Patel’s ‘Hail Mary’ pass ruled a catch, not a TD, as Antioch falls short vs. Sycamore
Antioch’s season was on the line when senior quarterback Ethan Patel threw a long pass downfield in the final seconds on Saturday.
As senior wide receiver Chance Verden ran into the end zone with the ball in his hands, Patel understandably thought the Sequoits were headed to the state quarterfinals for the first time since 2018.
“It was a Hail Mary,” Patel said. “I just rolled out and threw it up. I thought it hit the ground, but I guess Chance caught it off the tip, and then I saw him holding the ball in the end zone, and then I thought we won the game. I thought that was it.”
After officials huddled, Verden was credited with a catch off a deflection but not the touchdown due to an inadvertent whistle. Instead, top-seeded Antioch was given an untimed play from ninth-seeded Sycamore’s 13-yard line.
Given another opportunity, Patel threw a pass into the end zone, but it was tipped again and intercepted by junior safety Dylan Curtis, allowing the visiting Spartans to escape with a 32-28 win in the second round of the Class 5A playoffs.
The outcome resulted in a lengthy postgame debriefing and left Brian Glashagel, who has been Antioch’s coach for 20 years, searching for answers.
“In all my years of coaching, that’s never happened,” Glashagel said. “I’ve never seen anything like that. I’ve got a couple of guys who have been coaching for 50 years and have never seen anything like that.
“We were down to our last play, but as long as there’s time on the clock, we feel like there’s a chance.”
It was an unlikely chance, but the Sequoits (10-1) were well equipped for it. Patel, who repeatedly put pressure on Sycamore (8-4), completed 20 of 26 passes for 291 yards and three touchdowns. He seemingly had a fourth.
“He threw it up, and I saw it, so I ran to it and saw two kids jump up for it,” Verden said. “While the ball was in the air, it got mumbled up, and they dropped it while they fell. It was up in the air, and I caught it while I was over them, and I ran into the end zone.
“I didn’t hear the whistle, and I thought we won because I scored. Actually, I know we won the game, but there’s not much I can do.”
Patel and Verden had done a lot already. Patel’s second touchdown pass, a 38-yarder to Verden with 2:34 left in the third quarter, came on a 4th-and-25 play and gave the Sequoits a 21-17 lead. It also followed Patel’s first interception, which Sycamore converted into points. Patel completed 5 of 7 passes on the drive.
“Something my dad always told me when I was younger was to flush it, and that’s what I did,” he said. “We still had a game out here to go and win, so that was the mindset I tried keeping. I needed to keep my guys together and give us a chance.”
Patel’s third touchdown throw was a pitch-pass on the following possession. Junior running back Logan Lennon, who had already caught a touchdown pass, took it 74 yards to give Antioch a 28-17 lead with a minute left in the third quarter.
Sycamore answered, however, with touchdowns on its last two possessions. That set the stage for the frenzied conclusion, which left Patel in a reflective mood, rather than the celebratory one he thought was on tap only moments earlier.
“I’m going to look back at this season, and I’m going to be proud of everything we accomplished,” he said. “I’m not going to look at any individual plays but will look back at the relationships I built and playing with my guys from my hometown for the last time. That’s what I’m really going to remember.”