By Lynn Ramsey - Florida Catholic
Photographer: LYNN RAMSEY | FC
Jesuit Father Guillermo Garcia-Tunon, principal of Belen Jesuit Prep School in Miami, blesses senior defensive lineman Ricardo Cuevas after giving Cuevas his silver medal at the FHSAA Class 3A Football Finals at the Citrus Bowl in Orlando, Dec. 18. The Belen Jesuit Wolverines lost to Pensacola 28-7 in Belen's first appearance in the state final. The farthest Belen had previously advanced was the second round of the playoffs.
ORLANDO � �Desolation is a very powerful agent of change, of growth. It provides an opportunity to grow.�
Jesuit Father Guillermo Garcia-Tu�on spoke those words after the Belen Jesuit Prep Wolverines lost to Pensacola 28-7 in the Florida High School Athletic Association Class 3A Football Final on Dec. 18.
But the Belen Jesuit principal could have also been talking about the way Belen Jesuit�s season started. Losses to Hollywood Hills and archrival Christopher Columbus left the Wolverines 0-2. Any thoughts of Belen finishing its best season ever in the state final were far from the Wolverines� minds.
Belen Jesuit junior running back Manny Sicre said that head coach Richard Stuart and the Wolverines� 24 seniors brought the team back together.
�We have to get our act together or else we might just go down,� Sicre said. �Practices became harder; we started working on our blocking. That sent us on a nine-game winning streak. That�s what brought us here.�
An increased work ethic led the Wolverines to victories in 11 of their last 12 games entering the state final, including a nine-game winning streak that led the team past the second round of the playoffs for the first time. Belen did it with a Wing-T offense that spread the rushing attack among several different players and challenged opposing defenses.
Sicre finished the season with a team-high 716 rushing yards and three touchdowns, but three others had 449 yards or more.
Senior quarterback Nic Platt gave the Wolverines a double threat, rushing for 449 yards and six touchdowns and throwing for 1,324 yards and eight touchdowns. When Pensacola gummed up the middle of Belen�s rushing attack, he ran away from them on bootleg runs. He also completed passes to Sergio Fernandez-Soto and Javier Rodriguez for long gains against Pensacola.
�We ran that play all year long,� Stuart said of Platt�s bootleg runs. �Nic was so fast. They did good job in second half shutting that down, and we lost yardage after they switched. But it was a good play for us all year long.�
Defense also played a strong part in the Wolverines� success. Belen Jesuit held four regular-season opponents under 10 points, including a 63-0 shutout of Hialeah Gardens. Then an already-stout defense became tougher in four close playoff games, holding opponents to 133 total yards per game.
Jose Smith led the Wolverines this season with 78 tackles, Frankie Hernandez had 65 tackles and Vicente Fernandez had 64 tackles. Fernandez and Jose Moreiras also had three interceptions each. Cornerback Pablo Alvarez, a University of Virginia commitment, was the defense�s only Division I recruit.
�We�re a bunch of smart, physical guys,� said Chris Esteban, a senior defensive back who finished with 55 tackles. �We make up for a lack of size and speed with our physical play and our smarts. We just outsmart everybody. That�s a strong part of our defense.
�Honestly, the reason we were so good is we play together. We have a lot of standout athletes, which people don�t know. If you�re talking finesse, we have guys who stand out. When it�s the nitty-gritty, it�s a defense that works together.�
Every team member pointed to the Wolverines� 27-17 victory over Miami Norland as the point when the state final became a realistic goal. That victory clinched Belen�s district title.
�Once we beat Norland for the district championship, we felt that we could do anything,� Stuart said. �We felt very confident we could get there after winning the district championship.�
Close games moved the Wolverines each step closer to the state final. Platt led the way in a 17-13 victory over Miami Jackson. Mateo Buraglia beat Booker T. Washington 19-17 with a last-second field goal. Sicre ended a tight 27-20 victory over Fort Pierce Westwood with a late touchdown run. Miguel Maseda�s fourth-quarter touchdown run and Belen�s defense sent the Wolverines into the state finals with a 21-14 victory over Lake Wales.
Belen�s great run ended when Pensacola racked up 317 rushing yards in a 28-7 victory in the state final. The Wolverines were within a touchdown until Jimmy Threat�s 22-yard touchdown run gave Pensacola a 21-7 lead.
As each Wolverines player received his state-runner-up medal, Father Garcia-Tu�on gave each a blessing. He also had the task of consoling players who came up just short of the state title.
�It�s always a little of my worry about how to console these kids after having an extraordinary season, a season like no other,� Father Garcia- Tu�on said. �The thing that we have to remember is that in the midst of the consolation you�re trying to bring about, the fact is that we have a lot to learn in desolation, moments of sadness, being upset or lost.�
The players also have the consolation of the support of a close-knit Belen community. Of the 3,800 fans in the stands in the state final, Belen easily outnumbered Pensacola�s fans. Stuart said that the community supports Belen in all its sports.
�This is Belen, and this is what you get,� said Liliana Alvarez, mother of Pablo Alvarez. �The boys were great. We�re so proud of them. Nothing can take away what they did this season, nothing at all.�
Father Garcia-Tu�on added, �I saw faculty, administration; I saw alumni, the kids and their parents. It was beautiful to see.�
The players greatly appreciated the support. Esteban said it was the best he had seen in two years at Belen. Platt said the crowd has been strong all season.
Sicre, who had the dream of playing for Belen since sixth grade, also appreciated the crowd.
�I�ve been part of Belen since sixth grade, coming to football games, and finally I get to be on the football field,� he said. �When I came out on the field (at the final), I felt like we were at Belen.�
The team�s seniors also issued a challenge to next year�s Belen team.
�I wish our teammates success,� Esteban said. �Don�t be surprised if you see Belen Jesuit here again next year.�
