Watch a full game replay of high school football: Lincoln vs. Jefferson (Council Bluffs, Iowa) – October 25, 2019.
On a night filled with missed conversions, the Council Bluffs rivalry came down to a two-point try with 36 seconds left.
Trailing 19-12 with just under 3:30 remaining in regulation, Council Bluffs Thomas Jefferson put together an 11-play, 72-yard touchdown drive to get within a point of Council Bluffs Abraham Lincoln. The final drive for Jefferson looked to be stalled at the Lincoln 39-yard line, but a great play on the ball by receiver Qur’an Owens and a missed tackle resulted in the touchdown.
Rather than kick a game-tying extra point, TJ head coach Brant Anderson elected to try for the win.
Jefferson’s bell-cow running back Jermaine Green had been pounding between the tackles all night. His first 17 carries had netted 112 yards on the ground and two touchdowns. On his 18th carry, the AL defense stopped him for no gain, preserving the 19-18 victory.
Lincoln took the lead when senior Cade Nelson caught his first pass of the season, a 5-yard strike from quarterback Lennx Brown, just three minutes earlier. Kicker Miguel Rodriguez made the extra point to make it 19-12. It was the only successful PAT or two-point conversion in the game.
Brown scored on a 1-yard sneak early in the first quarter, but Rodriguez missed the kick, keeping the score at 6-0. Brown finished the night with 99 yards rushing, 170 yards passing, a rushing touchdown and a passing touchdown.
Jefferson answered with a 51-yard drive, capped by Green’s first touchdown, but also missed the PAT. Then, with just one second remaining in the first half, Green scored from a yard out to give Jefferson its first lead of the game. The Yellowjackets went for two, but failed to convert.
Neither team cracked the scoring column in the third quarter. But, just 1:50 into the fourth quarter, Lincoln senior running back Johnny Pedroza found the endzone on a one-yard scoot to tie the game at 12. Pedroza entered the game with only 12 carries on the season and no touchdowns.
Despite the tie score, Lincoln curiously attempted a two-point conversion after appearing to line up for the PAT. The pass failed and the score remained tied. After the game, Lincoln head coach John Wolfe cited a miscommunication between staff and players, calling the play frustrating.
The win is Lincoln’s first in the annual series since 2016. Lincoln won 10 straight meetings between the two from 2007 through 2016.
Both Jefferson and Lincoln finish the 2019 season with 3-6 records. Neither will make the playoffs in Iowa’s 4A classification.
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