COMEBACK COMES UP SHORT, BUT DON BOSCO GOT ITS SPARK AND MAYBE A NEW QB, TOO

Jake Robbins got the shot of a lifetime. After all, this was Bergen-Bosco, and the 5,000 fans in attendance Friday night in Ramsey were probably asking who's the new guy playing quarterback? They found out pretty quickly. After a disastrous first half for Don Bosco's offense, Robbins took the reigns at quarterback to start the third quarter and never looked back. He got his shot and then immediately took a shot from Bergen Catholic's Tywone Malone, a towering 6-5, 300-pound lineman, that will forever stand as Robbins's welcome gift to one of the country's most-heated rivalries. Facing 3rd-and-long on the next play, Dobbins shook off the sack and delivered a strike to senior Kyle Monangai for a 26-yard gain, setting up Don Bosco's first touchdown. On his first drive, Dobbins completed all four of his passes for 39 yards. He finished with 151 and ran for a 4-yard touchdown. Although Don Bosco’s comeback bid came up short in a 23-17 loss, Dobbins clearly did all he could to provide a much-need spark for a team that had just two total yards of offense in the first half and dug itself into a 17-point deficit. "He had that look in his eye at halftime that he was ready and waiting for this," said Don Bosco Prep coach Dan Sabella. Sabella turned to Robbins after Don Bosco's offense struggled with senior Jahquil Batts at quarterback. Batts threw a costly interception in the second quarter one play after Don Bosco's Nick Alvarado picked off a pass of his own. "It wasn't necessarily that Jahquil wasn't playing well because we really didn't have a lot of opportunities in the first half," Sabella said about his decision to turn to Robbins. "We weren't on the field too much, but it just felt like lets see if we can get thing sparked a little bit." Robbins did that and then some. His touchdown run pulled Don Bosco Prep within a score with under three minutes to go. For the first time all game, the home crowd had hope, but Bergen Catholic pounded out a pair of first downs to close out its fourth straight victory over their arch rival and send the new quarterback home with a loss in an other wise special debut. "I think I proved myself a little bit, but I have to prove that I'm not a one time show," Robbins said. "I got to keep on proving myself every week." He’ll do it one shot at a time.

COMEBACK COMES UP SHORT, BUT DON BOSCO GOT ITS SPARK AND MAYBE A NEW QB, TOO

Photo Credit: Andrew Mills