St. Thomas Blocks Dillard’s Win Streak, Beat Panthers 23-13

Posted on October 23, 2021 by Marcus Benjamin

Fort Lauderdale, FL — The two most prominent schools in the city of Fort Lauderdale are 2.5 miles away from each other, but rarely do St. Thomas Aquinas and Dillard play each other.  The last time the two teams matched up, in 2017, a 24-0 shutout for Aquinas. 

Friday night, St. Thomas would emerge victorious with a 23-13 win on a rainy senior night at Brian Piccolo Stadium.  A strong running game powered by senior running back Anthony Hankerson and special teams plays helped the Raiders hand the Panthers their first loss of the season. 

“When I was here at St. Thomas High School our strongest foe was Dillard,” said Head Coach and alumnus Roger Harriott.  “I know their coaches are going to do a good job of keeping their spirits up and getting them ready for the next game and the remainder of the playoffs.”   

The win for St. Thomas (8-1) clinched yet another district title for the Raiders who could very well see the Panthers (7-1) in the playoffs.  Aquinas is looking to win its third straight state championship this season. 

“Every game we play is a championship game,” said Hankerson.  “We came out, fought for a full 48, all four quarters, and we’re grateful to get the win.”

It Was Over When…

Conrad Hussey made two back-to-back big-time plays.  Late in the fourth quarter, Dillard had a chance to tie the game with a short field goal, but the attempt was blocked by St. Thomas picked up by Hussey, who would take it all the way for a touchdown.  The play flipped what would have been a tie game to a ten-point margin.

On Dillard’s next possession, the Panthers would be intercepted by the junior to officially seal the victory for St. Thomas.


“I just saw the ball and I took off,” said the 2023 defensive back of the field goal return for a touchdown. “District champions, we own that title.”

Big Time Players

Anthony Hankerson, RB, St. Thomas Aquinas – The 2022 running back rushed 23 times for 126 yards scoring two touchdowns.  There was an intent to run the football with Hankerson during this game and the senior pounded the football through the Dillard defensive line.  

Devaughn Mortimer, WR, Dillard – The Florida State commit had the most explosive play in the game to start the second half.  The senior took a short pass coming inside then spun out of three would-be tacklers and took it outside, used his speed to tightrope down the sideline for a 90-yard touchdown (Extra point missed).  Mortimer would finish with 160 yards on five receptions. 

Dillard Struck First

The Panthers marched down the field and scored on their opening drive.  Junior quarterback Armani Norcius found Edward Louis all alone for a five-yard touchdown.  The Raiders and Hankerson would counter with a pair of 2-yard touchdowns in the first half.  Sandwiched between the two Raider touchdowns, a safety scored because of an errant snap that would be recovered by Dillard in their own end zone.  

“It’s good that we got the win, thanks to God,” said Hankerson.  “There’s not a lot of celebrating going on. We still have a lot of work to do. We feel like the game was closer than what it should have been…this score being close is really a wake-up call for us, so we got a lot of work to do.  

Elite defensive end Nyjalik Kelly injured his shoulder in the first half but returned in the second half and contributed putting pressure on the quarterback and registering at least one official sack.


Dillard moved up from 6A to 7A this year so this essentially now could be a clash we see every year.  We may see a rematch of the two teams in this year’s playoffs.  St. Thomas finishes its regular season at Nova (Davie) Friday night while Dillard hosts Plantation next week.

About Marcus Benjamin

Marcus Benjamin works as the senior writer and editor for FootballHotbed.com. He attended Florida A&M and Florida Memorial University completing a bachelors degree in communications in 2010. He's covered high school football in the South Florida area since 2010 for the Miami Herald, Miami Sports Tribune and ShawSports.net. He is married and lives in Fort, Lauderdale, FL.
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