CONROE, TX - Oak Ridge and College Park played a back-and-forth game on Friday night all the way down to the final whistle as Andrew Lutz kicked a last-second field goal to lift College Park in a 23-21 thriller.
The Cavaliers thought they had tied the game with 4:45 left in the fourth quarter when Jake Hunnicutt found the end zone on a quarterback sneak from one yard out. However, after a delay of game penalty, Lutz’s extra-point attempt sailed wide left, preserving a 21-20 lead for Oak Ridge. The junior kicker was not deterred.
After a huge stop by the College Park defense, Jake Hunnicutt found D’Majai Bailey across the middle for a 26-yard gain to set up the Cavaliers in field goal territory. With one second left on the clock, Lutz got his chance at redemption. He calmly slotted a 20-yard field goal between the uprights, giving the Cavaliers a narrow victory and making himself the hero on the night.
“We know we like to run the football, but we know we can throw the ball when we need to,” College Park head coach Lonnie Madison said. “Jake made some great passes at the end to Tyler Givens and D’Majai Bailey. A lot of credit to the offense for battling back in the second half and making the plays that we needed to win the game.”
On a night where their vaunted rushing attack was held to just 66 yards on 27 carries, it was the Cavaliers’ special teams that made several big plays. Oak Ridge scored the opening touchdown on a four-yard run by running back Harrison Smith, who finished with 64 yards on 18 carries, but College Park sophomore Curtis Evangelister blocked the extra-point attempt after a high snap. Then running back QuaJon Charles took the ensuing kickoff 92 yards to the end zone, putting the Cavaliers up 7-6 with 25 seconds left in the first quarter.
D’Majai Bailey followed this up with a 40-yard punt return of his own after an Oak Ridge three-and-out, setting up the Cavaliers in plus territory at the Oak Ridge 31-yard line. The Cavaliers took full advantage of the field position as Hunnicutt found fullback Mark Thompson on a screen play for a 17-yard gain to get the Cavaliers down to the Oak Ridge 3-yard line.
Hunnicutt would find the end zone three plays later from two yards out to extend the Cavalier lead to 14-6 with seven minutes remaining in the second quarter, a score that would remain the same until halftime.
The War Eagles came out firing in the second half. Senior quarterback Blane Romero, who finished with 170 yards through the air, found wide receiver Darrius Jelks for a 43-yard gain on their opening drive, setting them up in the red zone.
It was Jelks yet again four players later as he caught a pass from Romero, made a man miss, and sprinted into the end zone for a 14-yard touchdown that cut the deficit to two. Sophomore running back Alton McCaskill, who carried the ball 13 times for 70 yards on the night, ran the two-point conversion in to tie the game at 14 with just under seven minutes remaining in the third quarter.
After a turnover on downs by the Cavaliers and a punt by each team, Oak Ridge found themselves with the ball at their own 10 early in the fourth quarter. Romero completed a short screen pass to Kavon Townsend, who exploded down the sideline for a 54-yard gain all the way to the Cavalier 20 yard line.
After a crucial third down conversion from Romero to senior receiver Rowry Bailey, backup quarterback Logan Letney faked a handoff before striding into the end zone untouched for a three-yard touchdown, putting the War Eagles up 21-14 halfway through the fourth quarter.
The Cavaliers quickly responded with an answer of their own. Hunnicutt found wide receiver Tyler Givens, who finished the night with 59 yards receiving in addition to 28 on the ground, for a 40-yard gain all the way down to the Oak Ridge 1. This set the stage for Hunnicutt’s touchdown and Lutz’s roller coaster of emotions as the Cavaliers squeaked out a victory.
“I can’t say enough good things about their work ethic,” Madison said. “They’re just an unbelievable group, the discipline, the work ethic, the team chemistry. Obviously, I’m really proud of those guys and how they battled back to get the win.”
College Park (5-2, 3-2) will now head into its bye week before facing Klein Oak in two weeks. Oak Ridge (2-4, 1-3), on the other hand, will look to bounce back from this heartbreaking defeat with a trip to Klein Oak next Saturday.
