San Mateo rallies past Woodside in OT to win first playoff game since 2009

It seemed like curtains for San Mateo when Woodside (10-1) ended regulation play driving downfield with the game deadlocked 13-all to set up a 35-yard field goal for senior Manny Navarro. But a bad snap put Navarro on a precarious path to the ball. Try as he might, stutter-stepping and still getting the kick in the air, the attempt sailed wide to give the Bearcats second life.

“Absolutely (I thought the game was over),” Scheller said. “That guy’s a phenomenal kicker. Once they got inside the 40 — he’s kicked a 48-yard field goal — it was just: ‘Damn!’ So, what are we going to do about it? But the stars aligned in that sense. Unfortunately for them, they had a bad snap, and it worked out for us.”

It wasn’t Woodside’s first bad snap on special teams of the night. In fact, the first quarter was a disaster for the Wildcats, a team that has excelled on special teams all season.

“Of all times for it to pop up, it would be this game, right?” Woodside head coach Justin Andrews said. “That’s just how it goes sometimes.”

Woodside’s rough start was evident on the game’s first possession. After a first-down pickup on third-and-12 with a chuck from junior quarterback Charlie Dalrymple to senior slot back Daniel Torres.

What followed was a stellar battle of defenses, with San Mateo winning the war of attrition by outgaining Woodside 269-259 in total yards on the night.

“They played lights out,” Scheller said. “That’s the reason why we’re where we’re at. Not offensively, defensively we played lights out, and I’m really proud of them. Especially against a really good offense. They’re a really good offense.”

San Mateo pushed the Wildcats backward on the opening drive to force a punt. However, the punt snap sailed on Navarro, who was dropped in Wildcats territory to give San Mateo favorable field position.

The Bearcats cashed in, using six plays to go 48 yards, with junior quarterback Lukas Fitzgerald (22 carries for 113 yards) peeling off runs of 10 and 9 yards before senior Tyce Copus turned the right corner and raced to the pylon for a 13-yard touchdown score, staking San Mateo to a 7-0 lead midway through the first quarter.

San Mateo then stunned the Wildcats with a sneak-attack onside kick, drilling a line drive off of one of the up linemen for junior Reyes Boatman to recover at the Woodside 37. That’s when the tide started to change, though, as San Mateo converted one fourth-down try on a QB sneak on fourth-and-1 from the 28. But the Bearcats couldn’t muster a second fourth-down conversion, getting stopped on fourth-and-4 at the 17 to turn it over on downs.

The defensive swing seemed to spark Woodside’s offense, as the Wildcats went on the march, highlighted by a Dalrymple pass to a wide-open Julien Andrade on a wheel route for a 69-yard gain to the San Mateo 10. The Wildcats punched it in on the next play, with Torres sweeping the right side for a 10-yard TD to tie it 7-all.

Woodside had a tempo in the closing minutes of the first half. Taking over on a punt at its own 20, Woodside bit off a 30-yard chunk on a reverse to junior Grady Furtado. Then Dalrymple completed a 17-yard pass to sophomore Kolby Nelson at the Bearcats’ 31. But on the next play, Dalrymple aired it out only to see San Mateo safety Hamilton Pitney pull down the interception, sending the game into the half tied 7-7.

“We knew going in that we had a tough job for us offensively,” Andrews said. “They, on film, really, really stout. The D-line play, linebacker play has been phenomenal. And, yeah, they were just dialed in. We couldn’t quite get that rhythm with our run game. But, thankfully we were still able to pull it close and have a chance to win. But hats off to San Mateo. They played an exceptional game.”

The Fitzgerald brothers looked determined to hit the ground running in the second half, and had several key conversion runs to prolong an 11-play, 80-yard scoring drive. Lukas Fitzgerald moved the sticks on third-and-6 from the 24 with a 27-yard keeper. Then on fourth-and-1 from the Woodside 40, senior running back Yianni Fitzgerald hammered through the middle for a 2-yard dive. Three plays later, facing third-and-1 from the 29, Lukas Fitzgerald picked up the first with a 2-yard QB sneak.

On the next play, Yianni Fitzgerald took a draw play up the gut for a 27-yard scoring run. But, a pivotal blocked kick by Woodside senior Isaac Pech left the Bearcats’ lead at 13-7.

This would loom large, as Navarro capped Woodside’s next two drives with a pair of field goals of 29 and 35 yards, to tie it 13-13 with 6:09.

San Mateo took over and moved the ball into Woodside territory on a 19-yard completion from Lukas Fitzgerald to senior Sergio Oliveros. It was the junior quarterback’s second completion on two attempts. But four plays later, on fourth-and-5 from the Woodside 36, the Wildcats’ rush came up clutch as Nelson batted the ball into the air, and it landed in the arms of junior defensive end Henry Schwab for an interception near midfield.

The Wildcats used eight plays to move the ball to the San Mateo 12 before calling timeout with three seconds remaining in regulation to give Navarro a chance to win it.

“I was 100% sure that we did [have the game in hand],” Andrews said. “Even with the mishandled snap and everything, I thought the way we got it off — from my angle it looked like it went in. But the guys that had a better view than me said it didn’t. So, that’s how it goes sometimes.”

San Mateo owned the overtime period — with each team getting turns with the ball at the opponent’s 10-yard line with four downs to score — reaching the end zone on the second play with a play-action toss to sophomore running back TJ Johnson, who motored around the left side for an 8-yard score, the first touchdown of his varsity career.

“I just seen it was open on the outside,” Johnson said. “I was just trying to get it. I was just trying to win for my team.”

The Bearcats’ defense then delivered the victory, stifling three straight run plays to force Woodside to the air. The Wildcats rolled right and forced a pass into the front of the end zone, but senior cornerback Ricky Gomez read it all the way, and swatted it down to set off the San Mateo celebration.

“I just went for the ball,” Gomez said. “It was all or nothing.”

With the win, San Mateo advances to the CCS Division III semifinals. The Bearcats will travel to No. 4 Live Oak-Morgan Hill next weekend.

“Hella happy!” Gomez said immediately after the game. “Everyone’s happy! Another week!”