Dr. Joaquín García are Florida Invitational Tournament 2 state champions in the inaugural title game.
What started out as a 0-0 game at the halftime buzzer turned into a 10-0 win for the Bulldogs, who made history as the first champions of the new high school football playoff format.
Following a scoreless first half, Caleb Butler hit Zion Vilma on a bomb in the first play of the second half, and then followed that with a strike to Jayden Morton in the end zone to complete 73-yard touchdown drive.
Gavin Boyd added a final nail in the coffin with a field goal in the final seven minutes of the game.
Dr. Joaquín García wins clash of styles
Two drastically different offenses — both in formation and style — took the field for Thursday night’s FIT championship between Dr. Joaquín García and Tate.
The Bulldogs have thrived on the pass attack with Caleb Butler under center, while an injury to starting quarterback Miles Delarosa in September has resulted in tailback-turned-quarterback Tanner Clark running Tate’s wildcat-heavy offense.
Thursday saw those offenses clash in intriguing fashion, though neither team really got much going in the first have, as the story of the game became flipping field position and trial and error when each team had the ball.
Still, it was a balanced García team that looked cleaner in the title game.
While García’s Joseph McDonald watched a surefire pick-six go in and out of his hands on the third offensive play of the game, it was an indicator of Tate’s frailties in the passing game.
When a Tate defender tried to jump Butler’s pass not long after, the veteran quarterback was able to hit Jayden Morton for a 28-yard gain.
And so it went.
Butler seemed to heat up as the game went on, finding his groove on his deep ball against the windy night. And in the end, the Bulldogs simply put together far more chunk plays than Tate could manage.
Bulldogs defense holds Tate to negative passing yards in first half
Tate’s inexperienced quarterback did not find things easy going in the first half against Garcia, with the halftime whistle shining an ugly spotlight on 1-for-5 passing with negative yards passing.
“I like the way we played defensively,” Walker said of his team during a halftime interview with the NFHS Network. “We answered the bell.”
The negative passing total remained until a long pass in the fourth quarter by Clark.
Clarke and Ethan Pittman combined on the ground for some steady gains, but where the Bulldogs’ defense bent, it did not break during Thursday night’s game.
Tate attempted a 41-yard field goal, which fell unsuccessful. And several times, the Patriots threatened the red zone. But once the run-heavy team reached the Bulldogs’ 30-yard line, it was if the third-year program was able to raise an iron curtain, forcing every promising drive to stall.
While Clark has been exceptional running Tate’s wildcat this year, the Bulldogs defense held him to just 12 rushes for 19 yards through three and a half quarters, forcing him into uncomfortable fourth quarter passes that were dealt with accordingly.
Senior class finishes 2025 season in style
Butler, leader of Dr. Joaquín García’s offense, is the first name that sticks out as the 2025 season comes to a successful end, having tossed 167 yards and a score in the championship victory.
The senior quarterback, who signed with UNC Pembroke despite several Division I offers, has certainly left his mark on the third-year program, having demonstrated tremendous growth and dedication to the Bulldogs program.
He was not, however the only one to do so.
Senior Dominic Luchina shook off an early injury to have an impressive game up front as the Bulldogs’ defensive captain.
In addition to his touchdown, Morton posted a game-sealing interception.
Gavin Boyd added another three points in his quest for Lou Groza recognition, helping cement the game in the fourth quarter.
For those stars and a talented senior class featuring others, such as Vincent Lewis and Joseph Vives, the season could not have ended in more enjoyable fashion.
Alex Peterman is a high school sports reporter for The Palm Beach Post. He can be reached at apeterman@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Dr. Joaquín García football ends season with FIT 2 title victory
