Tigers Win in Final Seconds

Stats

Tigers 18-17 over Rabun County .
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Rabun County scored on their first two drives of the night. The first resulted in a successful 22-yard field goal. The second Wildcat drive resulted in a touchdown on a 40-yard pass. The successful PAT kick gave RC a (10-0) lead in the first period.

Commerce then marched

85 yards in 14 plays to score. Halfback Terrick Ramsey capped the drive with a touchdown run of two yards. The PAT kick was wide left, but the Tigers were back in the game after having cut the Wildcat lead to (10-6).

Just before halftime, the Wildcat quarterback connected with his split end on a 21-yard scoring pass for a Rabun County halftime lead of (17-6).

The third quarter resulted in no points for either team, as RC midway through the stanza missed a 35-yard FG.

The Tigers opened the fourth quarter at their 15 yard line still behind by eleven.

Quarterback Drew Whitfield then engineered an 85 yard scoring drive in sixteen snaps. The Tigers collected six first downs in the march which ended when fullback Jamal Browner scored over right tackle on a 9-yard run. The two point conversion run failed leaving the Tigers with a five point deficit at (17-12) with 2:38 remaining in the game.

Tiger kicker Nahum Mendoza then kicked a seemingly perfect onside kick which bounced out of the hands of a Wildcat up man and was recovered by quarterback Whitfield at the RC 43.

Behind the running of Whitfield and Browner, the Tigers moved to the Rabun Co. 25 where they faced a fourth and six situation. From here Ramsey fooled the Wildcat defense, as he was given the ball on a counter play over left guard and gained 13 yards to the twelve behind the blocking of Aaron Kyle, Clay Pritchett, Chance McClure and Morgan Flint.

Facing fourth and two at the Rabun Co. four, Whitfield ran the ball on an option keeper over right tackle behind the blocks of Tony Patman, McClure and Micah Eason, as he barely crossed the goal line for the go ahead touchdown with only nineteen seconds remaining in the game.

The two-point conversion run fell short of the goal line leaving the score at Commerce-18, Rabun County-17.

Two plays following the kickoff, Tiger defensive end Trey Grier sacked the RC quarterback to give Commerce one of its greatest fourth quarter comeback victories in the annals of Tiger football at (18-17).

Whew! What a football Friday night in Commerce. It was indeed a barnburner.

Great finish Tigers.

jp