A dejected Nashua South quarterback Cody Jackson leaves the field after the Panthers fell in the Divison I semifinals at Bedford on Friday night. (Telegegraph photo by TOM KING)

BEDFORD – The Nashua High School South football team had the Bedford Bulldogs right where they wanted them in Friday night’s Division I semifinal at Bulldog Stadium.

And that was with Bedford up 28-7 at halftime.

“We were saying all game, we’ve been the Cardiac Cats all season, and we were hoping to pull off another one,” Nashua South football coach Josh Porter said. “Just kind of came up short in the end.”

Short to the tune of 35-21, which puts the 11-0 Bulldogs in next Saturday’s Division I title game at Nashua’s Stellos Stadium vs. No. 2 Pinkerton Academy. That despite the Panthers cutting the gap that was 21-0 and 28-7 to 28-21 on Sam Levine’s 3-yard TD run with 3.1 seconds left in the third quarter.

Momentum had changed. The No. 4 Panthers (9-3), who rallied down 24-8 at halftime to beat BG and 21-7 late in the third quarter to beat Pinkerton, both playoff teams, could feel it. They owned the third quarter. Bedford’s Brody Helton (149 yards and a TD on 22 carries) fumbled on his team’s opening second half possession at the Bulldog 39, recovered by Panther John McDevitt, and South turned that into Sam Levine’s first of two TDs, a 1-yard run, to make it 28-14 with close to just four minutes gone in the third.

“I said they’re going to come out in the third quarter, they’re going to throw their best punch,” Bedford coach Zach Matthews said. “They did. Like great teams do, they came back at us, they answered with a couple of scores.”

“We weathered the storm, we fought back, made it a one score game, and just came up short. … There was a point there after halftime, and in much of the third quarter – I even said it over the mike – that everything was coming up South. And then that came to an abrupt halt somewhere in the fourth quarter there. We made plays, then couldn’t finish drives, and that’s what happens. We’re going to have to put up more than 21 to beat that team.”

“We talked about this all week long, I thought defense was going to separate us tonight,” Matthews said. “Both teams have really good offenses have had really good offenses all year. And so whoever was able to kind of step up and get those stops and create those turnovers was going to end up winning the football game.”

It was the start of the game that did them in. After South went three-and-out, QB Bennett Matthews raced 39 yards to paydirt on just Bedford’s second play from scrimmage. Elijah Todd’s PAT made it 7-0.

Then, on South’s second play of its next possession, Brody Helton picked off a Cody Jackson (12-of-21 for 107 yards, three INTs) pass and raced 38-yards for a score that helped make it 14-0 before you could blink.

Jackson’s second of his three interceptions was picked off in the end zone by Matthews on the Panthers’ next possession, and Helton finished a 10-play drive with a 33-yard TD run and suddenly it was 21-0 Bulldogs as the first quarter ended. Not great, Bob.

“We did not start fast, which is always the goal,” Porter said. “Unfortunately we just dug ourselves too big of a hole to come back in.

“Kind of happens that way, right, with teenagers? (The Bulldogs) made some plays, right, credit to them, they changed up the defensive game plan from what they’ve shown the last few weeks or what they had against us in Week 1. So that contributed a little bit to the slow start and we compiled it by digging ourselves a hole.”

The teams traded TDs in the second quarter, Jackson running it in from 4 yards out after setting up his score with a 40-yard strike to Josh Tripp. Preston Bois’ first of three PATs made it 21-7 with 8:09 left in the half.

The ‘Dogs answered with a great 41-yard throw by Matthews and catch by Landon Ellsmore in the end zone with 5:24 left in the half for that 28-7 lead. Bedford had a chance to add to it just before the half but a Todd 24-yard field goal attempt was wide right.

Nashua South’s Josh Tripp (11) has a look of dismay as Bedford’s Bennett Matthews comes down with an interception in the end zone during the first half of Friday night’s Division I semifinal at Bulldog Stadium. (Telegraph photo by TOM KING)

But the dagger the ‘Dogs used was a near-four minute, 10-play drive at the start of the fourth quarter that ended with Matthews hitting Ellsmore on a 17-yard TD with 8:06 left to give Bedford breathing room at 35-21.

“Play action, was a good scheme, caught us sleeping for sure,” Porter said. “That’s a damn good football team. Jackson had South driving again but Ellsmore ended that with an interception at the Bulldog 19 with 6:01 to play.

“End of the third quarter, fourth quarter, I really challenged our kids, let’s see what we’re made of here,” Zach Matthews said. “It was a one score game going into the fourth quarter, like, we need to answer the call. And I think our kids absolutely did that.”

“I’m so proud of the way our boys fought all season long,” Porter said. “They achieved tremendous things.”

And almost one last thing, which would’ve been the most tremendous of them all.

NO.3 PINKERTON 28, N0. 7 SALEM 0

Joe Osanya and Ryson Michaud each had two TDs and the Astros were in control the entire way in Derry. They led 21-0 at the half.