Published: September 05, 2008 04:06 pm            

Wayne edges Elmore City in last second thriller

Sharp Bowl number one is in the books. In a wild game full of excitement and a couple of controversial calls at the end, the Sharp brothers at Wayne - Brandon, Cole and Chance - escaped with a 28-27 win over their Sharp brother - Sam - at Elmore City.

The controversy came in the final two minutes when Wayne was able to put the winning touchdown on the board. After recovering an Elmore City fumble near mid field, Wayne’s Josh Barrett put the Bulldogs in scoring position with a 37-yard run that carried them down to the 11-yard line.

On second down, Wayne went for it all and threw for the end zone. Elmore City seemed to have inside coverage on the pass defense but a flag was thrown for defensive pass interference, giving Wayne a first-and-goal at the six — controversy No. 1.

Wayne chewed up time as the Bulldogs kept the ball on the ground. On fourth down Barrett found Ryan Worley on a fade route in the back of the end zone for a touchdown, with two seconds remaining. The Bulldogs decided to go for the win with the 2-point conversion. Barrett again dropped back to pass on the conversion and found Cole Alexander on a post route. Wayne fans, coaches and players felt that Alexander had caught a pass that was close to the ground while Elmore City fans, coaches and players believed the ball had hit the ground on the conversion before Alexander could secure it. After a short discussion, the referees agreed with Wayne, awarding the Bulldogs the conversion and a 1-point lead — controversy No. 2.

Neither call takes away from the hard fought game between the two teams. Elmore City finished the game nearly 400 yards in total offense, 367 to be exact, behind 100-plus-yard performances from Sam Powers, 109 yards, and Justin Farris, 113 yards. The Bulldogs had a balanced attack with 137 on the ground and 169 through the air.

The first half was plagued with penalty flags as the yellow laundry hit the field on 19 different occasions.

Elmore City had the first scoring opportunity of the game on its opening drive but a fumble inside the Bulldog 30 ended that scoring opportunity. In the second quarter, Elmore would be denied. After taking over on downs near mid field, Elmore City got its rushing attack going as Farris got the call five straight times carrying the Badgers down to the 36-yard line. Powers then got the call and he went the distance, going 36 yards for the touchdown and a 6-0 lead.

Wayne fired right back on its next possession, moving the ball inside the Elmore City 20-yard line. A penalty and then good defense killed the drive and the Badgers regained possession with over three minutes left on the first-half clock.

Elmore didn’t waste the opportunity. Powers went 81 yards on a run for an apparent touchdown that was called back due to a penalty early in the drive. Then Wayne was hit with a rash of penalty flags, three in a row including two of the 15-yard variety that helped push the ball out near mid field.

On first down from the Bulldog 49 and with time running out, the Badgers decided to go to the air. Well, Powers dropped back to pass and heavy pressure from the Bulldogs forced him to tuck the ball and run. Powers weaned his way in and out of players from both teams running what appeared to be about 70 yards for a 49-yard touchdown. The conversion run by Colby Kile gave the Badgers a 14-0 lead at halftime.

Barrett, who had connected on only one of two passes in the first half, was intercepted by defensive lineman Cody Ballard on the first play from scrimmage in the second half, giving the Badgers the ball at the Bulldog 12-yard line.

Elmore City couldn’t take advantage of the golden opportunity and turned the ball back over to the Bulldogs at the 11-yard line.

Barrett then guided the Bulldogs back down the field and to their first touchdown of the game. Barrett was 3-for-3 in the 88-yard drive including an 8-yard TD pass to Alexander as Wayne cut the lead to 14-7.

Elmore City came right back and again had the ball inside the Wayne 20-yard line. But for the second time in the second half, the Badgers failed to score and gave Wayne the ball back at the Bulldog 7-yard line.

The Badgers caught another break near the end of the third quarter. Barrett, who had trouble all night with the snap, put the ball on the ground and Elmore recovered at the Bulldog 22.

Back-to-back running plays by Powers pushed the Badgers inside the 10-yard line as the quarter came to an end.

A mishandled snap on the first play of a wild fourth quarter pushed EC back 3 yards. On second down from the 9, Powers rolled to his left and found Colt McConnell on a crossing pattern in the end zone for a touchdown and a 21-7 lead.

Wayne responded with a 56-yard drive that was kept alive by an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty against the Badgers. Facing a third-and-six from the 24, Barrett went to the air and hit Worley with a 24-yard touchdown. The extra point failed as the Bulldogs cut the lead to 21-13 with eight minutes remaining.

A big return by Jake Phillips gave the Badgers good field position at their own 44-yard line. Farris got rolling again with three straight runs that carried the Badgers into Bulldog territory. McConnell hauled in a 13-yard pass from Powers that gave the Badgers a first down at the 9-yard line. Powers took it from there, going virtually untouched for the touchdown. The extra point failed but the Badgers had a 27-13 lead with 4:43 remaining.

Worley returned the ensuing kickoff back across mid field to the Badger 45. A 34-yard pass to Alexander put the Bulldogs in scoring position at the 11. Two straight runs by Barrett put the Bulldogs on the scoreboard and cut the lead to 27-20 with 3:17 remaining.

The Badgers got the ball back near mid field after the on side kick. On second down, disaster struck as the Badgers fumbled the ball and Worley came up with the loose ball at the 48-yard-line with 2:15 to play.

Barrett almost went the distance on first down after the turnover, carrying the ball 37 yards to the Badger 11-yard-line. After a pass interference call that moved the ball to the 6, Elmore City seemed to have shut down the Wayne offense as it forced the Bulldogs to go for the win on fourth down. Worley hauled a fade route from 3 yards out for the touchdown and then Alexander caught the conversion as Wayne escaped with the win.

The Badgers will look to regroup at home next Friday night as the highly rated Velma-Alma Comets come to town. Wayne will also be at home as the Bulldogs celebrate homecoming against Wynnewood.

        

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