‘It was a joke’: Wilcox falls in see-saw NorCal 2-A final after controversial call

LINCOLN – There was no trophy presentation for Wilcox on Saturday night.

While waiting on the sideline at Twelve Bridges High School for the ceremony to commence, Chargers coach Paul Rosa ran out of patience.

Barely minutes after a controversial penalty helped cost his team a spot in next week’s CIF state Division 2-A championship game, Rosa told his distraught players to walk off the field.

“Ridiculous,” Rosa said of the final sequence in the NorCal regional tilt. “Never seen it in my life.”

Twelve Bridges, meanwhile, gathered next to the north end zone in euphoria to celebrate a 28-27 victory that nearly slipped out of its grasp.

After all, Wilcox (11-3) appeared poised to break the hearts of its host as time ticked off the scoreboard.

But as the Chargers lined up to kick a potential game-winning 41-yard field goal, one referee moved the ball – which was improperly marked after an incomplete pass with 7 seconds left – back to the line of scrimmage.

The play clock was never reset and the referee under the goal post tossed a flag signaling delay of game.

A third referee walked toward midfield from the Wilcox sideline as the zebras huddled.

After the all the commotion, the Chargers were penalized 5 yards.

“It should’ve been reset,” Rosa said of the play clock. “We were ready to kick to and they just don’t give us time. And that’s not the only call that was like that. … But that was bad. And then we miss the kick by 3 yards?

“It was a joke.”

Twelve Bridges, which remained unbeaten at 14-0 in only its third full varsity campaign, was eliminated from the playoffs the previous two years in excruciating fashion on late two-point conversions.

The Raging Rhinos regained the lead of this see-saw affair with 5:03 left in the fourth quarter on Braeden Ward’s third touchdown run of the night. Ward piled up 199 rushing yards on 26 carries, while quarterback Connor Flaherty finished 10 of 15 for 185 yards, including a 79-yard bomb to Isaiah Rodriguez in the second quarter.

But the ensuing two-point try failed and Wilcox embarked on a 14-play drive that ate up nearly the rest of the clock.

Chargers kicker Armando Rodriguez, who booted a 46-yard field goal with 2 seconds left in the first half to cut the deficit to 15-13 at intermission, nearly duplicated the feat at the end of regulation.

But this was no case of déjà vu.

“I just wanted to throw up,” Twelve Bridges coach Chris Bean said as he prepared to watch the kick land agonizingly short of the crossbar. “You always watch the kicker in pre-game and you go, ‘If it comes down to a kick, we’re in trouble.’ And, obviously, thankful for an extra 5 yards on his kick.”

He added: “But I understand their situation. I would feel the same way if I were them, for sure.”

It was a game filled with flags.

A facemask penalty that nullified a sack and fumble recovery by the Rhinos midway through the second quarter.

A chop block that nullified a 34-yard touchdown by Wilcox sophomore Elijah Vallejo, who still managed 122 yards on 20 carries.

His teammate Braden Rosa, the coach’s youngest son, led the way with 26 carries for a game-high 208 yards – not to mention a 53-yard completion to tight end Davion Coleman.

“I’ve been through it for four years and I don’t think we deserved the way that we lost,” said Braden, who accounted for his team’s three touchdowns, including an 81-yard burst on the team’s first snap of the second half after falling behind 22-13. “We lost by inches and it just shows the grit and the toughness of this team.”

His father, who led the Chargers to NorCal titles in 2018 and 2021, couldn’t agree more.

“I told them it was the most proud I’ve ever been of a team,” Paul Rosa said. “They overachieved big time. They reached their potential – and then some.”

He added:  “We’ll reflect back and we’ll look back on this season as an awesome experience. Bottom line is you just get to play in a lot of big games, and that’s what’s fun about it, right? You compete at the highest level and they did that.”