In the final play of the third overtime in the St. Elizabeth/Northern Kentucky Football Coaches Association's East-West All-Star Game, the East All-Stars had the chance.
If they made the touchdown from 15 and goal they'd tie it and have a chance for a two-point conversion. If they didn't, the long night ended in the hands of their opponents.
Quarterback Caleb Jacob took the snap for the East All-Stars and fired it up the center toward the end zone. It spiraled through the air, and eventually over the heads of receivers, Jacob fell to his knees and the West All-Stars claimed their 40-34 victory.
"It’s a lot to throw 10 teams together, 10 different groups of kids and 10 coaches and try to make an offense and defense together and have them play at the caliber they did," West All-Stars head coach Greg Taphouse said. "Kudos to the kids, they prevailed it was awesome.”
The win came from a competitive night sealed at the hands of Ryle High School senior Matthias Cusick. Cusick earned game MVP in what he called the perfect way to end his high school football career.
“Great performance; I’m proud of it,” Cusick said. “Perfect way to go out…I’m happy with it.
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Cusick tallied four touchdowns on the night. If one thing stayed consistent in the triple-overtime thriller, it was Cusick’s dominance on the offensive end.
“He was a great runner. He was a great asset to us. He put the team on his back when we needed him,” Taphouse said. “He’s a workhorse and we owe a lot to him on offense.”
Cusick started his night with a touchdown connection from quarterback Bradyn Lyons in the second quarter. It was based on chemistry Cusick and Lyons had built during their time playing together at Ryle, but in the third quarter, Cusick really found his running shoes.
Early out of the halftime gates, Cusick sprinted along the sideline and spun around East All-Star defenders to give his team a first down and a chance to break the 14-14 halftime tie.
Later in the possession, Cusick did it again, this time battling through a mass of East All-Star defenders only to be taken down at the 1-yard line. In the play that ensued, Cusick finished what he started, rushing across the goal line to give the West All-Stars their third touchdown of the game.
Cusick became the go-to guy for the West All-Stars in overtime, scoring two of the three touchdowns made by his team at the end.
So what kept Cusick going through three overtimes and four touchdowns?
For him, it's simple.
“Passion," Cusick said. "I love the game. I was born into the game. I love it and I stay in the game.”
Not only did Cusick's passion carry him through a triple-overtime night, but it also kept him driven as his helmet broke during the game.
"He broke his helmet at one point and he came out and he said ‘give me another helmet,’ so we gave him another one," Taphouse said. "He ended up taping up his other helmet and he went back in and kept going."
Cusick shook off the helmet fiasco, grinning as he looked down at the white medicine tape wrapped around the side of his helmet.
“We figured out some way. I was out for a few plays but we figured it out real quick," Cusick said.
On the East All-Stars, Jacob led his team to the near photo finish. He scored all of the teams three touchdowns in regulation and bailed them out of some close fumble calls.
Cusick will play football next year at Thomas More University. Jacob will play at Georgetown College.
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