Since Jordan-Elbridge football senior quarterback Austin Barrigar is entering his third year as a starter, head coach Tim Hawkins said he trusts Barrigar enough to given him some play-calling duties.
That trust was put to the test in the Carrier Dome in Sunday’s Kickoff Classic, and Barrigar proved his worth by making the correct decision – and the big play – to help the Eagles get a late touchdown and beat Thousand Islands 8-7.
The pivotal moment arrived with J-E trailing 7-2 and facing a fourth down and 15 at TI’s 20-yard line. The chance to score had come a few minutes earlier, when Kyle Humberstone intercepted a Tyler Gilfus pass at his own 35 and the Eagles promptly went on a long march, knowing it might not get another chance at going out in front.
At that moment, the Eagles lone points had come through a third-quarter safety, pulled off when defensive end Dylan Dunham tackled the Vikings’ Collin Bourcy in his own end zone.
Now, the Eagles threatened again, as it had done several previous times without success. Knowing the importance of the play, J-E called time-out.
Hawkins went out to the players’ huddle to talk to Barrigar. During that huddle, wide receiver Zach Pangaro had told Barrigar that he was not getting defended at close range, so that if he could get open if a high throw went to him.
Everyone agreed on the call, and then Barrigar took the snap, went back, and found Pangaro open on the sideline near the goal line, and passed to him. Pangaro caught it at the one-yard line.
Two plays later, Barrigar plunged in for the touchdown, and with 4:25 left J-E finally had the lead, even though the subsequent two-point conversion try was unsuccessful.
Having not scored since the first quarter, TI now needed points in a hurry. But thanks to an Eagles defense that had proven strong all afternoon, the Vikings were stopped once more, a fake punt pass ruled incomplete that allowed J-E to run out the remaining clock.
Much of the game had featured missed chances on both sides. TI had taken a 7-0 lead late in the first quarter when Gilfus found Travis Docteur on an eight-yard scoring pass.
From there, the Vikings cooled off, giving J-E ample time to answer. Most of the time, though, the Eagles could not capitalize, Barrigar throwing interceptions to TI’s Kyle Gorman in the second quarter and Troy Hattori in the third period to stop potential scoring chances.
Yet the Eagles stayed patient, and thanks to Humberstone’s interception and Barrigar’s big fourth-down pass to Pangaro, a satisfying win was attained.
Now J-E will go for two wins in a row when it takes a long road trip east to face Cooperstown this Saturday at 2 p.m. The Hawkeyes lost its season opener to Cooperstown 36-24.
