To say Harmony gave a lights-out performance in the Soldier City Classic rivalry game against St. Cloud Friday isn't hyperbole -- it's fact.
A blown fuse near the stadium knocked out the lights late in the first quarter. But even the 20-minute delay to bring them back up -- during which the crowd was serenaded by hits like a cover of "The Night Lights Went Out in Georgia" -- couldn't slow down the Longhorns Friday, as they took back the Brass Bugle trophy with a fully-dominant 44-0 win.
It was Harmony's (6-4) first win in the ultra-competitive rivalry in three years, leading to a post-game celebration in front of the scoreboard. That celebration followed a near-flawless Harmony performance. The Longhorn defense surrendered just 58 yards in pitching a shutout -- helped by forcing turnovers on St. Cloud's first three snaps of the second half. The offense rolled up 422 yards, with 393 of them coming, predictably, on the ground.
HHS Coach Don Simon said he was concerned after last week's underwhelming performance in a 35-3 loss to Palm Bay Heritage, that may have knocked the Longhorns out of a chance for a at-large Class 4S playoff berth, but said the team showed heart in the week of practice leading up to Friday's game.
"I'm just so proud of these guys," he said. "Because of this performance, we had a winning season and got that trophy back."
And, with the win over Bulldogs (6-4) and some other results around the state -- Jacksonville Sandalwood defeating Spruce Creek helped the cause -- Simon said Harmony clings to hope of getting a playoff berth. Those will be announced Sunday at 11 a.m. on the FHSAA's YouTube channel.
"I love this group, they're gritty," Simon said. "I hope we get at least one more with them. Who knows, I hope people will pray for us. When we're on, we're on. I'm happy with how we played in all three phases of the game."
Like he's done all year -- and for four varsity years -- tailback Tyler Emans was the dominant force Friday, rushing for 254 yards on 23 carries and touchdowns of 10 and 68 yards.
"I had put last game behind me, and we all got focused on St. Cloud," Emans said. "We seniors knew what this game meant. For not winning for three years, for guys who might not play again, it meant a lot."
But other seniors, like backfield mate Cooper Richards (12 carries, 92 yards, a 21-yard TD run) and quarterback Aiden Parks, who ran for two short TDs and passed for another, got in the act as well on the big offensive night in front of a packed crowd.
"It was a great way to go out, that's for sure," Parks said.
St. Cloud started with the ball and gained 54 yards on the opening play when Joe Clukey took an end-around pitch, then fired a 54-yard pass to Owen Conner (5 catches, 95 yards). But the drive stalled, the Bulldogs punted, and the Longhorns would lead 14-0 after their first two possessions, which featured one passing play total -- an 11-play, 84-yard drive led by Emans (8 carries, 77 yards) and capped by Parks' one-yard sneak, and a seven-play, 65-yard drive Emans ended with a 10-yard scoring romp late in the first quarter.
Then the stadium lights went out -- in a year that's had a hurricane and a number of cancelations and re-schedulings due to lightning, why not a delay due to lighting -- but it couldn't power down the Longhorns. On Harmony's second snap after the delay, Emans took a handoff, broke two tackles behind the line of scrimmage, then bolted up the middle on a 68-yard scoring scamper. Six minutes later, Richards ran it in from 21 yards out on a score set up by a Parks 24-yard run. Less than a minute from halftime, Parks made it 35-0 when he hit Ivaniel Ramos in the back of the end zone from 18 yards out.
To start the third quarter, and with the clock running, Harmony went 55 yards in seven plays, and Parks scored again from two yards out. Then the Longhorns defense went to work, forcing turnovers on St. Cloud's next three snaps. Chase Adams and Brayden Shelton intercepted passes, and Harmony recovered a fumble on a hook-and-ladder play. And, after the Longhorns fumbled, their only mistake of the night, the 'D' needed a red-zone stand after Bulldogs quarterback Logan King hit on a pair of passes to get St. Cloud down to the 10-yard line.
While Harmony waits Sunday to see if it's name's called on the FHSAA playoff bracket, St. Cloud prepares for an Osceola County bowl game at Poinciana on Wednesday. The Eagles moved to 8-2, it's best record ever, with a 56-0 win in its own rivalry game Friday, the Battle of the Boulevard against Liberty.
