Mudsock drama matches 'awesome' atmosphere as HSE football beats Fishers in OT — again

FISHERS — Judah Parker went rogue.

The Hamilton Southeastern senior linebacker was not supposed to shoot the gap on Fishers’ 2-point conversion attempt in overtime. But Parker noticed his defense was not lined up correctly anyway. So hey, he thought: Go make a play.

“I moved our outside linebacker just to free up a gap,” he said. “I shot it and it was wide open. I just wanted to play football, you know?”

Parker’s timing couldn’t have been more perfect as he stopped Fishers running back Khobie Martin in the backfield. “Right when I saw him,” Martin said, “I knew there was nothing I could do.”

Week 4 roundup: Mudsock OT thriller, Ben Davis falls to IMG, lights go out

Hamilton Southeastern scored on its overtime possession on a 6-yard run by Jalen Alexander and the extra point by Hugo Belmonte set off a wild celebration as HSE defeated Fishers 35-34 in front of more than 8,000 fans in the annual Mudsock game.

The elation in blue was matched by the disappointment in red. It was the second consecutive year HSE defeated Fishers by one point in overtime.

“It’s awesome to see our students come out like they did and our fans,” HSE coach Michael Kelly said. “I don’t think our kids really understand that they are playing in front of more fans right now than most of them would if they went off to college. The environment we have here is awesome.”

The game matched the environment. Class 6A fourth-ranked Hamilton Southeastern used big plays to burn sixth-ranked Fishers, scoring its four touchdowns in regulation on runs of 96 yards and 72 yards by Jalen Alexander, a 67-yard run by quarterback Chandler Weston and a 67-yard pass from Weston to Donovan Hamilton.

But even with those big plays, the Royals (4-0 overall, 2-0 Hoosier Crossroads Conference) were unable to shake Fishers (3-1, 1-1). Alexander’s 72-yard touchdown run came after a holding call in the Fishers secondary turned a 3rd-and-12 into a 3rd-and-2. The Ball State commit hit the goal line with 6:45 left to give the Royals a 28-21 lead.

Alexander, wearing No. 24 in white and blue, finished with 200 yards rushing and three touchdowns on 17 carries. But the No. 24 in red was just as tough. Martin carried the load on a nine-play, 80-yard drive to tie the score, scoring on a 6-yard run with 3:44 left to make it 28-28.

Martin finished with 285 rushing yards and three touchdowns on 37 carries. “He’s a dude,” Kelly said. “Unbelievable.”

HSE had one more chance at the end of regulation taking over at the Fishers’ 47 after Mason Alexander’s kickoff return that followed two Tigers’ penalties on kicks out of bounds. The Royals advanced to Fishers’ 31 and Kelly sent out Belmonte to attempt a 48-yard field goal with the wind at his back.

After two timeouts, the junior's kick came up 2 or 3 yards short.

“I knew that I had a good chance,” Belmonte said. “I had the wind at my back. … it was really close.”

After Belmonte’s attempt with 13 seconds remaining, Fishers took a knee and sent the game to overtime. It was a near-repeat of last year’s game, which Hamilton Southeastern won at home 27-26. Last year, Fishers had the ball first and did not get the extra point off after a touchdown. HSE scored and made the extra point for the win.

That played into the decision-making for Fishers coach Curt Funk after Martin scored on a 4-yard run on second down to give the Tigers a 34-28 lead. HSE then jumped offsides in an effort to block the extra point. With the ball resting at the 1-yard-line, Funk took the extra-point team off the field and sent in the offense.

“Last year we opted to kick it and things didn’t go our way,” Funk said. “I thought, ‘Hey, we got a yard.’ They had a great call against our play. I probably should have called timeout there and we should have reset. That’s something that will haunt me, but credit No. 46 (Parker) for making a play.”

Alexander scored on HSE’s second play on a 6-yard touchdown run. Alexander actually picked the ball up after a near-disaster of an errant snap to quarterback Chandler Weston and carried it into the end zone. Fishers burned its last timeout before Belmonte’s extra-point attempt, but his kick was perfect.

“I’ve got one job,” Belmonte said with a smile.

Hamilton Southeastern, which took a 21-7 lead into halftime, hosts 4-0 and seventh-ranked Westfield next week, while Fishers as it second-ranked Brownsburg (4-0). The emotions of the teams could not have been much different leaving the field Friday night.

It could be the second of two games between the rivals, who could meet again in Sectional 3.

“It hurts,” Martin said. “We got into the second half, we were moving the ball and scoring. I 100% thought we were about to win. It hurts.”

And on the other side?

“It’s so amazing,” Parker said. “Fans on both sides are so great and make this game so fun. It’s going to be fun to see Fishers again in the sectional. I’m excited.”

Call Star reporter Kyle Neddenriep at (317) 444-6649.

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: IHSAA football: HSE does it again in OT to beat Fishers in Mudsock