Last Friday, the Eastside Catholic Crusaders stormed back late in the 4th quarter to overturn a 7-26 deficit and oust the Roosevelt Rough Riders under the lights at Memorial Stadium.
With 0:04 on the clock, Crusader RB Nick Jones ’26 punched in the go-ahead score to tie Roosevelt 27-26 after having been down 19 points with five minutes to go in the contest. EC came out in the wildcat with Jones under center, and EC junior kept his legs churning to force his way into the endzone.
All hope seemed lost for the Crusaders, but after a slow start to the game, things turned around when QB Isaac Corey found his rhythm started the offense’s lighting-fast outpouring of points.
Down 26-7 with 5:00 to go in the game, Corey hit WR Asa Thompson for a 38-yard strike to set the Crusaders’ up in the red zone, before RB JB Burroughs grabbed a screen pass to score and make it 26-13. EC leaned on Burroughs again for the 2-point conversion, and the dynamic runner answered the call for a 26-15 score line. With the Rough Riders looking to run out the clock, EC’s Tytan McNeal forced a crucial fumble for Wassie Lugolobi to scoop up and return it to the 10-yard-line. With only a few minutes to go, Corey rolled out right and found RB/WR Carson McKelheer in the corner of the endzone. EC’s 2-point attempt fell short, and the score rested at 26-21 with Roosevelt looking to once again run the clock out and secure an important result.
However, the Crusader defense stepped up again and, thanks to all three timeouts forced the Rough Riders further and further back so they faced a 4th and long, leaving no choice but to punt back to the Crusaders — with a 5-point lead to defend and under two minutes to go. From there, the Crusaders worked down the field, culminating with Jones’ last-gasp wildcat score.
The Rough Riders had leapt out to a healthy lead in the first half, thanks in massive part to RB Zaire Griffin, who had an absurd stat line on the day: 19 carries for 235 yards and 2 rushing touchdowns but also had 4 catches for 137 yards and 2 receiving touchdowns. Griffin almost single-handedly carried the Rough Riders past the Crusaders with one of the best individual performances in the Metro League football season.
This game was an uphill battle for the Crusaders, as the offense came out sputtering, and it meant EC trailed early thanks to Zaire and the surging Roosevelt offense. Part of EC’s slow start might be attributed to QB Isaac Corey returning to the lineup after missing a week with a shoulder injury. After some early miscues, Corey settled in and finished the day with a solid 287 passing yards passing and two passing touchdowns.
This week, the Rough Riders will have the tough task of shaking off a heartbreaking loss so that they can rebound against Rainier Beach. EC will look to keep its positive momentum going against Seattle Prep, and maybe even using this result as a “wake up call” to keep things nice and tight for the remainder of the season.
