DELRAY BEACH — West Boca Raton football was able to do something against Atlantic that it never got a chance to do during its state championship run a year ago.
Hand the ball off to four-star running back Javian Mallory and lean on him to put away a tight game.
Mallory, a Miami commit, scored three touchdowns as West Boca beat the host Eagles 31-14 in the regular season finale for both teams on Oct. 30.
“It’s a blessing, Mallory said. “That’s what I worked for. That’s what I’m here for. I’m just ready for it.”
Mallory rushed for two scores and added a six-yard touchdown catch in the final minute of the first half. The receiving score gave the Bulls an 18-14 lead, one West Boca never surrendered.
It’s been a long road to this point for Mallory. He missed most of the Bulls 2024 championship season, including all five playoff games, with a leg injury.
“It hurt, of course it hurt,” Mallory said. “But you know I have belief in my team. I knew they were going to get it done. We’re doing to do the same thing this year.”
A healthy Mallory coupled with an elite defense is a recipe that could help West Boca win a second state title.
It worked against a previously undefeated Atlantic squad.
Mallory put the Bulls up 12-0 with a 65-yard touchdown run in the first quarter.
After Atlantic took the lead on a pair of second quarter touchdown passes by Pedro Martinez, the Bulls looked for Mallory again. He caught a short pass near the goalline, made a defender miss and scored.
“We knew that was going to be a big play.,” Mallory said. “We had to score going into halftime to get the momentum. That really won us the game.”
With West Boca looking to run out the clock late, it leaned on Mallory and the run game to close it out. He rewarded that faith with a six-yard score to put the game out of reach.
“He did a great job,” West Boca coach Dylan Potts said. “He had an excellent first quarter. In the second quarter, they had a good plan. We got a little sluggish in the run game. … I told him all night, ‘This ball is going to be in your hand. I’m not taking it out of it. He said, ‘Coach, I got you.’
“Anytime he’s on the field, we know we have a change to win it.”
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Miami commit Javian Mallory ready for chance to shine in West Boca Raton state title run
Reporting by Jon Santucci, Palm Beach Post / Palm Beach Post
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
