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Andover stops North Andover at goal line in final seconds

NORTH ANDOVER – With what felt like an entire team piled on top of him, Andover linebacker Arman Koul could hear the fans explode into thunderous applause.

“I was at the bottom of the pile and I heard all the cheering,” said Koul. “But I didn't know what side it was coming from. I was a little nervous and very excited. I knew someone had won the game.”

When the players were finally separated, the football sat just two inches from the goal line, the smallest of margins that separated joy and disappointment on Thanksgiving.

With 34 seconds left in the game, North Andover's Joe Samuelman plowed into the end zone to cut Andover's lead to only one point.

The Scarlet Knights then elected to go for the two-point conversion and the lead, but Samuelman was met by a wall of Andover defenders. Both sides pushed in desperation, with the game in the balance. But after the whistle blew, the ball was two inches shot of the goal line.

“The play was right in front of me and I saw him going towards the ground,” said linebacker Derek Dutton. “I put my helmet on the ball to make sure the ball wasn't going into the end zone. It was a few inches off, and I just stated screaming.”

North Andover attempted a desperation onside kick, but Mikey Comeau recovered to clinch Andover's 42-41 Thanksgiving Day victory over North Andover in the debut of the new rivalry.

“It was just unbelievable,” said Koul, who had 12 tackles and 1.5 sacks. “What a win on Thanksgiving Day. When it mattered, we just had to look at ourselves and say, 'How are we going to end this season? How are we going to end out final game together.' It was an amazing finish.”

For a few moments, it appeared that North Andover was on the verge of a classic holiday victory.

Trailing by two scores heading into the final quarter, freshman Darren Watson opened the fourth with a 52-yard touchdown run. After Andover responded with a score, Samuelman ran for a 34-yard touchdown to make it a seven-point game.

The Knights then came up with their lone defensive stop of the day, taking possession with 7:47 to play.

Fourteen plays later, Samuelman finished off the methodical drive with an 8-yard touchdown with 0:34 left in the game.

“With 30 seconds to go we felt like we had momentum and we had them on the ropes a little,” said Knights coach John Dubzinski. “It was the exact same play as the previous play. We had great blocking and we decided to go for it. You can't second guess yourself. I think it was a no-brainier to go for two points.”

But with the game on the line, the Golden Warriors were up to the task.

“Every day we work on goal line and they had run that play about 50 times before,” said lineman Kris Augustine. “I saw the fullback coming across and I knew they were going to be running off his backside. I had to stuff him and throw him on the ground. He fell on the ground and I got in on the tackle.”

Led by Koul, Augustine, Dutton and cornerback Brandon Marti, Samuelman was tackled short, and the Warriors were just an onside kick away from the win.

“We knew that was the season was on the line and we had to make the play,” said Dutton. “It was scary, but we came though. Then Mikey made a great play, and we could celebrate the holiday.”

It was a huge day for quarterback E.J. Perry IV, who threw five touchdown passes, setting the Eagle-Tribune area record for TD passes in a season with 34. It broke the record of his predecessor, current Bentley QB C.J. Scarpa.

Three of his scores on Thursday were to Dan Gemmell, who finished with 163 receiving yards. He closed out the year with 18 touchdown catches.

For North Andover, Samuelman finishing his high school career in style, rushing for 152 yards and two touchdowns and catching three pass for 96 yards and two more scores. Freshman Watson, the younger brother of injured star Te'Shaun Watson, added 170 yards rushing and two scores.

“It was a special day,” said Perry IV. “Especially after losing on Thanksgiving each of the last three years, we wanted this so bad. It was an amazing game to play, and nothing could be better on Thanksgiving.”