Final drive was something Bedford football worked on all season long

Zach Matthews was not happy with Colby Snow's decision.

With just over two minutes left in Saturday's Division I championship game, and the Bedford High School football team trailing Londonderry by two points, the Bulldogs were about to force the Lancers to punt.

Snow was back to field the kick from Trevor Weinmann, but instead let it bounce and roll. The ball continued to roll, and roll, all the way down to the Bedford 11-yard line, where it was downed by the Lancers.

So with 2:08 left on the clock, and just one timeout remaining, the Bulldogs would need to go a long way if they were going to pull out a win.

But it was a situation they had been preparing for, just in case.

"We worked on two-minute drill at the end of practice (Friday) and we executed it perfectly," Bedford quarterback Danny Black said. "We had confidence if we needed it (Saturday)."

It started with an incomplete pass, but on second down, Black was able to scramble for a 9-yard gain and get out of bounds to stop the clock with 1:56 remaining. He got the first down on third-and-1, connecting with Dom Tagliaferro for an 11-yard gain, with the junior receiver getting out of bounds at the 31 with 1:50 to play.

"The connection we have with our team and the receivers have with the quarterback, Danny was just putting it on us and we were able to make plays," Tagliaferro said.

"Me and Dom went to elementary school together and we’re really good friends," Black added. "I have trust in him. I’ve got trust in my guys and we played really well (Saturday)."

Black found Kevin Sheridan for a 5-yard gain on first down, but on second down, he tried to go deep to Tagliaferro and Londonderry's Andrew Kullman almost ended the game with an interception.

Instead, Bedford faced a third-and-5, and with no one open and the pocket collapsing, Black scrambled again. This time, he was only able to get a yard as he approached the sideline, but a push by a Londonderry player was flagged for a late hit.

The personal foul gave the Bulldogs a first down at the Lancers' 49-yard line.

Black tried to go down the sideline to Tagliaferro again, but good coverage by Weinmann forced an overthrow, stopping the clock with 1:22 remaining. The Bulldogs picked up back-to-back first downs, as Black hit Snow for 10 yards and Joel Poltronieri for 14 to give Bedford a first down at the 25 with 1:06 left.

"We knew if we executed, we were going to be in a good situation," Matthews said. "Do you ever think you’re going to execute like that? It was ridiculous."

But on the next two plays, Black tried to go back to Sheridan and both passes fell incomplete, setting up third-and-10 with under a minute to play.

Black went back to Tagliaferro on third down, connecting over the middle for an 11-yard gain and another first down, but on the play, Tagliaferro was hit in the back and stayed down.

"Danny threw it up and I wasn’t expecting the kid to hit me," he said. "I just got the wind knocked out of me. As soon as I was good, I was able to breath better and I came back in."

With a new set of downs, now at the Lancers' 14-yard line, Black found Evan Cibotti in the end zone, but the ball came out late as the senior went out of bounds. Bedford was called for a delay of game before the next play, making it second-and-15 from the Londonderry 19.

After an incompletion, Black found Tagliaferro for a third time on the drive, this time for 9 yards, setting up fourth-and-6 at the 10. Bedford took its final timeout with 17.1 seconds left and got the field goal team on the field.

"I didn’t think he was going to kick it," Londonderry coach Jimmy Lauzon said. "You’re in range. We’d blocked an extra point. They had just barely missed on some throws, so I thought they were going to go for it. We talked about both scenarios."

Following Bedford's first touchdown of the game - a 7-yard scoring pass from Black to Tagliaferro - Londonderry blew up the point after, blocking the kick and forcing the Bulldogs to try for two after their next score.

Despite that, Matthews felt more confident about a field goal try.

"I thought about it for two seconds," the coach said. "Colby has hit 45-yarders in practice, but he also misses four out of 10 extra points. It’s feast or famine. I know he has plenty of leg, I just don’t know if he has the accuracy. We got the kids in the huddle, and I said ‘Colby, I love ya, whatever happens with this kick doesn’t change that.’ The rest of the kids gave him a hug and we rolled the dice."

Snow's kick from 27 yards out had plenty of distance and split the uprights with 13 seconds left to give Bedford its only lead of the game, 15-14.

"For some reason, I feel way more confident in Colby making a field goal than an extra point," Tagliaferro said. "I was pretty confident in him and his ability to make that."

Snow also felt confident in the kick, but it didn't stop him from being nervous in the situation.

"My guts dropped and then when it went through, I thought I was going to have a heart attack," he said. "We kept bombing it and making passes that were just so clutch. It got me in the right spot."

Black was 6 of 13 for 60 yards on the drive to go with 10 rushing yards and Tagliaferro caught three of those passes for 31 yards.

"We work two-minute drill every week of the whole season," Matthews said. "That goes from preseason camp to the end of November. You never know when you’re going to use it. We’ve been working four months of two-minute drill once a week. We always go best on best and we drive the field. Do you ever think you’re going to need it to win a state championship? No, but that came to fruition. That’s why I think they were comfortable in that situation."