Notre Dame finally ran into a football team it couldn't dominate.
Defending Class 3-A state champ Alcoa came to Finley Stadium for a key semifinal battle with the Fighting Irish and they headed back home with another berth in the state finals after battling to a 28-19 victory on Friday night.
The Irish had five turnovers that led directly to three of Alcoa's four touchdowns, including a fumble in the first quarter that was returned for a TD. They also had to battle a bullish running back named Jaquez Tyson, who was bigger than any Notre Dame defender and provided all the offense necessary after gaining 279 yards on 50 carries and scoring three TDs.
It certainly wasn't the ending that coach Charles Fant and his scrappy team expected.
"You know, we could have given up when we were down 21-0, but we just kept on battling," he said following a defeat that snapped a 12-game winning streak.
"We all have heavy hearts right now, but we'll never forget the great things we did this season. We had way too many turnovers and they scored at least three touchdowns as a result. You just can't do that against a team like Alcoa.
"A lot of people didn't expect us to get this far, but I can't begin to tell you how proud I am of these guys. We gave it all we had. We could have quit early, but we didn't. I wish we could have found a way to win, but it took mistakes on our part for our team to get beat tonight," he added.
Alcoa coach Gary Rankin, who became the winningest football coach in the state of Tennessee with Friday's win, hit the nail on the head with his first post-game comment.
"Tyson carried us tonight as we did a good job of knocking them off the ball. I'm proud of these kids for being so resilient, but they know how to rise to the occasion when they have to. We're going back to the state finals next weekend and that's all that matters," he added.
Braxton Dockery got the first when he literally took the ball away from Jared Andrews following a pass reception near midfield. Dockery then zipped 51 yards for a touchdown and the visitors were ahead by 7-0 with 3:52 showing in the first quarter.
Dockery was in the right place at the right time on Notre Dame's next possession as he covered a loose ball at the Irish 24 at the 2:59 mark of the first stanza.
It took the Tornado five plays and less than two minutes to score again, but by the time Tyson plowed into the end zone from the 3 at the 1:12 mark, Alcoa's lead was 14-0.
Tyson's second TD came on a 26-yard run midway through the second quarter and it looked like the wheels might completely fall off for the Irish, but instead of tossing in the white towel, they scored two touchdowns in the final minute to get within 21-13 at the break.
Kareem Orr intercepted an Alcoa pass to set up a 26-yard touchdown strike from quarterback Alex Darras to receiver Jared Andrews with 23 seconds left and the difference was 21-6 when the kick failed.
Notre Dame then recovered an onside kick and the Irish were in luck at the Alcoa 34.
Darras had one incomplete pass before hooking up with Orr, who made a leaping catch in the end zone to complete the 34-yard play.
The Irish got the second-half kickoff and could have really made things interesting with another score, but Alcoa's defense stood tall and got its third turnover at the start of the second half when Dustin Clabough intercepted a Darras pass.
The difference was still eight points when the fourth quarter began, but Alcoa gave itself a little breathing room when Tyson scored from the 3 following yet another Notre Dame turnover. The difference was 28-13 with 7:01 to play, but the Irish still weren't ready to surrender.
Notre Dame then marched 64 yards in 10 plays, drawing a little bit closer when Darras found Orr in the end zone from the 14. The extra point was blocked on a controversial leap over the Notre Dame line, but no flag was thrown and the difference was nine points with 4:13 to play.
The Tornado then recovered the onside kick and were able to run out the clock after Notre Dame burned its final timeouts.
Alcoa finished with 310 yards total offense including 292 on the ground and 18 yards on one pass completion. Tyson had 153 yards on 23 attempts in the first half and added 126 more on 27 carries in the final two quarters.
Notre Dame countered with 225 yards total offense, including 162 yards through the air, but just 63 on the ground.
Auston Banks was limited to just 66 yards on 15 carries and he also had three pass receptions for 22 yards. Orr was the leading receiver with 75 yards on four catches, including the two touchdowns. Andrews had six grabs for 66 yards and the one TD.
Alcoa also won the first down battle, 18-13.
Alcoa is now 13-1 while Notre Dame finishes at 12-2.
ALCOA 14 7 0 7 -- 28
NOTRE DAME 0 13 0 6 -- 19
A -- Braxton Dockery 51 fumble return (Augustine Posada kick), 3:52 left in first;
A -- Jaquez Tyson 3 run (Posada kick), 1:12 left in first;
A -- Tyson 26 run (Posada kick), 7:36 left in second;
ND -- Jared Andrews 26 pass from Alex Darras (kick failed), 0:23 left in second;
ND -- Kareem Orr 34 pass from Darras (Rhys Robertson kick), 0:08 left in second;
A -- Tyson 3 run (Posada kick), 7:01 left in fourth;
ND -- Orr 14 pass from Darras (kick blocked), 4:13 left in fourth.
(email John Hunt at nomarathonmoose@comcast.net)