Providence stuns St. Francis with AJ Rayford to Jayden Mikulski 30-yard TD on game’s final play

WHEATON – It was a shocking turn of events, as St. Francis and quarterback Brady Palmer had engineered two long fourth-quarter scoring drives to take a late four-point lead over Providence with 1:38 to play.

In what looked to be their final opportunity to strike back, the Celtics went three and out, leaving the Spartans with possession and under a minute to play as they entered the victory formation.

However, what should have been a few simple kneeldowns turned into a St. Francis loss. A stunning delay-of-game penalty gave Providence new life and one last chance to steal a road win.

With their backs against the wall, Celtics quarterback AJ Rayford and wide receiver Jayden Mikulski delivered a walkoff thriller as Providence defeated St. Francis 27-25 on the final play of the game on Friday night in Wheaton.

Facing a four-point deficit with 38 seconds to play, Rayford led his offense the length of the field and connected with Mikulski on a 30-yard game-winning score to give his Celtics a stunning victory.

“We all believed in each other. We didn’t give up,” Rayford said. “We just stuck to the plan. I love those guys.”

The plan? As it turns out, it was quite simple.

“So we actually called Hail Mary,” Mikulski added. “We were just going down there and he was throwing it up to us. I was confident. I wanted that ball, I went up and I grabbed it.”

The sequence of events turned the stadium on its head, as the St. Francis crowd could not believe what had just taken place.

Neither could coach Bob McMillen.

“[The official] said it was a delay of game because the quarterback didn’t take an immediate kneeldown,” McMillen said. “He took two steps back and then stood there. It’s a call the official made.”

The explanation from the IHSA crew working the game took several minutes for the St. Francis sideline to process.

“I don’t complete understand it,” Palmer said. “We should’ve never been in that situation. We should’ve come out hot and gotten the lead … They threw the flag during the play, but they enforced it after. So it was kind of a confusing situation there.”

As coach Tyler Plantz puts it, Providence was provided with an opportunity to put its mental toughness on display.

“I didn’t say a damn word,” said Plantz, reflecting on his message to the Celtics during the final 1:38 of the ballgame. “To develop that mentality is special.”

While the Celtics needed a remarkable finish to come away with the victory, Providence was in front early on. Led by running back Gavin Hagan and his three touchdowns, the Celtics took a 14-7 lead into the half and were ahead 21-13 with as little as 7:49 to play.

The stunning win gives Providence momentum as the Celtics head to Marist next week. Meanwhile, St. Francis will look to bounce back in a road matchup against IC Catholic Prep.

“This is a tough one to swallow,” McMillen added. “We gotta try to bounce back and be resilient and we gotta come out and win a football game next week.”

https://www.dailyherald.com/20240927/prep-football/providence-stuns-st-francis-on-final-play-of-the-game/