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| TYLER - Chris Butcher saved his last run for the best one.
With less than a minute remaining in they game, Butcher took his usual pitch to the right, faked a reverse handoff to Daydrion Taylor, and streak 27 yards to the end zone to cap a 20-17 come-from-behind Longview victory over scrapper Tyler Lee here Saturday at Rose Stadium. Taylor had taken the handoff one drive earlier and picked 31 yards to on a key play, but Lee bit the fake this time. The seemingly improbable comeback kept the Lobos (4-3-1 and 2-0-1) in the District 13-5A title hunt and set the stage for a showdown against undefeated, untied league-leader John Tyler Friday night at Lobo Stadium. The win was the Lobos' second straight. The game was postponed Friday night because of the inclement weather, but it looked like Lee had stormed to the upset win Saturday when Kyle Dews scored his second touchdown to put the Raiders up by three, 16-13. There was no scoreboard clock, thanks to the storm, but when Bill Potts booted the point-after there wasn't much time left. The Lobos, however, bounced back and needed only seven plays to go 57 yards following a 20-yard Cory Hutchings kickoff return. Hutchings, who stepped in after Kevin Miles was injured just moments earlier, also found Butcher on a third-down screen pass which gained nine yards to keep the drive alive. With the 27-yard touchdown, Butcher, who scored on a nifty, almost stumbling 18-yard run early in the fourth period, also went over the 1,000 yard mark. He needed 111 coming in and finished with 121 on 20 carries. This is the seventh straight year for Longview to have a 1,000 yard rusher. Potts had booted a 36-yard field goal in the third period to boost Lee (2-5-1, 0-3) into a 10-7 advantage, but Butcher's first touchdown gave Longview a 13-10 margin. Dews then came back with his second score and another Lee lead in the see-saw battle. Each team scored the first two times it had the ball, and Longview had the ball for all but nine plays in the first half, but it still ended in a 7-7 deadlock. The Lobos drove 51 yards on the game's initial possession and Taylor capped the 10-play march with a three-yard scoring run. The drive came exclusively on the ground and only once required a third-down conversion and the longest runs was a nine-yarder by Butcher. Lee answered on the ensuing possession by moving 75 yards on just six plays. Two of the plays netted 62 yards, including the final 23 on a tackle-breaking scamper up the middle by Dews. Three plays earlier quarterback Josh Gentry had hooked up with Dwayne King on a 39-yard pass play. King had a 61-yard kickoff return to set up Lee's final touchdown. The only other time the Raiders had the ball, a third-down pass resulted in an interception by Longview's Chris Cox, who returned the ball 22 yards to the Lee 13-yard line. With time running out, Cliff Harris attempted a 29-yard field goal on third won but was wide right. Longview also reached Lee's 27-yard line but a 10-yard illegal block penalty ruined that opportunity. The Lobos return home to play host to John Tyler in a crucial district tame Friday night and Lee treks to Nacogdoches. |