Cape Coral High senior quarterback Jaylen Watkins took home the Most Valuable Player Trophy after his performance Friday night in the Seahawks’ 35-14 victory over rival Mariner in the Black n’ Blue Bowl.

As he took off his shoulder pads at midfield, though, it wasn’t the 233 rushing yards or the three touchdowns he scored that were on his mind.

Instead, Watkins looked back on three first-half fumbles the Seahawks had inside the Mariner 20, which resulted in zero points.

“All of us look at this like a poor game,” said Watkins, a University of Florida recruit. “We have to go back look at the film and get things corrected.”

Both the Seahawks and host Tritons had high expectations entering Friday’s rivalry game and there were plenty of miscues and issues for the teams to address.

That didn’t take away from a thrilling battle on a night when Mariner rededicated its football field in honor of former Triton great Tony McKenna, who died after being struck by lightning in 1989.

Friday’s game was hard-hitting and the fatigue began to set in late, with players cramping up.

With the game on the line, though, Watkins rose to the occasion.

His biggest play came near the three-minute mark with the Seahawks clinging to a 20-14 lead. On third-and-nine from the Cape 45, Watkins dropped back, pulled the ball down and jetted down the center of the field, before bouncing it outside for a 55-yard touchdown run.

It put the Seahawks in command. A two-point conversion catch by Larry Gary extended it to 28-14 with less than two minutes remaining.

“He pulled a couple down and made great runs,” Seahawks coach Mike Goebbel said. “That’s why he’s there. He can make a touchdown out of a sack possibility.”

Watkins scored twice on touchdown runs late in the first half, giving the Seahawks a 14-0 lead.

The Tritons made their biggest charge in the second half. They mounted a 15-play, 80-yard drive which extended from the third to fourth quarter, capped by JT Etnoyer’s one-yard touchdown run.

The Seahawks answered near the four-minute mark of the fourth when Jeremy Davis scored on a 40-yard run, making it 20-7.

Just when it appeared that might be the clincher, Mariner’s Andrew Dukas struck with an 85-yard kick return, making it a one score game, again.

Both teams missed opportunities. The Seahawks fumbled on all three of their first quarter possessions, twice inside the 10, while the Tritons had a field goal blocked and turned the ball over on downs at the Cape 23 in the fourth when they only trailed 14-7.

“I’m proud of the way the kids played,” Mariner coach Chad O’Brien said. “We had some good drives and came away with nothing. We can’t have that.”

Cape senior Spencer Boyd, who was bothered by cramps in the fourth quarter, rushed for 49 yards on six carries in the first half.

Davis, who played defense mostly in the first half, moved to running back in the fourth quarter and finished with 65 yards on five carries.

Cape Coral 0 14 0 14 – 35

Mariner 0 0 0 14 – 14

Second Quarter

CC – Jaylen Watkins 4 run (Simon Perez kick)

CC – Watkins 31 run (Perez kick)

Fourth Quarter

M – JT Etnoyer 1 run (Matt Isherwood kick)

CC – Jeremy Davis 40 run (kick blocked)

M – Andrew Dukas 85 kick return (Isherwood kick)

CC – Watkins 55 run (Gary pass from Watkins)

CC – Davis 1 run (Perez kick)