Watch: Texas High School Football Game Ends on One of the Wildest Plays of the Season

A dropped lateral and an apparent whistle confusion led to a last-second touchdown as Port Lavaca Calhoun stunned Bay City 7-6 in one of the most chaotic finishes of the Texas high school football season

A Texas high school football game between Port Lavaca Calhoun and Bay City ended in dramatic fashion Friday night. / Cody Thorn

Football has given us some legendary plays that changed the outcomes of games: The Immaculate Reception, The Catch, Miracle at the Meadowlands, Music City Miracle, Hail Flutie, Kick Six, Boise State’s “Statue of Liberty” — the list goes on.

On Friday night, the Port Lavaca Calhoun Sandcrabs found a stunning new way to win — seemingly with some inadvertent assistance.

Calhoun Trailed With Seconds to Play

Trailing Bay City 6-0 with nine seconds left in the game and facing fourth-and-10 from their own 31-yard line, Sandcrabs junior quarterback Ashton Sternadel completed a pass across the middle to senior running back Izaiah Cabrales, who took a few steps before lateraling the ball back to junior receiver Isaiah Morales.

Morales dropped the pitch but quickly scooped up the ball and began running up the field toward the Bay City sideline with defenders giving chase.

That’s when things got weird.

Morales took a few steps and then quit running. Defenders, in turn, quit chasing him. The sound of a whistle was heard just after he scooped the ball, and a field judge ran into the area waving his arms to signal an incomplete pass.

At the same time, a line judge along Bay City’s sideline began walking toward the spot of the dropped lateral, aligning with the umpire who had seemingly blown his whistle and called the lateral an incomplete pass — as if to mark the spot of the dead ball.

The miracle at Sandcrab stadium! Look at this miraculous finish between Port Lavaca Calhoun and Bay City! 🤯 pic.twitter.com/9dYF72kINM

— RobbyCTV (@RevengOfThe4th) November 8, 2025

A Bay City coach standing near the line judge raised his hands in celebration, and the Bay City sideline began to spill onto the field in celebration of the perceived victory.

Chaos as Calhoun Plays Through

Morales, seemingly stunned that the play was blown dead, appeared disgusted as he turned around and began walking back toward the line of scrimmage while still holding the ball. Cabrales, Morales and other Sandcrabs appeared visibly frustrated as they appealed to officials.

Then, it happened. A Sandcrabs teammate nudged Morales up the field, and the two began sprinting toward the end zone. Bay City defenders, seemingly thinking the play was over, stood and watched as the two sprinted away.

An official along Calhoun’s sideline trailed the 61-yard run and signaled for a touchdown when Morales crossed the goal line with no time left on the clock.

As Bay City appealed, Calhoun insisted it was a touchdown. Officials gathered at the Calhoun 44 — the spot where Morales took off — to discuss the play. While the pitch was clearly a lateral, making the drop a fumble and a live ball, an inadvertent whistle would render the play dead at that spot.

Ultimately, officials allowed the touchdown to stand. Senior kicker Hser Eh Say kicked the game-winning extra point, and Calhoun shocked Bay City 7-6.

Video Shows Confusion on the Field

Alternative camera angles posted on social media after the game showed that the umpire had his back to the initial catch but turned around just as the ball hit the ground off the lateral. He immediately began signaling an incomplete pass, and players on the field quickly came to a halt.

It seemed both sidelines had reason to argue.

The result carried big District 15-4A-I implications. With the win, Calhoun finished the regular season 6-4 overall and took second in the district with a 4-1 record. The Blackcats dropped to 7-3 and third in the district at 3-2.

It was not quite The Play — when Stanford’s marching band took the field in 1982 thinking the game against California was over, only for the Golden Bears to run through the band and score the game-winning touchdown — but the pandemonium was similar.

Defensive Battle Before the Fireworks

A defensive battle, the game was relatively free of drama and remained scoreless until Bay City junior quarterback Keimarion Wiggins — despite rushing for minus-38 yards on 11 carries — ran in Bay City’s touchdown in the fourth quarter. The extra point was no good.

Despite being sacked six times, including three by Calhoun junior Gavin Reyes, Wiggins completed 13 of 16 passes for 201 yards. Junior wide receiver Isaac Stinson had 144 of those yards on five receptions.

Cabrales rushed six times for 77 yards and added four receptions for 57 yards. Reyes tied for the Sandcrabs’ lead with eight tackles, including five solo stops, while senior Jaiden Farrow had eight tackles, including four solo, and forced a fumble.

---

Recommended Articles

feed