BLUEFIELD- At around 10:05 PM on Thursday night, September 12, it appeared the Greenbrier East Spartans football team was well on its way to win number two on the season as they had just taken a 40-21 lead over the Bluefield Beavers with 9:47 to go in the game.
Then, everything changed.
Bluefield scored 21 unanswered points over the final eight minutes with a couple unorthodox plays mixed in, and the Beavers clawed their way back for an almost unreal 42-40 victory at Mitchell Stadium, sending the Spartans back home with one of the more gut punching losses in recent memory.
Other than the outcome, there were some real positives for the Spartans and fans were treated to one of the more entertaining games they are going to see for a while.
For one, the Spartan offense—particularly, the passing game—was great. East totaled 412 yards, a season-high, and quarterback Brody Hamric was 18-for-25 and threw for 336 yards and five touchdowns. His yardage total now ranks third all-time in Greenbrier East history. Nate Suttle caught eight of those passes for 145 yards and two scores.
Now, back to how it all unfolded.
East (1-2) got on the scoreboard first with 3:01 left in the first quarter when Hamric found Donavin Penn on a nice slant route for a 15-yard touchdown. Hamric then found Grant Burdette for the 2-point conversion and the Spartans took an 8-0 lead. Kaden Stone had two big catches on the drive as well.
On the ensuing possession, the Beavers used a long, methodical, 16-play drive and about eight minutes of game clock that ended with a Willis Wilson 8-yard TD, and the Beavers pulled to within 8-7 with 6:58 remaining in the first half.
Things stayed interesting quickly after that score.
Bluefield (1-2) used a surprise onside kick and recovered it and took the ball right back with the East defense already gassed from the previous series. After two straight holding penalties and facing a first-and-30 situation, Beaver quarterback Mattox Simpson dropped back and threw the ball as far as he could throw it, and Jeff King jumped up and grabbed it and went 65 yards for another Bluefield touchdown. The Beavers then led 14-8 with 6:31 left in the half.
But back-and-forth, they would go.
East answered again after Hamric converted a fourth-and-one with a quarterback sneak to keep the drive alive. Two plays later, he found Suttle for a 49-yard scoring strike. Burdette caught his second 2-point pass and East regained the lead back at 16-14.
After the Spartan defense forced a Bluefield punt, East got the ball back and capped the first half in a big way.
Hamric found Burdette over the middle for 48 yards on the first play. Then, Burdette caught a 15-yarder on the next play. Brady May capped it all with a 4-yard TD run and Greenbrier East took a 22-14 lead into halftime.
Bluefield scored on their first second half possession when Ty Patton scored from two yards out. Tyrese Powell’s 66-yard catch keyed the drive, and with 9:57 left in the third quarter, the score was 22-21, Spartans.
It was about that time, that things went wild, crazy, bizarre, whatever word fits the best.
Hamric hooked up with Penn again for his second 15-yard touchdown catch of the day and East extended their lead back to 28-21 after a failed 2-point attempt.
On their next series, and after forcing the Beavers to punt, they used the ground game effectively when May started the drive with a 27-yard scamper. He then picked up 10 more yards on his next three carries. Just a couple plays later, those runs helped Hamric find a wide-open Stone in the end zone for a 36-yard score on the first play of the fourth quarter, and East took a 34-21 lead, however, they missed the 2-point try again, and that score remained with 11:55 to go.
Things were really looking good for East as Jysheim Green intercepted Simpson’s pass on the Beavers following possession. It then took the Spartans just three plays for Hamric to find Suttle on a 63-yard touchdown pass and East took what seemed like a commanding 40-21 lead with 9:47 left in the game.
Bluefield then scored three straight touchdowns with their backs against the wall on each.
Patton scored on a 2-yard run that made it 40-28 with 8:02 left. Then, a blown coverage in the secondary allowed Wilson to catch an open 38-yard TD pass with just 2:18 to go and the score at that point was 40-35.
The Spartans tried to run the clock down, but a second-down play that resulted in an incomplete pass stopped the clock momentarily, and on third down, Bluefield used a timeout to stop it again. East then turned it over on downs when Patton knocked down a pass that would have been completed to Burdette to seal the game, but Patton made a great play on the ball.
On Bluefield’s last possession and after a sack from East’s Gage Blevins, Simpson dropped back on a third-and-16 and threw a hail-mary pass that East’s Penn almost had intercepted, but it bounced in the air and into the hands of Wilson for a 43-yard gain to the Spartan 23-yard line. Three plays later, on fourth-and-10, Simpson found Kisean Smith running in the back of the end zone for a 23-yard touchdown catch with :04 left and the Beavers won it right there.
The Spartans were clearly upset by the loss and felt they let one get away.
On top of Hamric and Suttle’s big days, Burdette had three receptions for 68 yards and Stone had 65 yards and a score on three catches as well. Stone played a great overall game and made some plays on defense.
Simpson, a freshman, threw for 378 yards and three TDs for Bluefield. His favorite target, Wilson, had eight catches for 192 yards and two total TDs. Powell had three grabs for 86 yards.
Stats courtesy of 103.1, WRON.
*Note* Spartan coach Ray Lee missed the game due to an illness. Defensive coordinator Aaron Baker took over the duties for this game.
SCORING PLAYS:
First Quarter:
3:01 Penn 15-yard pass from Hamric (Burdette 2-point catch)
Second Quarter:
6:58 Wilson 8-yard run (Eli Riffe kick)
6:31 Jeff King 65-yard pass from Simpson (Riffe kick)
3:02 Suttle 49-yard pass from Hamric (Burdette 2-point catch)
:27 May 4-yard run (2-point failed)
Third Quarter:
9:57 Patton 2-yard run (Riffe kick)
6:23 Penn 15-yard pass from Hamric (2-point failed)
Fourth Quarter:
11:55 Stone 36-yard pass from Hamric (2-point failed)
9:47 Suttle 63-yard pass from Hamric (2-point failed)
8:02 Patton 2-yard run (Riffe kick)
2:18 Wilson 38-yard pass from Wilson (Riffe kick)
:04 Smith 23-yard pass from Simpson (Riffe kick)
The post Thursday Night Special Brings Heartbreak for Greenbrier East appeared first on West Virginia Daily News .
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