PREP FOOTBALL: Patterson’s flea-flicker touchdown in the final minute gives Tigers win over Harrison

RANDY MOLL  EAGLE-OBSERVER/Prairie Grove senior quarterback Camden Patterson drops back to pass with one back, Ethan Miller, going into a pattern and another, fullback Coner Whetsell, staying in to block.
RANDY MOLL EAGLE-OBSERVER/Prairie Grove senior quarterback Camden Patterson drops back to pass with one back, Ethan Miller, going into a pattern and another, fullback Coner Whetsell, staying in to block.

PRAIRIE GROVE -- Quarterback Camden Patterson hit Matthew Velasco on a 68-yard flea flicker for a touchdown with 14 seconds left, pushing Prairie Grove past Harrison 46-40 in a thriller Friday night at Tiger Stadium.

Moments earlier, the Tigers blocked a 23-yard field-goal attempt, keeping the 5A-West game tied at 40-40.

After the block, Prairie Grove took over on its 3, moved to the 32 and called a timeout.

Patterson found Velasco open over the middle. He caught the ball near the Harrison 40 and ran away from two defenders for the decisive score.

"It was kind of scary, but I had faith in my tight end," Patterson said. "I knew he could catch it. If I threw it up there, he'd catch it, he'd come down with it. We put it in the playbook this week."

How much had the Tigers (4-1, 2-0) practiced the play?

"Not a lot, but enough. Obviously, just enough," Prairie Grove Coach Danny Abshier said with a smile.

The last-minute excitement stole some thunder from two outstanding rushing performances in the back-and-forth affair.

Prairie Grove's Ethan Miller ran for 295 yards and 3 touchdowns on 16 carries. He scored on runs of 64, 44 and 83 yards

"He can go," Abshier said. "After the game, I said, 'You're the man.' And he was tonight."

Harrison's Braden Long gained 227 yards and 3 scores on 37 attempts. His touchdowns came on rushes of 3, 1 and 8 yards.

Harrison (3-2, 1-1) pounced on a fumble at the Tigers' 13 with 2:13 left in the game. But the Prairie Grove defense stiffened, then stormed through to block the kick.

"We had plenty of chances to shut it down," Abshier said. "And they kept coming back to do things."

Sparked by a fourth-down pass from Mason Ketterman to Talon Stephens, the Goblins grabbed a 29-26 lead on Long's 8-yard touchdown run.

But Miller answered with an 83-yard score, breaking free down the left sideline, then cutting across the field for a 32-29 lead after three quarters.

A Harrison field goal tied it at 32-32. Each team then added a touchdown and two-point conversion for a 40-40 deadlock, setting the stage for the dramatic finish.

Miller's 44-yard scoring run and Patterson's two-point sneak put the Tigers on top 26-21 with 7:23 left in the third quarter.

After Long's 3-yard touchdown run and Brody Burge's extra point put the Goblins up 7-0 in the first quarter, the Tigers responded.

On the first play following the kickoff, Miller went 64 yards for the score. The PAT failed, and Harrison led 7-6.

Prairie Grove's Conner Hubbs capped a 60-yard drive by racing in from 20 yards out. The PAT was off again, leaving the Tigers with a 12-7 edge.

Coner Whetsell's 11-yard scoring run up the middle made it 18-7 on the first play of the second quarter.

The Goblins pulled within 18-13 on Ketterman's 1-yard keeper.

A high snap on a punt gave Harrison the ball at Prairie Grove's 1 at the 1:53 mark of the second quarter. Long powered in for the touchdown. Ketterman's two-point pass to 6-6 Caden Hinson sent the Goblins into halftime with a 21-18 lead.


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