Patriots edge Bobcats 27-24 in OT

ERATH — Silence crept over Robert J. Segura Stadium Friday night after a 10-yard touchdown run by Dade Dieterich.
The touchdown clinched a 27-24 victory for North Vermilion over rival Erath, in a game between two teams on playoff bubble in Class 3A.
“I’ve been here 18 years. I’ve been in a few of these games, and I kept telling people this was going to come down to the wire,” said North Vermilion head coach Richard Prejean. “We knew coming in it was going to be emotional, and it was going to be a physical game. We just tried to prepare ourselves for it. It was a hostile environment. They had a good crowd out here tonight. It was tough to deal with the noise.”
North Vermilion received the ball first to start the game, but an early interception by Ty Desormeaux set Erath up with good field position.
The Bobcats were able to capitalize on the interception with a 18-yard touchdown run by Elijah Mitchell to put Erath up 7-0.
In the winding moments of the first quarter, North Vermilion responded with a 10-yard touchdown pass from Desormeaux to Seth Patin. A 33-yard pass from Desormeaux to Dieterich set up the scoring play.
The Patriots took the lead on a 39-yard pass from the Desormeaux-Patin connection to give North Vermilion a 14-7 lead with five minutes left in the half.
On the ensuing drive for Erath, Mitchell accounted for 52 yards rushing, and capped it off with a 13-yard touchdown scamper to tie the game at 14 heading into halftime.
A turnover on downs for Erath at the North Vermilion 30 with three minutes left in the game came back to haunt them two plays later. Desormeaux found Connor Dupuy on a crossing route in the middle of the field, and he outran the Bobcat defenders for the 70-yard touchdown to put the Patriots ahead with 2:44 left.
Erath quarterback completed four straight passes on the final drive, and tied the game with an 11-yard touchdown pass to Luke Young with 21.6 seconds left to send the game into overtime.
The Bobcats got the ball first, and after an untimely penalty, they were forced to settle for a field goal to give them a 3-point lead.
Fans did not have to wait long to see who would win, because on the first play of the drive, Dieterich, a wide receiver lined in the shotgun at quarterback, and used a great read option keep to win the game, and possibly propel his team into the playoffs.
“I was just hoping I’d make the right read and not fumble the snap,” Dieterich said. “I just wanted to get into the end zone.”
“All the credit to North Vermilion,” said Erath head coach David Comeaux. “We did some things that we wanted to do, but they shut down most of it. Hats off to them.”
Mitchell rushed for 132 yards on 25 attempts. LeBlanc went 14-26 for 101 yards and a touchdown. Young led the team with five receptions for 59 yards and a touchdown.
Desormeaux threw for 228 yards and three touchdowns with one interception.
“Over the last four or five weeks, he’s (Desormeaux) been maturing as a quarterback like we wanted him to at the beginning of the year said Prejean. “I think he finally settled in and ran the offense. He’s been making solid decisions the last few weeks.”
Taylor Abshire led the team with 103 yards rushing on 18 carries. Dupuy had three receptions for 88 yards and a score.
The faith of the two teams lie in the hands of the playoff selection committee. Before the game, Erath was ranked No. 29 and North Vermilion was No. 34. Thirty two teams are selected to make the playoffs in Class 3A.
“We just wait and see,” Prejean said. “I’m hoping we get as high as we can with the win. It’s just wait and see now.”
“We still might be able to get in,” said Comeaux. “We are in a peculiar place, because we could be playing next week, or our season could have just ended. We just don’t know.”
The playoff brackets will be released Sunday.