SPRING GARDEN – All kinds of unusual things can happen on Halloween night. What transpired in the Sand Rock-Spring Garden football game Friday night is a testament to that.

The Class 2A, No. 4 Wildcats attempted to become only the second team in school history to post a perfect 10-0 regular-season record. The only other time a Sand Rock team accomplished that feat was in 1985, when that Wildcat team went 15-0 and claimed a state championship.

While a state championship is still a possibility for this Sand Rock team, the Wildcats saw their chance at a perfect regular-season record fall by the wayside.

Behind a solid rushing attack and a stout defense, Spring Garden captured a 27-21 win in overtime. Ironically, the win by the Panthers gave them an 8-2 mark for the year, which is the best record ever for a Spring Garden football team.

The game came down to a 4th-and-4 at the Spring Garden 4 in overtime. With the Panthers up by six after a Trey Littlefield touchdown, Sand Rock quarterback Justin Mackey dropped back to throw. He wanted to connect with receiver Jake Thompson on a pick route in the corner of the end zone.

However, the Panthers were able to pressure Mackey outside of the pocket, and junior linebacker Cory Davis forced him to throw the ball to one of the Wildcat offensive linemen. The play, which fell short of the first down, was flagged officials for illegal touching, which ended the game.

“I wasn’t even supposed to be going,” said an emotional Davis of the game’s final play. “I just took off and went. I just knew I had to make a big play for my team at the end.”

The play was a microcosm of how the night went for both teams.

Sand Rock’s offense struggled with Spring Garden’s defensive pressure, while the Wildcat defense had a tough time slowing down the Panthers’ rushing attack.

Jake Scott led Spring Garden with 117 yards on 13 carries with a touchdown. Fullback Tyler Messer finished the night with 83 yards on 17 carries and two touchdowns.

“You’ve got to give them a lot of credit,” Sand Rock head coach Russell Jacoway said. “He (Spring Garden coach Jason Howard) had his kids ready to play. We made a lot of mistakes, but we played hard.

“We didn’t defend against their runners, and they ran the ball really hard. There’s not much more I can say. They took it to us, and they deserved it.”

Howard praised his team’s effort on both sides of the ball.

“All of our guys ran the ball really well, and it all starts up front,” he said. “Our offensive line has been blocking well all year, and they continued tonight.

“I thought our defense stepped up and played really well after the first six minutes of the game. They (Sand Rock) hadn’t really been able to run the ball on us all night.”

Sand Rock (9-1) set the tone early in the game on its first possession.

Andy Andrews got things going by putting the Wildcats up 7-0 on a 6-yard touchdown run. Mackey’s extra point made it 7-0 with 10:13 left in the first quarter.

Spring Garden tied the game at 7 with 8:11 to go in the second quarter. Messer scored on a 2-yard touchdown run to cap a 12 play, 86-yard drive. Scott connected on the PAT.

Sand Rock regained the lead with 4:36 left in the first half on Mackey’s 35-yard touchdown pass to Thompson. Mackey made the extra point to give Sand Rock a 14-7 lead.

Mackey completed 14-of-23 passes for 158 yards and a touchdown. He also rushed for 35 yards on eight carries with a score.

Spring Garden had a chance to cut into the Wildcats’ lead just before the half, but a 22-yard field goal attempt by Scott was blocked by Thompson.

The Panthers wasted little time getting on the scoreboard in the third quarter, as Scott scored on a 65-yard touchdown run at the 11:03 mark. Scott made the extra point, which tied the game at 14.

After forcing Sand Rock to punt on its next possession, Messer capped a 9 play, 69-yard drive with a 1-yard touchdown run. Scott’s PAT made it 21-14 Panthers with 5:13 left in the third.

“The guys did a good job up front,” Messer said. “They just opened me some holes up, and I shot through the gaps.”

Sand Rock tied the game at 21-21 with 9:50 to go in the game. Mackey scored on a 26-yard touchdown run, and connected on the extra point.

The Wildcats had a chance to win the game near the end of regulation, but the Panthers’ defense forced Sand Rock to punt from midfield with 48.5 seconds remaining in the game.

Panther quarterback Reece Johnson rushed for a first down and then kneeled the ball on the next play to force overtime.

Spring Garden had the ball first in the extra session. The Wildcats forced the Panthers into a fourth-and-goal situation at the 1-yard line. The Panthers went for it and scored on Littlefield’s touchdown. Scott was wide on the extra point, which could have proven crucial, but Spring Garden had a 27-21 lead.

“I shanked it, and I knew as soon as I hit it. I thought ‘Oh no. I just lost the game,’” Scott said. “My teammates told me just to play defense like I had been doing all night. They told me if they didn’t score, then it didn’t matter.”

Sand Rock had one last chance, but failed to score on fourth-and-4 as Davis got pressure on Mackey.

As thrilling as the win was for the Panthers, Howard knows his team has to put it behind them.

“This has been a great season, but next season (the playoffs) is what really counts,” he said. “We’ve got to focus on Ragland, but it’s a lot better coming off a win than trying to refocus (from a loss).”