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East Forsyth needs overtime, but gets past Grimsley 38-31
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Published: November 1, 2008
KERNERSVILLE
While East Forsyth's 38-31 overtime comeback victory over Greensboro Grimsley last night might have been seen as a thriller to most of those who watched it, Coach Todd Willert had another take.
"Sloppy, ugly, bad," Willert said after the game.
Still, Willert found a silver lining in his team's performance.
"We found a way to win. In the past years, we found a way to lose," he said. "I'm proud of you guys."
The Eagles (9-1, 4-0) trailed 31-24 after quarterback Danny O'Brien forced a pass into the middle of the field and Grimsley's DeShawn Brown returned the interception 58 yards for a score with 2:35 remaining in the fourth quarter.
O'Brien managed to shake off the interception and lead the Eagles downfield on the next drive, completing 4 of 5 passes and running three times for 18 yards, including the game-tying score to force overtime.
With his team facing fourth-and-goal in overtime, Willert decided to put the ball in O'Brien's hands, and he obliged with a 2-yard dive to the right for the game-winning score. Grimsley's attempt to tie the game failed when quarterback Josh Patterson's pass fell incomplete on fourth down.
O'Brien said that though he wasn't happy about throwing an interception, he knew he had to shake it off and focus on the next play.
"When I let it go, my heart dropped," O'Brien said of his interception. "But I didn't let it get me down."
O'Brien and fellow seniors Christian Smith and Ian Thompson came up big for East in their final regular-season home game. O"Brien rushed for 97 yards on 15 attempts, including two rushing touchdowns. He also passed for 214 yards and one touchdown, while completing 16 of 31 passes.
Smith rushed for 132 yards on 20 carries, including a 26 yard-touchdown in the third quarter to give East a 17-14 lead. Thompson caught 10 passes for 102 yards, including East's first score. Edwin McCray added a 35 yard rushing touchdown.
Grimsley gave East a much closer game than anticipated. The Whirlies(2-8,0-4), had lost seven straight and had scored 35 points in those games.
The Whirlies took an early 7-0 lead when Josh Patterson connected with Mychal Potts for a 56 yard touchdown pass. After Zach Boyer's 35-yard field goal gave East a 10-7 lead late in the second quarter, the Whirlies struck again with a deep pass. This time Josh Patterson connected with Torian Patterson for a 78-yard score to give the Whirlies a 14-10 lead at the half.
The Eagles threw 20 passes in the first half, but changed up its game plan in the third, throwing once. Willert said his team made a concerted effort to be more balanced in the second half.
"My statistician told me ‘I think the team passed the ball too much in the first half," he said.
Grimsley 7 7 3 14 0 -- 31
E. Forsyth 7 3 7 14 7 -- 38
G -- Dotts 56 pass from J. Patterson (14 kick good)
EF -- Thompson 8 pass from O'Brien (Boyer kick)
EF -- Boyer 35 field goal
G -- T. Patterson 78 pass from J. Patterson (14 kick good)
EF --Smith 26 run (Boyer kick)
G -- 14 field goal
EF -- McCray 35 run (Boyer kick)
G -- J. Patterson 1 run (14 kick)
EF-- O'Brien 6 run (Boyer kick)
EF --O'Brien 2 run (Boyer kick)
Records -- Grimsley 2-8 (0-4), East Forsyth 9-1 (4-0).
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