BANGOR, Maine (WABI) – Husson Football took on Alfred for a week three game on Saturday.
The Eagles came in looking for their first win of the year.
Husson got on the board first thanks to a 33-yard field goal by Aaron Paradis with 1:50 left in the first.
Alfred then took the lead early in the second quarter on a 1-yard run by Jimmy Brush.
In the middle of the second quarter, Husson lost by 7 goals, an accurate pass pushed them down the field.
With just seconds left in the half, Husson quarterback Nic Visser threw a two-yard strike to tight end Cullen Casey to tie the game at 10.
Husson started the third with a 20-yard run by receiver Jon Bell.
An Alfred defender who made the hit on Bell was called for targeting which led to his ejection from the game.
As the pressure mounted, the visitors stood their ground and kept Husson out of the end zone. The score remained 10-10 at the end of the third quarter.
Husson started the fourth with a bang.
Visser launched a rocket down the right side of the field and found his man Jon Bell for a 64-yard touchdown. The Eagles took a 17-10 lead.
With 7 minutes left in the contest, Husson fed the ball to Elijah Garnett, who coughed up the ball, but a closer look shows he may very well have been knocked down before losing control of the ball.
Alfred took this turning point and marched down the field to once again tie the game at 17 all.
With just over 3 minutes left in the game with the ball tied, it was the situation every football player lives for.
“You know, we saw them score and instantly everyone is thinking, you know, this is what we play football for. Like you said, we’ve been dreaming about these moments since we were five, six years old throwing the ball in the backyard and it’s a dream to get the ball with that much time left and have a chance to go and won. game for your boys. And I remember we got into that huddle and we’re like, You know what, man, if we block this or not, that’s the game right here. Let’s go,” junior quarterback Nic Visser said.
Husson marched down the field bleeding the clock in a methodical motion.
With just under a minute to play on the clock, Husson put the ball back to Garnett and no one could stop him.
His touchdown capped a 133-yard rushing performance on the afternoon.
The celebrations were short lived as Alfred blocked the PAT leading to a 23-17 score line.
Now with a chance to win the game, Alfred’s offense was shut down with just under a minute left.
With an infield hit, Eagle’s secondary Parker Lafrance called the game as he picked off the visiting quarterback.
Husson walks away victorious for the first time of the year in dramatic fashion.
“It was amazing as a little bit of relief and now it’s like now that we found our identity, you know, just keep moving forward,” Sophomore running back Elijah Garnett said.
“Week after week. You know, like I said, we’ve got, we’re not young, but we’ve got some experience and so we’re gaining it every week. And I think this is very important. It’s a process. You know, it’s week by week and we want to be great at the end of the year and I think we will be,” coach Nat Clark said.
Next week Husson travels to Massachusetts to attend Springfield College.
Copyright 2022 WABI. All rights reserved.
