Dom Santiago stars, Paul VI football stuns Seneca with late rally, last-second stop

TABERNACLE – Dom Santiago isn’t like most quarterbacks.

“I love to hit people,” the Paul VI High School senior said.

He’s good at it too. Really good.

In fact, in a perfect world he probably wouldn’t even play quarterback. He’d play defensive line full time.

“Unblockable,” head coach Dennis Scuderi called him.

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But Santiago rarely plays there anymore. He’s too valuable behind center to risk getting hurt on the front line. Scuderi only sends him on defense when he absolutely must.

Thursday night provided one of those opportunities.

The Eagles trailed Seneca by seven points entering the fourth quarter. The winner of the contest would be the favorite to bring home the West Jersey Football League National Division championship this fall.

Paul VI needed Santiago on both sides of the ball if they were going to come back, and he came through.

In the final nine minutes, Santiago threw a game-tying touchdown on 4th-and-20, had a go-ahead, 1-yard touchdown run, and made a game-saving tackle on a two-point conversion with 11 seconds remaining as the Eagles survived No. 15 Seneca 28-27.

“That was crazy,” Santiago said. “Being down seven at halftime, but we’re so resilient, such a resilient team. We’ve got a hell of a bunch of leaders. We knew we weren’t going to quit. We knew were going to come back and make plays.”

No one made more than Santiago.

He was 22-of-39 passing for 276 yards and 3 touchdowns and ran 7 times for 57 yards and another score.

“He was off the charts tonight,” Scuderi said.

That’s becoming the norm for Santiago, who has thrown for 12 TDs and gotten into the end zone twice on the ground in four contests this fall.

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And the Eagles’ haven’t fully unleashed him. He punishes defenses when he runs the ball, but Scuderi doesn’t call those very often. He doesn’t want Santiago getting hurt.

“He’s like Tim Tebow,” Scuderi said.

That's in the leadership department too.

“He’s pushing everybody on the team to be better,” sophomore receiver Tyree Roane said. “Everybody, all the way from the linemen to the skill players. He’s trying to elevate everybody’s game.”

Santiago helped lift Paul VI to the biggest victory in Scuderi’s five-year tenure Thursday.

“Everywhere I’ve been, there’s always a game that turns the program around,” Scuderi said. “To me, this game was that game. I think we’re going to take off.”

Inside the dramatic fourth quarter

• Roane makes a leaping 23-yard touchdown grab in the back of the end zone on 4th-and-20 to tie the game at 21-21 with 8:57 left.

• “I remember earlier in the week, one of my friends was talking to some of their players and they had some game plan to stop me,” Roane said. “On that fourth down, in my opinion they put their best player, Zac Fearon, on me. He’s a great player by the way, but I feel in any one-on-one situation, I’m taking myself. I ran my route hard, beat him and made the catch in the end zone.”

• Austin Bailey gets Paul VI the ball back with an interception with 5:57 remaining.

• Santiago completes a 12-play drive by sneaking into the end zone from a yard one to put his team up 28-21 with 1:52 on the clock.

• Seneca hits a 38-yard double pass on 3rd-and-13 – Anthony Tirico to Jamar Warthen to David Vacca – to reach the Paul VI 13-yard line with less than a minute to play.

• Fearon catches an 8-yard screen pass on 4th-and-5 for a touchdown to get within 28-27 with 11 seconds left.

• Seneca decides to go for the win, but Santiago stuffs Colin Walsh on the two-point conversion run. “I didn’t even know he had the ball,” Santiago said. “I was really hoping he had the ball. I looked, heard the whistle, everyone cheering. I was like, let’s go.”

Game balls

Santiago – Threw three touchdown passes, ran for the go-ahead score and made a game-saving tackle on a two-point conversion with 11 seconds left.

Roane – Finished with 9 receptions for 93 yards and 2 touchdowns.

Bailey – Five catches for 78 yards and a TD, plus the key fourth-quarter interception.

Fearon – Seneca senior had a great game despite the loss. He had 18 carries for 118 yards and 2 touchdowns and 6 grabs for 53 yards and 2 more scores.

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They said it

“He’s a difference maker at defensive end. That’s the truth. When Dennis lets me steal him for a minute, I absolutely want him. He’s our guy. He’s our captain. He’s our leader and I love putting him in there.”

– Paul VI defensive line coach Dan Klecko, a three-time Super Bowl champion, on Santiago

“We’re young. It’s incredible the way these kids, they’re resilient. This team is resilient. Most teams that are playing young kids, they’ll quit. These kids didn’t quit. They kept battling. They believe in themselves. Coaches believe in them. It’s amazing.”

– Paul VI head coach Dennis Scuderi

Josh Friedman has produced award-winning South Jersey sports coverage for the Courier Post, The Daily Journal and the Burlington County Times for more than a decade. If you have or know of an interesting story to tell, reach out on Twitter at @JFriedman57 or via email at jfriedman2@gannettnj.com. You can also contact him at 856-486-2431. Help support local journalism with a subscription.

This article originally appeared on Cherry Hill Courier-Post: Dom Santiago a two-way star as Paul VI football upsets Seneca