Othello's amazing run ends in state semifinals

TACOMA - Othello fans may debate the final play call for years to come, but there was no debating the heart-stopping effort put forth by the Huskies in their 2A state semifinal game on Friday night.

With the ball at Burlington-Edison's 12-yard line in the waning seconds, Othello trailed by just three points. Head coach Roger Hoell could've sent in junior kicker Nathan Larson to try a game-tying 30-yard field goal, but the Huskies weren't interested in playing overtime.

"I would rather go for the win than put it on a kid's head that maybe (a kick) doesn't go through," Hoell said afterward. "It was a team decision, a coaching decision, to go for the win."

Burlington-Edison defensive back Troy O'Neill intercepted Marc Garza's throw, preserving the Tigers' 23-20 victory and sending the Tigers into this Saturday's state championship game with undefeated Prosser.

On the final play, the Huskies tried to overload the Tigers' secondary on one side of the field. Garza rolled to his left and tried to buy time, but no one got open. O'Neill's 100-yard return for a touchdown was negated on a penalty, but the damage was done with just 4 seconds left on the clock.

"You've just got to put it in the hands of the kids and they've got to perform. That's just the way it is," Hoell said. "You've got to give credit to (the Tigers) for defending it great."

Othello (9-4) won seven straight games to reach the semis. The Huskies knew they were facing a Burlington-Edison squad with a similar mindset - smash-mouth football - and the game rested on which team could impose its will.

Early on, the Tigers won the battle. The Huskies trailed 10-0 after one period and 16-6 at halftime.

"At the beginning I felt like we just gave them too many opportunities," said senior tailback James Valdez, who was held to 28 yards on nine carries. "We weren't doing our job and we weren't making key stops."

That changed early in the fourth quarter when Othello mounted a 64-yard scoring drive, closing within 16-13 as Valdez piled into the end zone from 2 yards out.

But just quickly as Othello had seized momentum, the Tigers (12-1) seized it back.

Burlington-Edison ran an end-around, flea-flicker play, with the ball winding up in the hands of quarterback Kolby Arendse. He threw a beautiful pass to streaking receiver Jake Anderson, who'd beaten single coverage deep down the middle. The result was a 54-yard TD and a 23-13 Tigers lead with 7:25 to play.

"That was just great execution on their part," Hoell said.

Needing two scores, the Huskies weren't about to go quietly.

"We just said, 'Anything can happen,' because it's a playoff game," Valdez said. "I've seen miracles happen."

A diving, fourth-down catch from Raymond Rodriguez kept the Huskies' ensuing drive alive near midfield. Garza hit Michael Harvey for 21 yards to set up first-and-goal, and David Walker punched it in from 1 yard out, bring Othello within three at the 3:33 mark. Walker had a team-high 117 yards on 26 carries.

Othello's Jakob Scott came up with a huge, shoestring tackle of Arendse on the Tigers' next series, forcing a punt. Othello got it back at its own 48 with 2:01 left.

Garza and Harvey immediately brought the Othello fans to life, hooking up for 34 yards to the Tiger 18. But Burlington-Edison's defense stiffened on two running plays, Steven Berghuis knocked down Garza's third-down pass and O'Neill sealed the deal with his second pick of the night.

Garza was 6 of 13 for 140 yards, but tossed three interceptions.

The Tigers drove 32 yards midway through the first period and scored on Andrew Furney's 31-yard field goal. Moments later, they got it back when Garza was stripped on an option run, and Luke Thomas recovered at the Huskie 20.

Othello's defense appeared primed to stifle the threat, forcing third-and-18, but Arendse hit O'Neill on a 28-yard scoring pass.

JP Underhill's tumbling interception off a tipped pass stopped a Tiger march early in the second period and set up Othello's first score just three plays later.

On third-and-3, the Huskies noticed Burlington-Edison had shifted into a 5-3 alignment designed at stopping the run. Othello faked a dive play, and Harvey was all alone in the middle for a 67-yard score.

"They bit (on) it and that opened it up for us," Hoell said of the play. "You play for what you can get, and in a game like that, those kind of plays make the game."

The Huskies thought they had another big break on the ensuing kickoff when Devon Lind pounced on a pooch kick at the Tiger 40. The officials overruled it, saying the Tigers had called a fair catch the Huskies interfered with.

Othello's players didn't take the loss lightly, including Valdez, one of 17 seniors.

"It's just tough. We've come this far and to go out losing, it's not fun," he said. "I guess that's the way the rock rolls."

But Hoell was quick to point out everything that went right for the team after it started 2-3.

"You can't call this a disappointment," he said. Look at how these kids battled back. Somebody has to lose. If you're going to lose, lose to a quality football team. Burlington-Edison is a quality football team."