Two fourth quarter goal-line stands preserve Huron's 22-14 win over Tecumseh

with slideshow: Two fourth quarter goal-line stands preserve Huron's 22-14 win over Tecumseh

Posted: Sat, Sep 4, 2010 : 12:48 a.m.

Topics: Prep Sports , Ann Arbor North , Central Ann Arbor , Sports

Huron running back Luke Denson rushed for 110 yards in the River Rats' 22-14 win over Tecumseh and may have established himself as the team's No. 1 option.

Alan Warren | for AnnArbor.com

TECUMSEH -- It was uncanny how well the waning minutes of the fourth quarter set up for the Tecumseh High School football team to sneak out with a comeback victory -- three trips inside the 10-yard line against a tired Huron defense that was on the field for way too long.

Down eight points on fourth-and-goal from the 1-yard line with six minutes left, quarterback Brad Vannatter muffed the snapped, and the Rivers Rats' sideline erupted. Minutes later, the Indians were on the 1-yard line again only to fumble through the end zone to hand the ball back to Huron.

And with less than a minute to go, Tecumseh had one last-grasp shot to tie the game. Four plays later, Huron was in the victory formation to kill the clock, winning 22-14.

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Standing in the end zone after the game, Tecumseh coach Jason Mensing said, "We didn't score from right here," emphatically pointing at the goal line. "It's disappointing and disheartening, but we have two ways to move forward from here. It's fight or flight, and we're confident that these boys have a lot of fight left in them."

Huron coach Corey Gildersleeve was relieved to gut out a win. â€¨â€¨

"We told our kids that this was going to be a black-and-blue game," Gildersleeve said. "We knew we needed to play four quarters, and I'm really proud of how these guys played tonight."

The Indians (0-2, 0-1 SEC White) had completely shut down Huron in the first half. The River Rats had just 20 yards of offense heading into the break, but were only down 14-7.

"At halftime, we just decided to make the game ours," junior tailback Luke Denson said. "We wanted to come out and win this thing."

Denson was the vital piece to the River Rats' second-half dominance, and may have solidified himself as the starter within a position group that has been searching for a No. 1 option.

He trucked through the Tecumseh defense for 85 yards after halftime -- finishing with 110 yards total -- and woke up the slumbering Huron offense.

"We decided to go with him this week, and he played great," Gildersleeve said.

After fumbling deep in their on territory on the first drive of the third quarter, the River Rats (1-1, 1-0 SEC Red) held the Indians and came back with their first solid drive of the game.

Huron quarterback Alex Hassan punched it in from one yard out -- on what Gildersleeve called a little "trickeration" -- running a fake field goal to take a 15-14 lead.

Early in the fourth quarter, Denson took over, bursting for a 32-yard sprint that set up his only touchdown of the day. From there on out, it was all Tecumseh, but the Indians couldn't find the end zone.

"On one side, I'm proud of how our guys fought and closed out the win," Gildersleeve said. "On the other, we have a lot of things we need to work out, on offense and defense. We have to shore some things up."