FORT LAUDERDALE — Not a lot of people gave Columbus a chance to knock off Bishop Gorman, the No. 2 ranked team in the USA TODAY Sports Super 25 national rankings.
The thinking was the Gaels were too big up front. Too talented at the skill positions. Too experienced in big games, especially after knocking off St. John Bosco in Week 1. Oh yeah, and a perennial strong Columbus program won just four games a year ago.
This wasn't even supposed to be close.
Apparently, no one gave Columbus the message.
The Explorers scored on their opening drive, jumped out to a 20-0 lead and shocked Bishop Gorman 33-28 at St. Thomas Aquinas on Aug. 29.
"That's fine,” Columbus defensive coordinator Jube Joseph said of the doubters. "I knew we had a chance when I scheduled
them. The kids stood up through adversity against the top team in the country. They stood up under adversity."
Miami five-star commit A'mir Sears literally took over the game. Lining up at safety, wide receiver and punt returner, Sears caught five passes for 67 yards and two touchdowns and intercepted three passes. He did all that while essentially missing a quarter of the game with cramping in both legs.
"You gotta play with that swag," Sears said. "We don't care about the size, the speed, it don’t matter. We’re going to come out here and play South Florida football and dominate. That’s what we came out here to do."
Sears’ name will be forever linked to this win, and for good reason. But this win was more than just him. For proof, look no longer than the fact that the Explorers (2-0) outscored Bishop Gorman 10-0 with Sears out and drinking pickle juice on the sidelines.
"I think our O-line did a good job of wearing them down and the defense did, too," Columbus head coach Dave Dunn said. "The only thing that slowed our plan down was the cramping, which was surprising. That was the only thing that helped swing it back into their favor."
For all the X's and O's that get dissected, Dunn said the reason for Columbus' success was relatively simple.
Do the little things the right way.
"The best thing we did is we didn’t have any turnovers today," Dunn said. "Very few penalties, I think we only got sacked like once. That was our whole thing is like eliminate dropped passes, penalties and turnovers and be good in the red zone. Those are the keys to the game."
Joseph is no stranger to major upsets or even playing the Gaels. Joseph was Miami Central's head coach in 2022, when the Rockets beat IMG on the road in his coaching debut. He's now faced Bishop Gorman three times, once as a head coach and twice as an assistant.
"Every team is a different team, it’s a different approach every time," Joseph said. "I just knew it would be a tough, tough fought game.
"I just knew that we were fast. I'm not saying that they're not fast, but we have guys that can really run and we have guys that understand down and distance and we're able to execute our game plan at a high level."
Dunn had led Columbus to three state titles but conceded that this late-August win against a nationally ranked opponent was truly special.
"It’s pretty cool," Dunn said with a broad smile on his face.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Columbus football and A’mir Sears stun No. 2-ranked Bishop Gorman
