Raiders' brilliant comeback comes up inches short

With all of Wells talent the Raiders still found themselves falling inches short -- literally.

Trailing by a score with less than a minute left in the game, quarterback DeMarcus Miller slipped a 15-yard pass to Keenan Smith to put the Raiders (3-4, 3-3 Inter-City Central) on the one-yard line.

Getting his first major time under the helm Miller nearly capped a remarkable comeback but the senior came up an inch short as time expired in a 30-22 loss to Douglass last Saturday at Jorndt Field.

"We should've never been in that position," Wells head coach Greg Konieczko said.

Miller stayed strong at in his usual cornerback and punt returner spots, finally harnessing his talents to help Wells rally in an effort to overcome an early 22-0 hole.

In the first quarter Wells fell behind fast behind sloppy play and missed assignments, watching Douglass score three time in the game's first 10 minutes.

On offense it wasn't any better as the Raiders failed to score on first and goal twice in the first half. Another pass was picked off at the goal line.

Foreshadowing the game's end Wells was also stopped on the goal line to end the first half.

In the third quarter Miller tossed a 40-yard bomb to Smith for a score and 22-6 game. Smith had four receptions and 125 yards on the day.

Later in the quarter the Raiders started to roll, as the diverse Miller returned a punt 55 yards for a touchdown, putting Wells behind 22-14.

On what seemed to be a busted play a Douglass running back suddenly emerged from a cluster and broke down the sideline for a 72-yard touchdown and the Raiders were down 30-14.

"We weren't aggressive, and he ran it back 72 yards for a touchdown," Konieczko said. "The story all year long is lack of execution. That touchdown was a massive mistake, we didn't get blocked, we just watched him."

Jordan McGee forced a fumble and recovered the ball at Douglass' one-yard line, and Miller punched it in for his third score to tighten the game at 30-22.

Then the Raiders had one more shot at it, as Miller connected with Marcus McCauley on a 42-yard pass and they combined again for 10 yards to set up the final plays.

Wells play Farragut Saturday, 3 p.m., at Jorndt Field.

Walter Payton 55 Kennedy 0

Payton stayed undefeated in the Inter-City South with a huge win over Kennedy Saturday morning at Rockne Stadium.

The Grizzlies pummeled Kennedy 55-0 to put their win streak at five games, improving to 5-1 overall and 5-0 in the conference.

Payton will play Sullivan Saturday, 11 a.m., at Jorndt Field.