Now THAT is a touchdown!
September 17, 2011, 9:54 am
There is nothing like high school football
In the truly miraculous play you see above, Chatham (N.J.) High used multiple
backward scrambles, a recovered fumble and enough broken tackles to send any
defensive coordinator into a fit to score a key second-quarter touchdown in Chatham's
28-14 victory at Hackettstown (N.J.) High.
Amazingly, the play might not have happened if the Chatham coaching staff's
headsets were working correctly. Because they weren't, the Cougars' offense was
constantly adjusting at the line and dealing with general confusion in the
huddle.
On the miraculous touchdown, that confusion translated to an unblocked
Hackettstown rusher, who nearly sacked Chatham quarterback Thomas Guida as soon
as he got the shotgun snap.
Instead, Guida wriggled free on the first of five remarkably eluded tackles.
After retreating farther into his backfield, Guida was again met by a
linebacker, but he ducked below that attempted Hackettstown tackle. An instant
later he eluded a trio of would-be tacklers, though one dislodged the ball and
sent Guida scrambling farther back toward his own end zone to recover the
fumble.
While some players would have simply pounced on the loose football and killed
the play, Guida picked it up and coolly connected with Cory Heidaran, whose
ability to elude tacklers proved no less impressive than Guida's. After pulling
in the pass at the 26-yard line, Heidaran backtracked directly into the teeth of
the Hackettstown defense only to find a slippery seam that helped him elude
three tackles himself and earn a clean
sprint to a touchdown.