Deja vu: St. Thomas More edges Lafayette Christian on late TD pass to win district
A fit of deja vu broke out on Friday night at Knight Stadium.
With a championship on the line, Lafayette Christian took the lead over rival St. Thomas More with little time left on the clock. And just like what transpired 11 months ago, the Cougars erased a deficit with a touchdown pass with seconds remaining to outlast the Knights 44-40 in another barnburner.
This time, it was for the District 4-4A title instead of last season's LHSAA Division II Select championship in the Caesars Superdome. On the final night of the regular season, STM senior quarterback Sam Altmann connected with receiver Sanders Foreman for the 21-yard game-winning touchdown pass with :21 seconds left that lifted St. Thomas More to the win at LCA.
LCA star quarterback and LSU football commitment Ju'Juan Johnson, who had a stellar game with 395 yards passing, 143 yards rushing and four total touchdowns, got the Knights in position to have a shot to win but his last-second pass went through Trae Grogan's hands in the end zone.
"My mind was kinda in rewind," Foreman said of how another instant classic between the Cougs and Knights finished. "I caught (the game-winning pass) and I thought of (former St. Thomas More receiver Connor) Stelly. He's probably proud of me after that one."
Altmann passed for 297 yards and rushed for two touchdowns before zipping his lone score threw the air on the go-ahead throw for St. Thomas More (10-0, 5-0). A minute before the heroics, a 99-yard fumble returned for a touchdown by LCA's Cooper Martin seemed to propel the Knights (8-2, 4-1) to a remarkable victory.
The snap was low for Altmann at the 1 and he and Gabe Mocek had problems corralling the ball. It popped loose and Martin was there to pick it up and run it back the length of the field.
The only issue? There was 1:44 left on the clock.
"There was a 1:40 and I was like, 'We got this. We've been here before.' I knew what going to happen," Altmann said. "I knew we couldn't get too high, couldn't get too low. We were up 24-6, then they came back and got the lead. I knew we just had to keep it even-keel. Fortunately, we won the game at the end.
"It's never going to be perfect but we keep it rolling to the next play. I love this team. I know where we can go and as long as we keep working, I like where we can be."
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The past two games between the two rivals have come down to the final moments and both times STM delivered the knockout blow via a desperate heave to the end zone. The matchups seemingly always come down to the end.
"I think we're evenly matched, have some offensive power on both sides," STM coach Jim Hightower said. "It was a pretty exciting game for the spectators but a tough game to coach. It looked like we were getting ready to put the game away with a two-score lead but fate wouldn't have it that easy. Fortunately, we were able to put something together at the end."
Every time the two teams face off, it becomes an instant classic. And the players wouldn't have it any other way.
"I love playing them," Foreman said of maybe seeing LCA down the road in the playoffs. "They have fight and they're fun to play. They're good competitors. It's always fun playing someone as good as you."
This article originally appeared on Lafayette Daily Advertiser: Deja vu: St. Thomas More edges Lafayette Christian on late TD pass
