In an instant classic and early contender for game of the year, there were three touchdowns in the final 2:10 of regulation when the Park Hill football team (1-1) erased a second half 21-point deficit against Raymore-Peculiar (2-0), but the Trojans ran out of time and fell short 57-50 on September 2.
After being behind by three possessions on two separate occasions in the opening half, the Trojans dug themselves into a 42-21 deficit three minutes into the second half. Park Hill didn’t roll over, instead it rallied off 21 consecutive points, tying the game on the opening play of the fourth quarter with a 47-yard pass from Kendrick Bell to Gavin Schaag.
“When you’re in these types of situations and the game doesn’t go your way, you only have two options: you either fold because you’re mentally weak or you use adversity as a springboard into better preparation and better execution,” Park Hill head football coach Andy Sims said. “That’s why some teams maybe never get over the hump because they can’t fight that mental barrier that’s in front of them, but I know we’ve got a lot of tough kids here at Park Hill and I know we got a lot of players that are committed to doing the right thing.”
After forcing a Raymore-Peculiar punt on the ensuing possession, Park Hill had an opportunity to take its first lead of the game. On 3rd and goal, Bell scrambled to the left and fumbled the ball at the 5-yard line with 7:14 remaining in the contest where the Panthers recovered.
Raymore-Peculiar marched down the field to retake the lead 49-42 with 2:10 left, but it only took Park Hill two offensive plays to match the touchdown when James Noel brought in a pass and took it 55 yards to the house. The Trojans decided to go for the win and not the tie with a 2-point conversion attempt – calling their last two timeouts to set up the right play – and Bell rolled out to the right and found Dayton Howard in the back of the end zone to take a 50-49 lead with 1:02 on the clock.
“I love the score there, but maybe we left a little bit too much time on the clock if you can say that, but I think that was the right decision to go for two. Obviously, going for two worked out in the conversion but it didn’t pay off in the win, but those are the decisions you try to make as coaches and that one paid off,” Sims said.
Raymore-Peculiar started the next drive with right over a minute on the clock and at its own 14-yard line, but drove down to the Park Hill 34-yard line with less than 30 seconds left. The Trojan defense had a blown coverage in a crucial moment and Panthers’ quarterback Zander Dombrowski found Thomas Fager wide open and he walked into the end zone untouched with 19 seconds left in regulation; and then a successful 2-point conversion put Raymore-Peculiar up 57-50.
“I know there were mistakes made by some of those guys, but at the same time, you’re not in that situation without those guys so it’s a little bit of that double edge sword in there. They’ve got a lot of fight to them and they’re only going to get better each week too, so hopefully this is the worst version of those guys,” Sims said.
Park Hill junior Bryce Lisaka stiff-arms a Raymore-Peculiar defender in the Trojans 57-50 loss in the home opener on Sept. 2.
Time was not on the Trojans’ side when they retook possession, starting at their own 36-yard line with 17 seconds after the kickoff. Park Hill gained 13 yards to reach midfield, but Noel was taken down when the clock hit zero and Raymore-Peculiar walked away with the win.
“The state of Missouri said we just made the playoffs so that’s what we’re focused on. You know, if the Chiefs don’t make the playoffs this year, I think everybody’s going to be pretty disappointed, but we get to make them so that needs to be our focus,” Sims said.
While the game went down to the wire, it didn’t always appear that it would be competitive. The Panthers went up 21-0 in the first period, setting the tone with a 90-yard kickoff return touchdown right out of the gate.
“I mean literally kickoff is the first play for defense so when you when you spot a team seven points right from the get-go, you’re trying to climb out of your own grave,” Sims said.
Park Hill finally got on the board on the first play of the second frame with a 6-yard pass from Bell to Howard but then the Panthers immediately responded with seven points to retake a 21-point margin. On the ensuing drive, Bell was picked off at the Raymore-Peculiar 3-yard line but that was followed by a pick-6 from Louis Perez Jr. on the following play.
The Trojans closed the gap to one possession in the closing minutes of the first half, with Noel rushing in from 36 yards out. Raymore-Peculiar wide receiver – and University of Nebraska-Lincoln commit – Jaidyn Doss scored his third touchdown of the opening half on an 8-yard catch with 18 seconds left to put the Panthers back on top 35-21 at the break.
Bell erupted for 459 passing yards and five touchdowns – while completing 26 of his 39 passes – and rushed 16 times for 68 yards. Howard had a massive day in the air, bringing in eight receptions for 138 yards and two scores.
“I think it’s just still gelling together as an offense and making some adjustments here or there and then the guys believing they can make those plays. They went out and executed and I think those guys were in great shape, and I think they’ve got big hearts. We’ve just got to get better at a few little things and we’re going to be okay,” Sims said.
Noel stuffed the stat sheet in both rushing and passing, combining for 188 scrimmage yards, when he led the team with 151 receiving yards – 121 yards after catch – on eight catches and two scores. Bryce Lisaka had five receptions for 82 yards and Schaag had three catches for 58 yards and a score.
The Park Hill offense has been stellar throughout two weeks of the season, scoring 118 points already. The Trojans will try and bounce back from the heartbreaking defeat and will head to Blue Springs South (1-1) on September 9.