Coppell upsets Allen with game-winning touchdown in overtime

Allen (Texas) came into Friday night's game with Coppell (Texas) undefeated, ranked No. 1 in Texas, and No. 15 nationally in MaxPreps Xcellent 25. But when the final whistle sounded, Coppell was the only undefeated team left on the field.

Host Coppell (5-0) won the game in overtime, 27-24, on a 23-yard touchdown pass from Colby Mahon to Cameron Smith. The score came after the Cowboy defense forced Allen into settling for a field goal after a first-and-goal from the 1-yard line.

Mahon ran for a touchdown and passed for 165 yards and two scores — both to Smith, who caught six passes for 129 yards. Gavin McDaniel was the workhorse for a strong Cowboy running game, picking up 116 yards on 20 carries.

Tied at 21 at the end of regulation, Coppell won the coin toss and elected to play defense first in the college-style overtime rules, where both teams alternate starting on the opponent's 25-yard line.

Allen wasted no time, earning a 1st-and-goal at the 1 after a 15-yard Kyler Murray run. After being stopped on first and second down, the Eagles were called for a costly delay of game penalty, backing the ball up to the 6-yard line. After a Murray incomplete pass, the Eagles settled for a 23-yard field goal by Carlos Arochi.

Coppell lined up knowing that a touchdown would win the game, and it didn't take long for the vision to become a reality. On second down, Mahon fired a 23-yard touchdown pass to Smith to give Coppell the upset victory, and the home fans excitedly rushed the field.

Coppell showed from the start that it wasn't intimidated, building an early 13-0 lead.

Starting from their own 32 on their first drive, the Cowboys used the running game, including a 15-yard run by Jacob Logan, to march down the field. They ended up with a 35-yard field goal by Adam Centers with five minutes left in the quarter to give them a 3-0 lead.

After forcing Allen to punt Coppell kept the ball on the ground on its second possession, once again driving into Allen territory. Centers knocked in another field goal, this time from 39 yards, and the Cowboys extended their lead to 6-0.

Coppell continued the scoring effort on its next possession with the help of a 20-yard pass to Smith on fourth down to bring the ball to Allen's 9. Facing yet another fourth down, Mahon ran the ball in from two yards out to give the Cowboys a commanding 13-0 lead with 7:00 left in the first half.

Allen finally picked up some momentum after recovering a fumble at its own 43-yard line. Quarterback Oliver Pierce led his team into the red zone on three completions and a run, to set up the Eagles at Coppell's 7. Pierce then got the Eagles on the scoreboard with a 3-yard run with just under a minute left in the second quarter, cutting the Coppell lead to 13-7 at halftime.

The score remained the same until the end of the third quarter, when Murray took over at quarterback for Allen. Murray and the offense put together a nine-play, 68-yard drive capped by a 4-yard Murray touchdown run, to take a 14-13 lead with just over a minute left in the quarter.

It was more of the same for Allen on its next possession, as a 49-yard touchdown run by Murray extended the Eagles' lead to 21-13.

With Allen looking as if it had momentum on its side, Coppell fought back with a gritty nine-play, 95-yard touchdown drive. The touchdown came on a 35-yard pass from Mahon to Smith, and Luke Jenner charged into the end zone for the 2-point conversion to tie the game, 21-21, with 5:03 left in the fourth quarter.

Allen and Coppell were both forced to punt on their next possessions, setting up the potential game-winning drive for Allen on its own 29-yard line with just over a minute remaining. On third-and-5 at their own 34 yard line, however, the Eagles were stuffed by the Coppell defense and forced to punt, ending any hopes of winning in regulation.

After an incomplete pass Coppell ran out the clock, content to try to win the game in overtime.

After a much-deserved bye week, Coppell will take its 5-0 record to Hebron (Carrollton, Texas) on Oct. 12. Allen (4-1), also with next week off, will head to Plano East (Plano, Texas) for its next game.