By Rod Gipson
MaxPreps.com
By the time Aaron Murray walked off the field at Tampa Plant’s Dads Stadium Friday night, his legend had a grown even larger.
Already a star in his season and a half as Plant's starting quarterback, Murray’s season (and prep career) was declared dead October 16 when he suffered a broken left leg and fractured ankle against Tampa Hillsborough.
Never mind that Plant still had a state championship to chase.
Fast forward through two months, surgeries, a grueling advanced rehab and less than a week of practice – there was Murray, leading the Panthers in their Class 4A state semifinal contest against Palm Beach Gardens Dwyer.
And how long did it take Murray, a University of Georgia signee to recapture his magic?
One pass. One pass, that is, for a 33-yard touchdown to wide receiver DeAndre Queen to respond to an early Dwyer score and tie the game at 7.
Trailing 14-13 at the half, the Panthers scored 20 second points to go on to a 33-21 win and advance to the Class 4A state championship game. Plant (13-1) will face Tallahassee Lincoln Dec. 20 at the Citrus Bowl in Orlando. A win there would give the Panthers their second state championship in the last three years.
Meanwhile, Murray, who still sports a slight limp, completed 12 of 25 passes for 199 yards. He added another touchdown pass in third quarter as Plant traded scores with Dwyer.
Two fourth quarter touchdown runs from Mario Cobb helped lift the Panthers to the win.
Largo, Pasco fall in state semifinals
Plant’s attempt at a state championship will be the Bay area’s only one.
Both Largo and Dade City Pasco lost in their semifinal contests.
Largo had the unenviable task of playing at Fort Lauderdale St. Thomas Aquinas, ranked No. 1 nationally by MaxPreps. St. Thomas Aquinas (14-0) lived up to its billing, scoring 28 points before Largo got on the board en route to a 35-14 win in their Class 5A semifinal game.
Largo’s Mike Marry scored on touchdown runs of 14 and 5 yards in the second half as the Packers (12-2) tried to get back in the game.
Pasco (12-2), meanwhile, did not fare much better in the Class 3A semifinal, losing 28-14 to Tallahassee Godby.
Pasco quarterback D.J. Clower threw a touchdown pass in the first and fourth quarters. But it was all Godby in between as the Pirates’ best season since their 1992 state championship came to an end.
