Smoky Mountain’s Nate Coffey passed for 309 yards Friday in Canton.
CANTON – In honor of an upcoming haunted holiday, spooky music played regularly over Pisgah Memorial Stadium’s loudspeakers throughout Friday’s game.
For hometown fans, the real scare traveled over the Balsam Mountains from Jackson County.
Sparked by a quarterback change and a long fumble return for a touchdown, visiting Smoky Mountain rallied back from a 24-0 deficit to make the entire second half suspenseful and put Pisgah’s unbeaten season in jeopardy.
Not until bruising fullback Michael Parrott converted a fourth-and-two in the game’s waning moments did the Haywood County fans roar in relief as the Bears held on for a 45-40 victory.
“In preparing for this week, one thing I felt (Smoky Mountain) had an advantage on was height,” Pisgah coach Brett Chappell said. “If you looked out at their wide receivers, they were long receivers and had good height. They did a really good job calling their spread plays taking advantage of what we did defensively.
“We knew coming into this, even though we had the big win over Tuscola, these last three games would be just as tough,” Chappell added. “My hat’s off to Smoky Mountain. I thought their kids played their guts off. Our kids played hard. It was a great game, and thankfully we made enough plays to win the game.”
Isaiah Fisher scored on three of his four carries and hauled in what turned out to be a decisive 56-yard touchdown pass from Tanner Wike with 5:23 remaining. Wike rushed for 93 yards and two touchdowns, and Chase Henson had two vital interceptions for the Bears (10-0, 6-0 WNCAC).
But defensive highlights were otherwise in short supply for Pisgah, which closes out its season Friday at Brevard.
“I think we brought it all on ourselves,” Parrott said. “It definitely wasn’t how we saw this game going. Our pass defense can definitely use some improvement, which I’m sure we’ll work on this week. … I expect it to be a grueling week of practice, and that’s as it should be.”
A week after getting shut out for the first time this season in a 43-0 loss to Brevard, Smoky Mountain coach Chris Brookshire moved Nate Coffey to quarterback after a few first-quarter series.
Coffey responded by completing 27 of 47 passes for 305 yards and two touchdowns with one interception.
Matthew Ridley rushed 15 times for 136 yards and two touchdowns for the Mustangs (6-4, 2-4).
“I’m so proud of our kids,” Brookshire said. “They didn’t quit. I’m going to tell you right now, this game is a builder for our program. We know the direction we’re headed, and we’ve got a lot of football left to play.”
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