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Armwood Ends Tate’s State Dreams (With Gallery)
December 5, 2015
During the 2011 and 2012 seasons, the Tate High School Aggies amassed a dismal 1-19 record. During the past three seasons, the Aggies have lost just three games per season, one of which was a final four appearance Friday night against No. 1 ranked Armwood High School. And throughout it all, the Aggie Nation has been there to support their team.
Friday night was no different as countless Aggie fans made the 470 miles trip and packed the stands in Seffner, near Tampa, hoping this would be the year for a state title. But in the end, Armwood topped Tate 53-19 in the state 6A semi-finals.
Just a minute and a half and three plays into the game, Tate’s Monty Brown intercepted a Hawk pass and ran it in 24 yards to give the Aggies an early 7-0 lead.
But it was just downhill from there for the Aggies. Armwood evened it up at 7-7 on their next drive, and the Hawks added another four touchdowns in the second quarter for a 36-7 half time lead.
In the second half, senior Dee Thompson was in for a short touchdown for the Aggies with 6:00 on the clock in the third, and Sawyer Smith found Reginald Payne for a 55-yard touchdown with about a minute in the game. In the end, Armwood topped Tate 53-19.
The Armwood Hawks advance to the state 6A championship game next Saturday afternoon in Orlando against Miami central.
NorthEscambia.com will be publishing additional photo galleries from the game by Monday.
Pictured top: An Armwood player consoles Tate’s Dee Thompson on the field following Armwood’s victory Friday Night. Picture inset and below: Armwood defeated Tate in the state semi-finals Friday night near Tampa. NorthEscambia.com photos by Kristi Price, click to enlarge.
Comments
16 Responses to “Armwood Ends Tate’s State Dreams (With Gallery)”
@Football Parent: Well said. I am proud to say I didn’t miss a single game this year and here are just a few observations from the stands: In all my years I’ve never seen anything like the Aggie Nation. Our band is outstanding and supports our team 100 %, and the team supports the band too !! (they sat in the stands AFTER a game and watched our band perform) Our parents, grandparents and neighbors sit elbow to elbow week after week to show our love to our kids, band, flag corp, cheerleaders, and football team (we yell just as loud for any one of them). My heart was bursting with pride after each game when our entire team dropped to their knee to give thanks in prayer. And on this final game, when tempers were pushed to the limit, I saw player after player hold each other back, comfort each other and support each other. You’ve done a fine job coaches. And one final note, watching our senior drum majors, Katie and Jacob, climb that stand one more time, wrap an arm around each other and lead our band in one last song was truely an amazing site. We are Aggie Nation. Now and Forever. And no one can take that away.
A loss is a loss and stings no matter what. Excuses only diminish the effort those boys made all season. That said Northwest Florida sports are played and officiated at a higher level of integrity. Sure there are times in our local games where we question officiating but never at the level as when our teams play outside of here. Check with other schools from here who have played in these areas. They have experienced the same sort of bias in officiating. Take pride in knowing who we are and what we stand for in NWFL.
Tate did great for a 7A team playing down at 6A. Imagine what happens when tate cant play down after next year??
The reason people are saying that is because they did cheat. I was there to cheer on my nephew and those were the worst refs ever. I will be filing a complaint with the FHSAA on Monday. The Aggies will be back stronger than ever next year.
Great job Tate! Not sure why some keep saying Armwood and the Refs cheated in a 53-19 game. You guys came out and hit the Hawks in the mouth and showed them that there is speed and toughness in North Florida as well. The score may not show it but you guys played Armwood tougher than anyone in 6A this year.
I am a Pensacola native now living in Tampa. I had not seen the Aggies nor Armwood play this season so I went to the game to pull for the Aggies not knowing what to expect. It didn’t take long to see that Armwood was loaded. The O and D line were huge and quick. Their QB was the quickest player on the field and his/ their execution was flawless. Tate was the victim of some questionable penalties but did not execute well (dropped passes, etc.). So it appears that the best team won. But I was extremely proud to see my homies make it this far.
It’s too bad we had to play armwood and the refs last night. No doubt we win that game if we had good refs. I am still proud of the way my Aggies represented Tate and north escambia county this year.
Good job Tate for going as far as you did. Leave it on the field, no excuses. Don’t listen to the other crybabies whining about officiating. Conratulations on a job well done, learn from your mistakes, and win it all next season!!
You are ALL winners and make us very proud of you. You had a great season and played well to get as far as you did. Come back again next year, play well and make all of us in the Tate community proud of you again. Winning is great but it’s not everything – it’s how you play the game with courage, fairness, sportsmanship and your love for the game of football. Tate Aggies – it doesn’t get any better than that. Congratulations to the team, coaches, sponsers and Tate supporters and fans.
Congratulations Aggies for making it to the semi finals. As a long time Cantonment resident with two kids and numerous nieces and nephews counted among your graduates, we are all so very proud of how hard you have all worked to get to that game Friday night. Be proud and continue to be great role models for the many Tate Aggies following in your footsteps. Good luck with your future plans. Just sign me a proud Aggie fan!!
Congratulations! Runner-up in a huge state like Florida is amazing! Ya’ll have benn a great team!
Armwood cheated! Worst refs ever. Win, lose or draw we love our Aggies!
This game had terrible refs!! It’s a shame some teams play by the rules, and yet others get away with murder. It was so nice to see my high school team play in the semi finals, though. With the band and familiar faces, I felt like I was back home in the (850).
Concur with Dan. My rant below shouldn’t detract from the extreme success of the season. Aggies showed up huge this year. Very Proud. Heads held very high, gentlemen.
Well damn. Good job boys. Making it to the semifinals is a big accomplishment hold your heads up and hit them again next year
Armwood was a talented football team, and would’ve been hard to beat under the best of circumstances. But it doesn’t help that the officiating was horrific. This was the most one-sided officiating I’ve seen in a while. Who holds the officials accountable? #UpsetFootballAlumn