Lincoln’s upset win brings out emotions

By St. Clair Murraine
Outlook staff writer

What transpired in a Friday night high school football game between Godby and Lincoln with 6.3 seconds left was enough to make a grown man cry.

It also was enough to cause some disgruntled feelings by one other man.

Lincoln’s first-year coach Quinn Gray was the man who couldn’t hide his emotions after the stunning finish at Cox Stadium. On the opposite side of the field, Godby’s coach Corey Fuller was just frustrated over the official call that led to the outcome.

Gray had tears rolling off his cheeks after seeing the Trojans hand Godby a 20-19 loss, the first for the Cougars this season. It came on the last play of the game, a Hail Mary pass from Lincoln’s quarterback Chris Beard.

It wasn’t clear exactly who touched the ball and when, but tight end Kamari Morales came up with it and the game’s officials signal touchdown. That wiped out a 19-14 lead that Godby had taken in the decisive fourth quarter.

Victory seemed certain for the Cougars, 9-1, before the decisive play.

“This is a monumental win for the program because Lincoln has been down the last couple of years in the city,” said Gray after that win that ended the Trojans’ season with a 4-6 record. “To come out and beat the undefeated team in the city is a monumental thing.”

Arguably so based on what Fuller saw or didn’t see in the end zone.

“I’m not going to sugar coat it,” Fuller said. “You can’t make that call when you can’t see that ball. You don’t make the call off your emotions because of the way you feel about Corey Fuller and Godby.”

Morales tried to clear up the confusion over how the play actually went down. He said he was one of the last Lincoln players to get near the ball and saw when it was batted to the ground by Godby’s Stan Johnson.

He then found himself diving under the ball in the midst of a crowd, he said.

“My attitude was I’m going to make a play,” he said. “They always say that big-time players make big-time plays. That was just the situation for me to make a play.”

Both teams went into the game with playoff berths secured and they will play Friday night. For Godby, it starts a run to win its fourth state title and its first since 2012.

Morales took comfort in know that despite the disputed win, records won’t matter. His biggest concern is to make sure his teammates don’t lose focus.

“It’s a whole new season now,” he said. “This is the playoffs. If they don’t know that we are going to get that straight. We are going to get that in everybody’s head. It’s win or go home.”