Defense, big plays spark West Boca Raton to Florida 6A title: Live updates recap

Mark Hanniford's two TDs spark offense, help West Boca cruise past Osceola for the state championship

West Boca Raton's defense swarmed Osceola's offense in Saturday's Florida Class 6A state title game. / Robson Lopes

The Florida high school football Class 6A state championship has come down to the undefeated West Boca Raton Bulls and the streaking Osceola Kowboys.

Osceola's path to the title game included an upset win over then-nationally ranked Armwood in the regional final, while West Boca Raton's defense has the Bulls rolling through these playoffs.

The Bulls have been playing without four-star junior running back Javian Mallory, but sophomore dynamo Jayden Lockhart has picked up the slack, rushing for 964 yards and six touchdowns.

The Kowboys counter with a dominant running back of their own in four-star UCF signee Taevion Swint, who's rushed for over 1,700 yards this season.

Follow along below for live updates from the championship game between Osceola and West Boca Raton, which is scheduled to kick off at 12:30 p.m. ET Friday, Dec. 13, at Pitbull Stadium in Miami.

You can also watch this game live on the NFHS Network (subscription required).

Osceola vs. West Boca Raton, Class 6A championship game live updates

Teams have taken the field. Osceola, wearing white trimmed in blue and gold, wins the toss and elects to receive. West Boca, wearing black trimmed in gold, will kick.

FIRST QUARTER

TOUCHDOWN! Osceola struggles to move the ball on its first drive and is forced to punt. West Boca takes over at its own 40 and Kyle Andrews quickly snags a 61-yard pass from QB Mason Mallory. West Boca leads 7-0 with 9:57 to go.

PUNT BLOCKED! Xavier Reid blocks his seventh kick of the season for West Boca. Sets up a first down at the Osceola 7. Demetrius Geathers with a big sack on second down backed Osceola up deep into its own territory to force the punt.

FIELD GOAL! Sophomore K John Farfan boots a 32-yard field goal to put West Boca up 10-0 with 4:52 left. After being stopped short of the goal line on third down, the Bulls lined up to go for it on 4th down before a penalty backed them up.

Osceola just missed a big play with 2:35 to go in the quarter when the receiver lost his footing and fell down. That play was the first sign of vulnerability so far from West Boca. The Bulls have dominated defensively to this point. Osceola loses yards on the next play and is forced to punt it back. West Boca takes over at the Kowboys 47.

Osceola gets a big play from Auburn signee Elijah Melendez. His big hit on Jayden Lockhart forces a punt with the Kowboys trailing 10-0 with 18 seconds left in the quarter.

Second Quarter

Osceola's struggles on offense continue as it begins the quarter with a penalty and a punt. West Boca muffed the punt, and the ball was loose on the turf for a second, but the Bulls jumped back on it to retain possession. Osceola needs a break. Big miss there.

Junior QB Camren West breaks two tackles, hits a spin and rumbles down to the West Boca 21. A big play that was sorely needed for the Kowboys.

Osceola faces 4th-and-1 at the 2.

TOUCHDOWN! After an offsides gave Osceola a first down, RB Taevion Swint scores on a 1-yard run. Adrian Gonzalez PAT is good. West Boca 10, Osceola 7 with 4:25 to go in the half.

TURNOVER! DB Ja'mario Bradford picks off Mallory at the Kowboys' 35 and Osceola is on the move with 2:35 to go in the half. It was Bradford's first pick of the season.

Osceola burns a timeout with 1:33 to go in the half. The Kowboys have first down at the West Boca 29.

A big holding call with 52 seconds left pushes Osceola back to its own 30 and they burn their final timeout. Adrian Gonzalez has hit from 48 this year. A kick from here would be 47.

Taevion Swint runs for 5 yards to set up a 42-yard field goal, but Gonzalez pushes it wide left and West Boca Raton takes a 10-7 lead into the half.

THIRD QUARTER

The second half is about to begin. West Boca will receive, leading 10-7. This could be a big drive. The Bulls held Osceola's offense to only two first downs in the first half, but the Kowboys entered the break with all of the momentum.

Not to be ignored is the Kowboys defense. West Boca started hot but has done little since. Now back-to-back penalties and a swarming defense has the Bulls facing 3rd-and-32 on their opening drive.

West fumbles the snap for Osceola but emerges from the pile with the ball at his own 16. Big break for the Kowboys.

Following a 13-yard punt, West Boca has its best chance since early in the first quarter. First down at the Osceola 34.

Trey Moran with a four-yard keeper on 4th-and-1 gives the Bulls a new set of downs at the Osceola 21.

FIELD GOAL! John Farfan boots hits second 30-yard field goal to give West Boca a 13-7 lead with 3:35 to go in the third.

Ja'mario Bradford came up with another huge play at corner for Osceola on that last West Boca drive. Bradford high-pointed a pass from Mallory on second down in the corner of the end zone and batted it down, saving a touchdown on the play.

TOUCHDOWN! After getting a stop on defense, Mallory finds Mark Hanniford between two defenders on a 47-yard strike. Hanniford went up over both defenders, pulled it down, and jogged in. Extra-point failed. West Boca leads 19-7 with 44 seconds left in the quarter. It's Hanniford's 10th TD of the season.

Osceola has the ball and is driving near midfield as the third quarter ends. The Kowboys managed only 32 yards of offense in the third quarter. They'll need to find a spark quickly trailing by two scores.

FOURTH QUARTER

Facing 3rd-and-11, Grant Edmonds gets a huge sack for West Boca. It's his seventh sack of the season and a 16-yard loss, forcing Osceola to punt it back with 9:42 left in regulation.

Osceola still hasn't completed a pass today. The Kowboys desperately need that right now with the clock running.

Osceola burns a timeout with 5:39 left. The Kowboys are still trying to move the ball on the ground as West Boca's defense has seemingly taken the air out of the ball having not allowed a completion with under 5 minutes to go.

West Boca sophomore DT Jamar Thompson - a specimen listed at 6'2, 275 - comes away with a big sack to force a conceding punt. Thompson has been a force inside all game in both the run and pass.

TOUCHDOWN! Facing third down at their own 7, West Boca QB Trey Moran rolls right and hits Mark Hanniford perfectly in stride for 93 yards. Farfan boots the extra-point. West Boca 26, Osceola 7 with 3:19 left. It's Hanniford's second big TD catch of the day.

FINAL

West Boca Raton is kneeling it out and will claim the 2004 Florida Class 6A championship, 26-7.

Defense and big plays proved the difference for West Boca Raton today. The Bulls didn't allow a completion all evening, while junior receiver Mark Hanniford (6'1, 175) had touchdown grabs of 47 and 93 yards to spell the difference on offense. West Boca Raton finishes the season 15-0. Runner-up Osceola finishes 12-3.

More Florida high school football news

Predicting the winner of the 2024 Florida high school football 6A state championship

Chaminade-Madonna makes it look easy after a difficult road to a fourth straight championship

Dunedin (Florida) tabs alum Greg Climan as new head football coach

2024 FHSAA high football state championship projections

Download the SBLive App

To get live updates on your phone — as well as follow your favorite teams and top games — you can download the SBLive Sports app: Download iPhone App | Download Android App

-- Levi Payton | @sblivesports