'God shined on the Irish:' Knoxville Catholic tops Father Ryan on last-second touchdown

Braylon Harmon made his move as the buzzer blared.

The Knoxville Catholic wide receiver veered slightly left as he sprinted toward the end zone — and it was enough. Harmon turned and spotted the ball, flipping his hips open and twisting his body to the left.

He caught it at the 3-yard line and tumbled into the end zone as the buzzer stopped.

“God shined on the Irish tonight for some reason,” Catholic coach Korey Mobbs said.

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Harmon’s touchdown tied Catholic with Father Ryan with no time left. Kicker Brock Taylor’s extra point won it, lifting the Catholic to a 43-42 win Friday at home.

“Craziest game I have ever been a part of,” Mobbs said. “Who would have thought at halftime it would end up 43-42? It was 16-14 at halftime.”

Catholic (3-2) got the ball with 28.9 seconds to play at its 37 after Father Ryan (2-5) took a 42-36 lead. Father Ryan wide receiver Charlie Becker hauled in a 29-yard touchdown for the go-ahead score, leaping over Catholic cornerback Sam O’Leary to make the catch. 

Father Ryan botched the extra point with a bad snap, leaving its lead at six. Catholic had a chance and a final say in a game with 990 yards of offense and 55 second-half points.

“I was having hope,” Harmon said. “I am always trying to be positive. I was ready to score. I feel like there is always a chance for you to score. They missed the extra point. We were ready to go score and win.”

Quarterback Jayden Neal hit O’Leary for a 21-yard gain against Father Ryan’s prevent defense. He got Harmon coming across the field for 14 yards, getting Catholic to the 28 with 6.9 seconds to play. Neal looked to his right but fired incomplete in the corner for O’Leary, leaving 1.2 seconds on the clock.

Mobbs instructed his team to think players not plays on the final drive. Neal never looked for anyone but Harmon on the final play. He dropped back and put it in the air before Harmon turned around.

“The coaches just said streak ball,” Harmon said. “Just everybody go deep and whoever gets it, gets it."

Harmon was the only one getting the ball. He flipped back onto his feet after scoring, then raced into a mob of his teammates and ran toward midfield with his hands in the air.

Mobbs frantically tried to corral the sideline and regain order. The Fighting Irish hadn’t won yet.

Taylor, who missed an extra point on Catholic’s first touchdown, had to win it. He joked with holder Rockne Ullrich about the mid-game cancellation of the planned homecoming dance as they lined up.

“Anything to keep the group calm,” Taylor said. “Don’t go in the huddle. Just let each other know it is a PAT. We do it every day.”

The Vanderbilt committed smacked the kick through and bounced away down the field with Ullrich. His teammates picked him up as Becker, the almost-hero for Father Ryan crouched at the goal line.

“We needed this win so bad,” Taylor said. “We had people who wanted to hang their heads but there were so many people walking around saying keep your head up this game is not over.”

It wasn’t over then. It was when Taylor kicked the extra point, finishing the victory after Harmon had his magic moment.

"Twenty-five made a huge play,” Mobbs said. “He is our player.”

Mike Wilson covers University of Tennessee athletics. Email him at michael.wilson@knoxnews.com and follow him on Twitter @ByMikeWilson. If you enjoy Mike’s coverage, consider a digital subscription that will allow you access to all of it.