Cardinal Gibbons reaches state semis behind impressive first start by backup senior QB

Mason Polivka felt the nerves and the jitters all week once he was given the news. Starting quarterback Brody Palhegyi had a shoulder injury and wasn’t going to be ready for Fort Lauderdale Cardinal Gibbons’ playoff game against Delray American Heritage.

So coach Matt DuBuc turned to Polivka, his left-handed senior and backup quarterback, to make the first start of his high school football career in the FHSAA Class 4A regional finals.

Polivka delivered, throwing two touchdown passes and taking advantage of opportunities given to him by the defense and special teams to lead the Chiefs to a 26-14 win Friday over the host Stallions. Cardinal Gibbons (6-1), ranked seventh in the state and No. 27 nationally by MaxPreps, advances to the Class 4A state semifinals and will face Cocoa next week with a trip to the state championship game on the line.

“He really stepped up tonight,” DuBuc said. “We had confidence in him, but when you don’t start a game and this is his first start, you never know what you’re gonna get. He really performed.”

It started with his first pass.

The defense gave him a short field when senior Corde’ St. Louis recovered a blocked American Heritage punt to set the offense up at the Stallions’ 25-yard line. Polivka dropped back and found Davon Kiser open in the middle of the field for a touchdown.

“It was stress relieving,” Polivka said of the first pass. “A big weight off my shoulders for sure.”

It was one of about a half-dozen plays DuBuc scripted to open the game in an attempt to get Polivka comfortable, even though DuBuc had full confidence in the senior. After all, Polivka played the bulk of the second half in Cardinal Gibbons’ regional semifinal win over Gulliver Prep when Palhegyi was dealing with cramps and put the game out of reach with a 16-yard rushing touchdown late in the fourth quarter.

Polivka went above and beyond that.

After the Chiefs fell behind 14-10 late in the second quarter, Polivka orchestrated a 10-play, 75-yard drive capped with a 14-yard touchdown pass to Arthur Jenkins with 11 seconds left in the first half to take a 17-14 lead into the break. Polivka completed 6 of 7 passes for 58 yards on the drive, including a 15-yard pass to Jenkins on fourth and 9 two plays before the touchdown pass.

Cardinal Gibbons pushed the lead to 24-14 with 10 seconds left in the third quarter on a Torrence Miller 15-yard touchdown run one play after Polivka’s 11-yard completion to Bryson Williams converted another fourth down.

“In crucial situations, he delivered strikes, and the receivers caught the ball,” DuBuc said.

The Chiefs closed scoring with 8:34 left in the game when junior Mason Thomas sacked Stallions quarterback Dylan Rizk in the end zone for a safety.

Meanwhile, Palhegyi watched the game from the sideline in a T-shirt and shorts while tending to the minor shoulder injury in what was essentially a role reversal from two years ago. In 2018, Palhegyi had to take over for then-starter Nik Scalzo late in the regional semifinals after Scalzo tore his ACL and then earned his first career start in the regional finals. Palhegyi ultimately led the Chiefs to their first-ever state football championship that year.

Polivka leaned on Palhegyi for advice. The central message he received: Don’t over-complicate the situation. Just play within the game and limit the unforced errors. His team would support him.

Polivka delivered.

“We knew we could get the job done,” Palhegyi added while noting that he should be ready for the state semifinal game against Cocoa. “We dominated the line of scrimmage and we’ve got so many playmakers around us. He just has to deliver the ball. ... He did a great job.”