The pinnacle yet again.

On Friday night, the SJR Green Knights stormed into MetLife Stadium and knocked off the undefeated Don Bosco Prep Ironmen, capturing the program's 20th state title in a 24-21 win.

"I could not be happier for the boys," said Green Knights Head Coach Augie Hoffmann.

"They played hard all year. They deserve every bit of this."

If there was ever a night when quarterback Lamar Best needed to be at his best, this was it. The senior QB had a career night when the lights were at their brightest. Best was 10/15 passing for 88 yards with a passing touchdown plus 35 rushing yards, and a rushing touchdown.

"This performance means a lot," said Lamar Best.

"At the end of the day, the day goes on, so you have to keep putting your head down and work hard. And that's what we did as a family, and that's what I did. And we were able to come out with a win today."

Don Bosco got things rolling quickly jumping out to a 7-0 lead after just two minutes with an Isaiah Alvarez catch and run for 50 yards. However, the Green Knights punched right back after Best scrambled and threw on the run, dropping a dime right into the hands of wide receiver Stalin Knowlden for a 38 yard touchdown, evening the game at 7.

"They gave us a couple different looks, and they came out in a different coverage than we expected," said Best

"Stalin and I worked that out in practice so many times. The scramble drill, where I get out of the pocket and buy him some time, and he turned up field and made a great play with his legs."

The Ironmen then struck right back on the following drive with a 40-yard reception from Zakai Murphy for a touchdown, and Don Bosco had the lead early in the second quarter. 

Later in the 2nd quarter, the Green Knights made a huge play, recovering a blocked punt that set the offense up at the goal line with a chance to tie it. However, the Green Knights suffered a false start penalty and went 3 and out and settling for a field goal.

The field goal would be the final points of the half, and the Green Knights would be trailing 14-10 heading into halftime.

"I didn't really tell them much at halftime," said Coach Hoffmann

"Lamar (Best) had some great words for them and Yasin (Willis'24) was in the huddle. Yasin said a lot, it meant a lot to everybody."

Down by four, the Green Knights needed to rally. What was a head for this resilient group? A huge 3rd quarter.

Nate Bailey capped off a masterful drive with a 35-yard rushing touchdown, which gave SJR their first lead of the night at 17-14.

"I just saw daylight on that run," said Nate Bailey.

"Brady Shust had an amazing block. I had a lot of defensive attention in the first half, so when I saw a little crease, I knew I had to make the most out of it."

The Green Knights' special teams then carried that momentum and recovered a fumble on the ensuing kickoff. SJR got the ball back at the Ironmen 21-yard line.

"That play was huge," said Coach Hoffmann

St. Joseph made the best of the field position, and who else but Lamar Best scored on a 10-yard rush, where he powered to the end zone and gave the Green Knights a 10-point lead.

"My brother's always got my back, so I'm always going to fight for my brothers, because they were fighting for me," said Lamar Best

Things went quiet until five minutes left in the game as Don Bosco running back Dante DeLuca cut the lead to just three points with a three-yard rush. With a 24-21 lead, SJR's offense stalled, giving the Ironmen the ball back at the Green Knight's 40-yard line with 2:06 left.

It came down to one stop. On 4th-and-6, Colton Romanoff broke up a pass to seal the game for SJR.

"The goal was to attack them," said linebacker Tahj Gray.

"We knew they were going to be going pass-heavy, and we just had to shut down the pass. So that's what we did."

As the clock ticked down to triple zeros, the Green Knights took a knee in the victory and secured their 20th state championship.

"It felt amazing, it's a feeling like no other," said senior Nate Bailey

"The guys before me who won in the past, they always say this is the best feeling in the world, and it definitely hasn't even kicked in yet."

The Chase for 20 is complete.