HARMONY — It was a playoff atmosphere Friday night at Eagle Stadium and the two combatants — Harmony and West Rusk — gave fans their money’s worth.
For the second time in as many weeks, the Raiders rallied late to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat. LJ Harper’s 41-yard rainbow launch to Trevor Henson with 1:50 left in regulation gave West Rusk an exhilarating 28-24 victory.
Henson, who came into the contest with just two receptions for 12 yards, hauled in a 36-yard score from Harper on the first Raider possession of the second half. This gave West Rusk its first lead evening with just over two minutes elapsed in the third.
Harmony snatched the lead back midway of the final quarter when Gage Goddard and Chris McMillan were good on a 25-yard touchdown connection. The Eagles were able to extend the drive when Barrett Hill moved the sticks on a fake punt with a 14-yard gallop across midfield into Raider territory.
Goddard and McMillan had an earlier 30-yard scoring hookup midway of the second quarter on a fourth and four.
West Rusk’s game-winning drive covered 94 yards in only four snaps. Harper and Henson teamed up on a 32-yard pitch-and-catch, moving the ball out of the shadows of the Raider goal posts. Travis Graham gathered in a Harper toss to convert a fourth down near midfield as the clock wound up two minutes.
Jaylon Garland led the Raiders (3-0) with 103 yards on 14 carries. Harper was 5 of 10 passing for 173 yards and the two touchdowns to Henson, who finished the night with 121 yards on three catches. West Rusk was balanced with 179 yards on the ground and 173 passing for a total of 352 yards
Hill, like his counterpart Garland, managed 103 yards on 25 carries for the Eagles. Harmony (2-1) finished the evening with 278 yards on the ground and 64 through the air, leaving it just 10 yards shy of West Rusk with 342.
The Eagles took the opening possession, churning out a 14-play, 64-yard scoring drive. The Eagles used a steady diet of Hill and Marcus Davis to chew up chunks of real estate in their 4:57 sojourn.
The march culminated when Hill took it across from a yard out at 6:59 of the first quarter. West Rusk was guilty of an offsides infraction on fourth down from inside the 10, which enabled Harmony to extend its push and continue the possession. Hill opened the drive with three consecutive carries after bringing back the kickoff 12 yards to start play. A trap play to Davis resulted in a 13-yard gain and seemed to catch the Raider defense keying on Hill.
The Raiders suffered a turnover on their third offensive snap when Harper failed to handle the snap from center and defensive end Nick Parvin recovered for the Eagles at the visitor’s 30-yard line with 5:37 to go in the first period.
Davis ripped off an 18-yard tote and Michael Everett added a 12-yard run to push back inside West Rusk’s 20 to the 18. The Everett jaunt came one play after Raider defensive end Coltan Mills slung Goddard down for an 11-yard loss.
The Eagles settled for a 35-yard field goal off the toe of Spencer Yates. This gave Harmony a 10-0 advantage with still over three minutes remaining in the quarter.
Harper and Henson made good on a 48-yard play action connection to give West Rusk its first sign of life as the opening frame drew to a close. Harper raced in on an option keep from 19 yards out to complete the 4-play, 70-yard pilgrimage that used just 1:19 of the play clock. A 79-yard dash to paydirt on West Rusk’s next possession by DJ Hart went for naught after a yellow flag was spotted on the ground early on in the second quarter.
A pass interference call on the Raiders on the ensuing Eagle possession proved costly, allowing Harmony to extend its drive and convert a third and long. Goddard found McMillan along the sideline on a fourth and five. The end result was McMillan taking the pitch, spinning around and sprinting to the pylon for a 30-yard TD and a 17-7 lead.
West Rusk closed with a score right before halftime as Harper scooted in from four yards out with 39 ticks left on the clock. Garland, bottled up much of the first half, broke free on a 45-yard romp to key the 6-play, 66-yard drive that enabled the Raiders to go in at the break down only a field goal.
