Leeds running back Ladarius Rogers picks up yardage in the game against Tarrant.
Some how, some way, McGinnish broke a couple of tackles and found his way to the end zone to complete an unbelievable 55-yard touchdown pass that gave the Green Wave a 9-7 come-from-behind victory.
“When I caught the ball, I didn’t think I could score,” said McGinnis. “This is huge and I feel so good. Our team struggled tonight but we won.”
Perkins said he saw Shane go by his defender but the Wildcat defense blitzed on the right side.
“If I threw it to him, it was going to have to be on his back right shoulder,” Perkins said. “He caught it and then did the rest to get in the end zone. It was unbelievable.”
The defensive struggle all night saw the two teams go into the locker room at halftime tied 0-0. In that first half, Leeds had 81 yards of total offense while the Green Wave defense held Tarrant to just 55 total yards.
On their second possession of the third quarter, Perkins threw a pass intended for Jermaine Smith that was picked off by Emanuel Powell, who returned it to the Green Wave 34-yard line. A few plays later, the Wildcats attempted a field goal but it was no good.
Leeds took over and had its best offensive drive of the night as they drove from their own 20 to the Wildcat 3-yard line, all on the ground. Perkins had runs of 5, 13 and 8 yards to keep the drive going.
With a first and goal at the 3, it looked as if Leeds would finally put a dent on the scoreboard. But a 15-yard personal foul on a Leeds player moved the ball make to the 18-yard line. On fourth and goal, Keaton Glass was good on a 33-yard field goal to make it 3-0 with 6:25 remaining in the game.
Tarrant took over on its own 19 and thanks to a long pass from quarterback Stanley Johnson to Powell, the Wildcats were in business at the Leeds 19. On fourth down, they attempted a field goal to tie the game. It was blocked, and Cedric Vines picked up the loose ball and ran it back to the Tarrant 25.
On the very next play from scrimmage, Perkins fumbled the snap from center and Tarrant recovered at their own 27.
Nine plays later, Johnson hooked up with Powell again, this time for a 40-yard gain down the right sideline to the Green Wave 7 with 33 seconds remaining in the game. On the next play, Curtis Simmons took the handoff, juggled the ball but managed to keep control and found his way into the end zone for the touchdown with 28 seconds remaining. The PAT by Terrell Scott was good and the Leeds fans were in shock as Tarrant looked to be on their way home with a 7-3 upset over the third-ranked team in the state.
Leeds took over at its own 34 following the kick-off. Perkins was dropped for a 4-yard loss back to the 30. After a timeout, Perkins’ pass to Jonathan Rose fell incomplete but Tarrant was whistled for pass interference. At the 45-yard line and 6 seconds remaining in the game, Perkins and McGinnis hooked up and as the clock made its way to 0:00, McGinnis stood in the end zone with the winning score.
The play brought on pandemonium as the entire Leeds bench raced to the end zone to congratulate McGinnis. Fans poured onto the field and every Wildcat player was left lying on the field wondering what had just happened.
“We got whipped all over the field tonight,” said Leeds head coach Keith Etheredge. “Hats off to Tarrant. They played good and were up for the game. We came in flat.”
Etheredge said his kids keep finding ways to win ballgames.
“Our guys expect to win every game,” Etheredge said. “We came up with some big plays and that’s what championship teams do. But we have to get better.”
Leeds won the region for the second year in a row. In the past two years, they are 14-0 in regular season region games. Now 8-1 on the season and winners of 23 out of the past 24 games during that same two years, the Green Wave will host Moody tonight. The Blue Devils are coming off an overtime upset win at Sylacauga last week.
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