With the score tied at 6-all at the end of regulation, Sam Farmer put the visiting Patriots ahead with a one-yard run on the first overtime possession. After the conversion run was stopped, the Bulldogs took their turn from the 10-yard line. On a third and seven, quarterback Anthony Rhanes found Scott Driggers wide-open in the back of the end zone for the tying touchdown.
The extra-point kick by Drew Collins set off a wild celebration in the game televised (tape delay) by local cable channel 60.
The Patriots lost to the Bulldogs 20-19 last year on a fourth quarter field goal. Both teams are 1-3 going into conference play next week, with the Patriots entertaining Scotland County.
After allowing the Bulldogs to drive 52 yards for a touchdown on the second series of the game, the Patriots allowed them into their territory only three other times (excluding the overtime). Two of those were set up by Patriot turnovers.
But it took an almost “immaculate reception” to get points on the board for a Patriot offense that produced a net offense of 101 yards in the game.
Given life by a roughing-the-kicker penalty moments earlier, the Patriots faced a third down-and-17 call from their own 17-yard line on their first possession of the second half. Derrick Ratliff, in the game at quarterback briefly for starter Robert DeBernard, hurled a long pass downfield that tight-end Antwon Murchison caught in a crowd after a deflection and carried it to the Bulldog 28-yard line.
On the last of three carries in a row by Torrey Patterson, the senior disappeared into a pile and then emerged free for a 21-yard touchdown run. The extra-point attempt was wide leaving the game tied at 6-6.
Murchison and Corey Fletcher sacked Rhanes for big losses on the first two plays following the score, setting the tone for the rest of the game.
“The guys stepped it up tonight,” said Patriot defensive coordinator Wayne Davies. “The return of Corey Fletcher (nose guard) made all the difference in the world. I think they actually realize they can play defense.”
Unfortunately the Patriots were not up to the task offensively even after the fifth interception of the season and a 45-yard return by Keith Core gave them a first and goal from the 10 with about two minutes left in the fourth quarter.
A running play and a penalty for delay of game set them back to the 19. A fourth-down pass to Murchison off a faked field goal fell incomplete. With the Patriots in a prevent defense, the Bulldogs were kept in their own territory as the clock wound down.
For the second week in a row, the Patriots tried unsuccessfully to set the run up with the pass. Their only completion in 14 attempts was the catch by Murchison and DeBernard was intercepted twice. The Patriot running game produced 47 net yards in 32 attempts, with Patterson picking up 53 yards in 12 carries. The total offense for the Bulldogs was 194 yards.
The Patriots’ Dereck Wike recovered two Bulldog fumbles and gained some television exposure along with Rhanes as the co- player of the game. Patriot head coach John Washington would like to see his team start playing better in the first half.
“We still haven’t put together a whole game of football,” he said. “We were a different team in the second half.”
