from behind win.
Mervo is playing in the state title game for the third time in school history, and has won its first two appearances. North Point is in the championship game for the fourth time ever, with all four of those coming since 2018.
3A Semifinals
Linganore faced its toughest test of the playoffs thus far against a solid Oakland Mills team. The Scorpions scored first and led for the majority of the first half, but the Lancers took advantage of a fumble and were able to take a 14-7 lead into the break. The Scorpions scored again early in the third to tie the game again, but the Lancers rattled off three straight scores to pull away with the win. Running back Bradly Matthews ran for 219 yards with 4 touchdowns in the victory
The other side of the 3A bracket saw Arundel earn a dominant 24-8 win over Sherwood. The Wildcats, who have been emboldened by their high-powered offense for much of the season, got an even stronger showing from its defense. Sherwood was held scoreless until just under three minutes remaining in the game, and the Wildcats never had to sweat-out their victory.
Linganore has reached the state title game for the 16th time in school history, but has not won in its past four appearances. Arundel is headed to the championship game for the fifth time ever. The Wildcats lost in the 2022 title game, and have not won the state crown since 1975.
2A Semifinals
Just like the 4A/3A game, the 2A championship game will feature a rematch of last year’s game as Stephen Decatur will face Huntingtown.
The Hurricanes pulled off a road upset with a 24-16 win over Milford Mill. They put up another strong showing from a SMAC school, as three schools from the conference will play this upcoming weekend in Annapolis. Both teams scored two touchdowns in the first half, and then the defenses settled in after that. The Hurricanes held a 17-14 halftime lead and scored a touchdown with seven minutes to play, and then held on for the 8-point win.
Decatur and Westlake was a tale of two halves, but actually more like a tale of three quarters versus one quarter. The Wolverines jumped out to a 13-0 lead at halftime on a touchdown run by Devin Cox and a long pass from William Drakeford to Caleb Phillips. Westlake tallied a third touchdown in the third quarter, also on the legs of Cox, to take a 20-0 lead. But in the final minute of the third quarter, things started to change. Decatur scored its first touchdown, and then would add two more in the fourth quarter. A missed extra point with just over a minute left sent the game into overtime, but it was the Seahawks coming out with a 27-20 victory.
Stephen Decatur is in its second championship game in school history, with its first appearance coming in last year’s win over the Hurricanes. Huntingtown is playing in its fourth title game ever, but has never won the state crown.
2A/1A Semifinals
Two teams that have been synonymous with success at the 2A/1A level over the past few years in Maryland have once again reached the final test. Patuxent and Dunbar will face-off in the state championship game for the second time in three years.
Patuxent scored early and often en route to a 42-13 win over Middletown. Quarterback and Navy football commit Evan Blouir passed for 244 yards and also ran for 202 yards, and tallied six total touchdowns in the Panthers win.
Dunbar’s game had a bit different vibe, as the Poets could barely muster anything against the stout Douglass-PG defense. The game was scoreless at the end of regulation, and saw its only touchdown come in overtime, as Dunbar pulled out a 6-0 win over the Eagles.
Patuxent will be making its fifth ever trip to the title game, with its only win coming in 2015. Dunbar, which holds a state-record 13 championships, is playing for the state title for a 17th time.
1A Semifinals
Thanks to the re-shuffling that occurred after the majority of Fort Hill‘s wins were forfeited during the regular season, we figured there would be some weirdness with the seeding in the 1A bracket. With the powerful Sentinels forced into a bottom seed, it was likely that at least one lower-seeded team would advance far into the playoffs. But what we got was even more unexpected, as the 7 and 8 seeds of the state round of the playoffs have advanced all the way to the championship game.
Fort Hill leaned on its defense to come up with big stops late in the game, and got just enough out of its offense to secure a 24-21 victory over Perryville. Running back Jabril Daniels had another strong game, carrying the ball 23 times for 191 yards and two scores.
It will be another all-Western Maryland 1A state tile game for the fourth straight time, as Northern Garrett picked up a 41-27 win over SEED School in the semifinals. The Huskies surprise run through the playoffs has been powered by the legs of senior running back Luke Ross, who had 201 total yards and three touchdowns in their win over the Sabers.
The contrast between these two teams postseason histories could not be more different. Fort Hill has won the last three 1A state titles, and will play in the championship game for the 18th time. Meanwhile, Northern Garrett has already advanced further than it ever has in school history. The Huskies will play for the state title for the first time in school history.
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