So the Pointers didn't panic when the Patriots scored to go ahead 26-22 with 2:49 left to play.
Instead, Van Buren utilized a long kickoff return and some timely plays to earn a 29-26 playoff victory at Southern Bancorp Stadium in the first round of the Class 6A playoffs.
The Pointers (4-7) got a 43-yard kickoff return from Blayne Pruitt into Marion territory. They cashed that big play in on third-and-5 when quarterback Hayden Williford hit Elijah Johnson for a 16-yard touchdown pass with 39 seconds left.
"Just really proud of our kids and coaches for finding a way with that one," Van Buren Coach Moe Henry said. "We played well a lot of the night, and it still almost didn't matter. But we made the plays when we needed it, and that's what the playoffs are all about."
Pointer safety Landon Evans intercepted Marion's Zayden Walker with 25 seconds left to clinch victory.
Van Buren's heroics nullified Marion's (7-4) late-game fireworks.
The Patriots took over at their own 36 with 3:00 left in regulation when senior running back Jalen Smith took a direct snap, rolled left and lofted a pass to junior tailback Rico Ward. Ward collected the pass and was pushed out of bounds at the Van Buren 6.
Smith ran over the left side one play later for a go-ahead score with 2:49 left that gave the Patriots their first lead since it was 7-0.
The 7-0 lead was the result of Marion's 12-play, 80-yard touchdown march after the game's opening kickoff.
The drive was propped up by three Marion third-down conversions, the last of which went for 32 yards on a Ward touchdown run with 7:09 left in the first quarter. The Patriots carried their seven-point cushion into the second.
Van Buren evened the score 7-7 three plays into the second when running back Cameron Keller broke off a 36-yard touchdown run with 11:14 left in the first half.
Following a Marion punt, Van Buren embarked on a seven-play, 64-yard drive that Keller paid off with a 10-yard scoring run for a 14-7 Pointer advantage.
It took Van Buren just two plays on its ensuing drive to take a 22-7 lead when Williford hit receiver Trenton Cooley for an 85-yard touchdown pass with 2:53 left in the second.
Marion got within 22-14 at halftime when Ward added a 7-yard touchdown run late in the first half.
"I thought it was important to have the lead at halftime," Henry said. "We did a lot right in the first half and it was good for us to take that with us. I wish we'd built on to it a little bit, but we felt good getting to halftime with the lead, and it helped us, I think."
Marion got within 22-20 when sophomore Jeremiah Dent ran 48 yards to the end zone with 22 seconds left in the third. The Pointers stuffed Marion's Christan Young at the 1 with the 2-point conversion to keep Van Buren on top.
Marion forced back-to-back Van Buren turnover on downs to set itself up for its late-game charge.
Following Smith's touchdown, a personal foul penalty forced Marion to kickoff from its own 25-yard line, giving Pruitt the runway to move into Marion territory.
The Pointers picked up one first down before a pair of rushes netted them 5 yards, setting the stage for Williford and Johnson's big play.
"Our coaches work really hard and they have a lot of great ideas for plays, a lot of them we may never run," Henry said. "We felt good w... Click here to read full article
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