Eureka Tornado football fans sat stunned in silence after the Humboldt Cubs erased a 10-point deficit in the games final four minutes to pull off a 38-32 win at Iolas Municipal Stadium on Friday night.
Humboldt quarterback Conor Haviland rushed for 166 yards and three scores, including the game winner on a one-yard touchdown with 37.1 seconds left.
Haviland was hurting the whole fourth quarter, Humboldt head coach Logan Wyrick said on the rain-soaked field. He came to me and said, Coach I dont even know if I can run anymore. And I looked at him and said this is your ballgame, young man. You got to win this one for us.
When you have the best player in the state in our classification you have to use him. He was hurting but the ball wasnt coming out of his hands. They (Eureka) knew it but they had to respect what we were doing on some motions. He came through for us.
Haviland said he struggled with cramps for most of the game but, somebody had to step up. We just couldnt give up and everyone stepped up at the end.
Trailing 32-22, Humboldt (3-0) put together a six-play, 49-yard drive capped off by a 2-yard touchdown run from Isaiah Coronado with 1:33 left in the fourth to pull within four. Haviland then hit William Kobold for the two-point conversion to pull the Cubs within 32-30.
Haviland recovered the onside kick, giving the Cubs the ball at the 50 line with 1:30 left.
The Cubs were fortunate to have saved each of its three timeouts for the final drive.
It was tough watching the clock all the way down to about 2:30 and I was sitting there asking, Should I take it? but thankfully they threw the ball for us and we were able to save one there, Wyrick said.
Haviland had runs of 10, 30 and 2 yards on the final series. But the most important play was a on 4th-and-12 from the 17-yard line. After scanning the field, Haviland tucked the ball and scrambled near the front pylon to make it first-and-goal from the 2-yard line.
Haviland scored one play later and then sealed the game with an interception on the final play of the game.
We are going to have so much stuff to fix on Monday but these guys didnt quit. Sometimes to beat a good team you have to win ugly. Overall that is a very good team, the coach said.
While the comeback was miraculous, the game was very ugly.
Eureka jumped out to a 16-0 lead in the first half as quarterback Cade Larcom threw a 21-yard touchdown pass midway through the first quarter, and a 63-yard score with 9:07 left in the half.
Haviland pulled the Cubs within 10 on a 33-yard touchdown and cornerback Gunner Elder returned a Larcom interception 40 yards for a score to make it 16-14 at the break.
