Wildcats senior Brent Upshaw ran for two touchdowns and threw a TD pass to senior Quenta Wafer, Jr. and junior Deontre Long rushed for a touchdown as Springfield finished the season 6-5.
The Wildcats, who were state runner-up each of the past three seasons and had won five straight regional championships, hadn’t lost a first-round playoff game since 2016.
“I hate it for our seniors, but when you don’t pay attention to details and do the little things, things like this creep up on you,” said Springfield coach Maurice Douglass. “This is the first early exit we’ve had in a long, long time.”
Hilliard Bradley sophomore quarterback Declan O’Neil threw four TD passes as the Jaguars (3-8) snapped a six-game losing streak and advanced to face rival Hilliard Davidson in a second-round game next week.
The Jaguars won the Region 3 title last season, falling to eventual state champion Lakewood St. Edward in a D-I state semifinal game. This year, the Jaguars entered the playoffs on a six-game losing streak.
“We’re real young,” said Jaguars coach Mike LoParo. “We’re playing six freshmen and five sophomores. We’re super young. But we do have some older kids that won a regional championship and understand that. We’ve been pressing them to try to get that out of them all year and we’ve been struggling. Our league is tough. They’ve been coming up short and they decided to play hard tonight, play to their capabilities and we win the game.”
Springfield took an early 14-0 lead on touchdown runs by Upshaw and Long in the first quarter. The Jaguars pulled to within seven points on a 32-yard run by Brady Rasor early in the second quarter. The Wildcats fumbled the ensuing kickoff and Hilliard Bradley recovered. Less than a minute later, the Jaguars scored on a 21-yard TD pass from O’Neil to sophomore Tre Pauleus to tie the game at 14.
“We can’t have turnovers,” Douglass said. “The fumble on the kickoff return gave them a little extra momentum. They had just got a touchdown and now you give them the ball right back and it’s back-to-back (TDs). Now they’ve got the momentum on their side and they’re moving.”
Hilliard Bradley scored two more TDs — including a 10-yard pass from O’Neil to freshman Rashaud Truss with 25 seconds remaining — to take a 28-14 lead into the half.
Springfield wouldn’t go down without a fight. The Wildcats drove the ball down the field on their opening possession of the third quarter, scoring on a 3-yard scramble by Upshaw.
A few minutes later, Upshaw threw a 30-yard TD pass to Wafer to pull within one point at 28-27. However, the Wildcats were forced to attempt a two-point conversion from the 30-yard line after they were called for multiple penalties after the touchdown. Upshaw found Long near the end zone, but he fell short of the goal line.
With 8:48 remaining, Hudson’s field goal gave the Wildcats a 30-28 lead. A few minutes later, the Jaguars took a 34-30 lead after O’Neil hit Pauleus on a 21-yard TD pass.
Springfield drove the ball to midfield with about four minutes remaining, but were held on fourth down. The Jaguars were able to run the clock out to seal the victory.
“It wasn’t what we wanted,” Douglass said of the early exit. “Our 2026s are on the clock. Hopefully they’ll work their (butts) off and come back with a little vengeance next year.”
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