NORTHSIDE – Down one with two seconds left from its own 35 yard line, Raines had one final Hail Mary heave to try to pull off the thrilling come from behind win.
Unfortunately senior quarterback Barron Coates had other ideas, Coates perhaps panicked a bit and decided against heaving a Hail Mary and tuck it and run and despite picking up 19 yards on the play cam well short of the 65 needed to give Raines the win.
The play was a great example of how things unraveled for the Vikings in a 16-15 loss to visiting Lee Friday night in the Graveyard.
Part of that reason was a General defense led by Robert Simmons, Trevor James and Ralph Mency, who recked havoc on a quarterback making his first start in the Graveyard and consistently made it an unforgettable home opener.
Part of it was also a Vikings offense, which put up 34 points last week against Rockledge in the Kickoff Classic, looked well out of sync and often clueless what they were trying to do and unable to get into any kind of rhythm.
It definitely wasn’t a flawless game as both teams made numerous mistakes through out the game, 24 of the 31 points were scored via turnover and there were 11 turnovers overall.
The Vikings defense held the Generals out of the end zone on their second drive blocking the 39 yard field goal attempt but a turnover two plays later led to the first score of the game.
Backed up to their own 5 yard line, Coates fumbled the snap and tried to pitch it to tailback Brandon Marshall who couldn’t get a handle on it and the Generals recovered it in the end zone for a 7-0 lead with 1:42 left in the first quarter.
A play later, Simmons picked off Coates at the 37-yard line for the fourth turnover of the game. However, six plays later the Generals turned it back over on downs after failing to pick up a first down.
Cameron Sapp hit a wide open Terry McKinney for an apparent 20 yard touchdown on fourth and goal but the Generals were flagged and had to repeat the down five yards back and Sapp pass fell incomplete turning the ball over on downs.
Raines took advantage of the mistake as Coates hit Jaquez Griffin for two 26 yard completions on the drive which set up Brandon Marshall 5 yard touchdown run tying the game at 7-7 with 8:11 left till halftime.
Coates and Marshall (107 yards, 1 TD on 15 carries) lost the ball on a exchange a possession later and Mency was there to fall on it giving the Generals the ball at the 30-yard line with under six minutes left.
However, the Vikings defense held the Generals to a quick three and out as both teams went into the locker room tied up with still a half of exciting action to play..
Coates (13 of 26 for 224 yards, 1 TD, 2 INTs) tried to pitch to Marshall on an option play on the Vikings first possession of the second half and Simmons fell on the ball to give the Generals the ball back.
Sapp (6 of 22 for 54 yards, 70 yards on 17 carries) hit former Vikings player Cobie Bates for a 20 yard completion down to the 5, which set up a 35 yard field goal giving the Generals a 10-7 lead with 5:40 left in the third quarter.
Mency knocked down a Coates pass and then after seeing Taz Nicholson pick off Coates near midfield and fumble the ball away on the way down, was alert enough to recover the ball on the play to give the Generals the ball back.
The turnover led to Sapp’s 7 yard touchdown run giving the Generals a 16-7 lead seconds into the fourth quarter, sending several Vikings fans to the exits as the Vikings trailed by nine.
QB Cameron Sapp led his team in rushing and scored the deciding touchdown for Lee in the 4th quarter, leading the Generals over Raines @CameronSapp5 pic.twitter.com/Y2dayIDaoM
— Duval Sports ™️ (@DuvalSports) August 26, 2018
Just when it looked like the Generals were well on their way to a rare victory in the Graveyard, the Vikings defense stopped the Generals short of the first down on a fourth and ten play with 6:22 left in the game.
Mency knocked down another pass and Coates threw another incompletion to set up third and ten from their own 19 yard line with under three minutes to play in the game.
Coates hit Daivan Thomas in stride and Thomas made several guys miss breaking multiple tackles before racing down the sideline untouched 81 yards for a stunning score. Coates ran in the two point conversion and the Vikings which one trailed by nine were down 16-15 with 2:09 left in the game.
It was up to the defense to force a quick three and out to give them one final chance to pull off the comeback and they did getting one final shot with under a minute left setting up the final drive.
The loss ends the Vikings 13 game winning streak, gives the Generals their second straight in in the series and sees Raines coach Deran Wiley drop to 6-2 all-time against the Generals now.
Both teams have several things to work on as they prepare for Week 2 games, as the Generals (1-0) travel to rival Westside (0-1) Friday night, while the Vikings (0-1) travel to nearby First Coast (1-0) Saturday morning.
