The Bishop Gorman Gaels were 70 seconds away from the fat lady singing. The high school football team from Las Vegas, Nevada held a 24-7 lead over Chandler, Arizona's Hamilton Huskies late in the fourth quarter.
Hamilton kicker Jacob Medina lined up for a 46-yard field goal. He knocks it through to bring the score to 24-10. Not a big deal for the Gaels. What's the worst that can happen with a minute and five seconds left?
How about a miraculous comeback for the ages?
Hamilton's 17-Point Comeback in 70 Seconds
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Medina's field goal brought Hamilton High School within two scores. The near impossible task of recovering an onside kick would need to happen not once but twice. The NextGen stats tell me the odds weren't great.
Hamilton lined up for the kickoff in a bunch formation. Medina kicked a hard bouncer directly at Bishop Gorman. It hits the front line of the kick return team and the Huskies recover.
Hamilton quarterback Nicco Marchiol quickly marched the offense down the field. Running back Nick Switzer broke loose to BG's two-yard line. Marchiol finds tight end Michael Masunas for the touchdown. 24-17.
At this point, Hamilton has a tsunami of momentum. They feel invincible, and invincible teams can recover a second onside kick. Their plan is to circle the ball and block any Bishop Gorman player from having a chance, similar to a box out drill in basketball, and it works.
Marchiol, a West Virginia commit who was reportedly playing sick, brought his team to the Bishop Gorman's 22-yard line with 14 seconds left. He fired a strike to a streaking Switzer, who takes it all the way to the end zone.
Forget the extra point, the Huskies were going for the win. Marchiol looked for an open man while rolling to his left. He saw a lane to run and darts towards the end zone to get the two-point conversion.
25-24 Hamilton.
How could Bishop Gorman have any confidence after that? They attempted a last second hurrah to no avail. Somehow, by the grace of the football gods, Hamilton erased a 17-point deficit in 70 seconds. Our stats and info department tells me that's about 0.24 points per second.
Oh yeah, remember how Marchiol was under the weather? On the game-winning touchdown pass he puked on the ball. Switzer deserves teammate of the year for holding on to that bad boy.
After being down 17 with a minute left, the QB throws up on the ball and STILL THROWS TD TO WIN THE GAME. ??(via ajgreene15/TT) pic.twitter.com/O8xOvbXeG5
— House of Highlights (@HoHighlights) September 19, 2021
Whatever "it" is, the Hamilton Huskies had it. It's a reminder to never give up until the clock hits zero. It doesn't hurt to have the best onside kicker of all time, either.
