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Monday, Nov. 23, 2009

Steve Cameron: Goessling good on game-winner

Sometimes drama just sneaks up on you.

In the gathering dusk Saturday evening, Louisiana Tech and Fresno State appeared for all the world as though they were playing out a boring fourth quarter of what neutrals would consider a fairly meaningless game.

Fresno State, for all its flaws and the concussion which kept superstar running back Ryan Mathews off the field, could afford to lose this final WAC game and likely STILL back into a 10th bowl appearance in 11 years.

Louisiana Tech had even less on the line, with a losing season already assured.

Sure enough, there were fumbles, blown plays, missed tackles -- and Fresno State often looked truly lost.

The Dogs were helpless defensively in the first half, which ended 21-all -- only because linebacker Ben Jacobs returned a fumble for a touchdown when the ball landed almost literally in his lap.

Then after the break, Tech scraped out a 28-27 lead by frustrating the Dogs in the red zone -- and that's where it stood when Fresno State began a final possession on its own 14-yard line with 2:21 remaining.

Since quarterback Ryan Colburn (17 of 42 for 182 yards) was regularly hassled and often seemed to be throwing wild pitches, well...

The cause looked lost.

But then came back-to-back moments, events that woke up both teams and the crowd of 31,769 -- and suddenly it seemed like the two teams were battling for the BCS national championship.

First Colburn, who isn't exactly Gale Sayers in the open field, somehow managed to soft-shoe for 17 yards, which made a miracle seem vaguely possible by getting the ball near midfield.

"It wasn't pretty," admitted Colburn. "I almost had two balls picked on that series. I was just scratching and clawing."

Next, Colburn got Tech to bite on a pump fake and found Jamel Hamler running wide open for the winning touchdown.

Up to that point, it was Colburn's best throw of the day -- and just as the stadium was ready to erupt...

Hamler dropped the ball.

The sudden swing in momentum was stunning. The Fresno sideline was chaos, guys were grabbing Hamler and begging him to shake it off. The crowd just kept on screaming.

But two more incomplete passes brought up a fourth-and-10, at which point Colburn somehow DID make his best throw, a perfect out to senior Chastin West for 19 yards to the Tech 27.

Cue the electricity.

The Dogs had reached Kevin Goessling's considerable field goal range.

And then Colburn shocked everyone with a quick sideline shot to Hamler for 9 yards to the Tech 18.

What irony -- Hamler!

A game that almost had to be lost was on the verge...

"I can't let myself believe this," said defensive end Chris Carter as Goessling trotted on for a 35-yard try at 0:04. "I thought we'd blown it for our seniors.

"Man, my heart is beating so hard that my shoulder pads are shaking."

Tech called time to ice Goessling, of course.

"It didn't bother me," he said. "Probably made everybody in the stadium nervous, but I'm always the same. I was kind of laughing."

Fullback Reynard Camp wasn't chuckling, though.

"Oh, no, no," he said. "I couldn't even watch."

At last, the whistle blew and snapper Bobby Shepard rifled the ball perfectly to holder Robert Malone, who placed it impeccably -- laces up -- for Goessling.

And in a heartbeat, there was bedlam everywhere -- players rushing the field, fans tumbling forward to scream and high-five each other, coaches hugging, fireworks booming.

A half-hour earlier, you could have napped in the end zone.

Receiver Seyi Ajirotutu, who felt he'd cost his team the game by failing to hold a pass at the goal line the third quarter, grabbed anyone he could find.

"I jumped up so high when that ball went through that I think I hurt myself," he said, giggling. "This...this is why you play college football."

It's funny, Seyi, but I was just about to say the same thing to you.

Steve Cameron is a freelance columnist for the Sun-Star. He can be reached at stevecameron1000@gmail.com.