Leaving it all on the field

By DAVE O’SULLIVAN Publisher Halftime. Down by one. A fever of 101 degrees. Bent over a trash can in the Holy Spirit locker room emptying his stomach of whatever nourishment he was even able to put down on Friday afternoon. There’s no telling what dragged Franco Rifici out of that room and onto the field at Ed Byrnes Stadium for the second half. Maybe it was because the Spartans were playing one of their fiercest rivals, St. Joseph of Hammonton. Maybe it was because, even in Week 2, the chance for an undefeated season was on the line. Maybe it was the opportunity to get some payback on the Wildcats for that 7-0 loss last fall. Maybe it was just because Rifici is, well, a football player. Early in the fourth quarter Rifici – all 5-foot-8 and 185 pounds of him – burst up the middle and scored the go-ahead touchdown, giving the Holy Spirit senior Franco Rifici played one of the best games of his career on Friday night in a win over rival St. Joseph despite dealing with a 101-degree fever. (Glory Days Magazine photos/Dave O’Sullivan) Spartans a 25-20 lead. About four minutes later, after a play on defense, a teammate had to help him to his feet. Rifici was completely drained. Yet he stayed on the field, not willing to come to the sidelines until the final horn sounded. When it did, Holy Spirit had earned a 31-28 victory in a game that will live on in Spartans lore for decades to come. It was the kind of game dads are up all night replaying in their minds. The type of game that can turn coaches into legends – and boys into men. The gold pants of defensive lineman Ray Ellis were nearly black as he walked proudly off the field. Fellow defensive lineman T.J. Clayton looked as though he was coming off a 12-hour shift in the coal mines of West Virginia. Spartans coach John Iannucci might not be able to talk for a week, his voice hoarse from barking out commands from the sideline. One St. Joseph lineman’s uniform was gray. At the beginning of the game it was sparkling white. “We came out and we stuck it to them in the beginning, but then they hit us with it. But we fought back,” said Tyler Flynn, a senior safety for Holy Spirit. This was a game for the ages. It had everything you could want in a high school football game. Division I talent on both rosters. Big boys hitting each other hard, trading helmet paint. Big plays. Clutch plays. The emergence of one of the top young quarterbacks in the Cape-Atlantic League in St. Joseph’s Salaam Horne. Holy Spirit quarterback T.J. Anderson playing both ways, and making an impact on both sides of the ball. Each team showing fortitude and the ability to come back after giving up the lead. “Their offense is really good,” said Spirit defensive lineman T.J. Clayton. “They are good around the edge, very fast. We’re fast too, but they are just as fast.” The Spartans built a 12-0 lead behind the running of Anderson and burly halfback Dandre Dennis, and stuffed the Wildcats’ powerful offense with outstanding defensive line play, particularly by 6-foot-2, 260-pounder Ray Ellis. Ellis was all over the field in the first half, dragging down the Horne twins – Salaam and A’Laam, a running back – and causing all kinds of havoc in the St. Joseph backfield. “It was rough, but Ray is such a beast, he helps us all out. He makes us all better players,” Clayton said. “When you have Ray on your side it’s easier, but Iannucci coaches us up good and  that makes our job a lot easier. We all stay in our gaps and play our roles.” Ray Ellis was a monster in the first half, helping the Spartans contain St. Joseph’s dynamic offense. Said Rifici, “I have to give credit to the defensive line, they are my boys. (They) made some good penetration tonight and flushed the quarterback out for us to make some plays on the edge. Ray is my man. He’s a big gorilla, but he’s like a puppy dog on the inside. We all love him.” In a game featuring some big boys knocking each other silly, it was perhaps one of the smallest players on the field – Rifici – who may have had the biggest impact. He scored the go-ahead touchdown for Spirit and made several key defensive plays in the second half. All with a fever raging inside his body. “I was just battling. My team needed me and I was just looking to go out there and have some fun and play some football,” Rifici said. “My teammates rallied around me. I was playing for them. We all play for each other. We just executed and got the win. I wasn’t going to miss this game.” “Franco is a baller. He was sick all week, but he’s the heart of this team. Without him, we’re nothing,” said Clayton. “He plays all the hard positions: running back, linebacker, punts, kicks. He’s the glue to this team. He might be 5-foot-4 or whatever, but he’s a baller.” In the post-game handshake line players who moments earlier were locked in fierce competition embraced as they shook hands, the moment not lost on either team. Coaches from St. Joseph gave hardy congratulations to their counterparts wearing the navy blue shirts. Sure, the Wildcats might have lost, but those coaches understood they had just witnessed one heck of a high school football game. “It feels like one of the best rivalries of all time and the fact that it was a close game … those games that are 60-0 are no fun. It’s great to have a 3-point game and still come out on top against your rival. That’s a great feeling,” said Clayton. About a half hour after the game, Rifici walked gingerly out of the locker room, looking completely spent. Despite his body telling him to make a bee-line for the nearest couch, there was a wide smile on Rifici’s face. He knew how big this game was and at that moment how his body felt didn’t matter all that much. The Spartans had gotten the win. “Everyone is just struggling right now. We just have to lick our wounds and get back at it. This was a major game for us, a big milestone,” Rifici said. “I’m tired, but it’s the best feeling I’ve had in a while.” Contact Dave O’Sullivan: sully@acglorydays.com; on Twitter @GDsullysays