Pinson Valley 51, Austin 50: Indians win thriller in Ogle Stadium

Published 10:42 pm Friday, November 24, 2017

DECATUR—It was a no-brainer for Pinson Valley head coach Patrick Nix.

When his son, Bo, tossed a 10-yard touchdown pass to senior Liallen Dailey on the Indians’ first offensive snap of the first overtime Friday night, he knew he had to go for the win. Instead of kicking the extra point and entering the second overtime, Nix put the ball back in Bo’s hands.

The junior fired his 42nd attempt of the night into the flats where Dilan Handerson plucked it out of the air and squeezed inside the pylon for a walk-off 51-50 playoff win at top-ranked Austin.

“Truth be told, the guy went the wrong way in the flat,” said Nix of the game-winning play. “Probably no other quarterback in the country. I’m not even sure NFL quarterbacks could have adjusted the way he [Bo] did and make the 2-point play. He just has unbelievable awareness, he’s an unbelievable player and I’m super glad he’s on our team.”

Bo closed out the quarterfinals with nearly 400 yards passing. He completed 34 of his 42 attempts, including seven touchdowns in the third-round win. His most reliable target was senior Liallen Dailey, who finished with 13 receptions for 145 yards and three scores. Orion Morris pulled down six catches for 138 yards and two touchdowns of his own. Headerson added nine receptions for 63 yards and the decisive 2-point conversion.

In the first overtime possession, Austin quarterback Paxton Montgomery found Tony Norman Jr. in the end zone on the Black Bears’ first play. That was one of only 11 passing plays Austin called on Friday night. The home team stuck to its strengths, running the ball 49 times in the loss.

Senior running back Asa Martin was nothing less than a workhorse for the Black Bears (12-1). He ran with it 27 times for 379 yards and three touchdowns. Fellow senior Antonio Robinson churned up 160 yards rushing to go with two more touchdowns for Austin.

“That’s a great football team on the other side of the ball,” said Nix. “Very physical. Very well coached. We were out coached tonight and somehow still found a way to win.”

Austin head coach Jeremy Perkins stole two possessions from Nix; one in the first quarter and another in the fourth. Two onside kicks nearly derailed Pinson Valley’s perfect season. After Martin gave the home team a 7-0 lead, Austin recovered the ensuing kickoff and Martin ran right back to the end zone for a 14-0 advantage.

“I told our kids that we’ve been here before. Ramsay jumped on us 14-0 early in the season and we played Shades in an overtime game, so we’ve been in some tight games,” said Nix. “It wasn’t like something we hadn’t experienced before; we just had to settle down and keep playing.”

Pinson Valley (13-0) host No. 9 Clay-Chalkville in the semifinals next Friday. The Cougars beat second-ranked Oxford 31-15 Friday night in the third round.

Erik Harris is the Sports Editor of The North Jefferson News. Email him at njnsports@gmail.com or follow him on Twitter @jeharris2.