COLUMN: There were so many ways to count No. 3 University High’s 20-13 Mohawk Bowl win as an all-timer
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MORGANTOWN - One thousand eight hundred and twenty-seven days. University High star receiver Hayden George counted them up.
That's how much time had passed since the 2021 Mohawk Bowl, the last time the Hawks had knocked off city rival Morgantown High prior to Friday's thrilling 20-13 victory inside Pony Lewis Field.
"I looked it up," George confirmed.
We'll take his word for it.
It's at this point, we're supposed to throw in some type of personal reflection or anecdote on how the third-ranked Hawks (10-0) pulled this one out, especially after George's 40-yard touchdown reception on a halfback pass from teammate Brody Kehler ended up being the winning score with all of five seconds remaining in the game.
Except George's love for the calendar kind of threw a monkey wrench into those plans, and, quite honestly, the way this entire game played out did the same.
The right team won. The wrong team won. Both statements were as true as the sun will come up tomorrow morning. When the final horn sounded, each team had built up about a dozen reasons as to why it should have won this game.
And there's no arguing against any of those reasons from here.
All we know for sure is that in 32 years of the Mohawk Bowl - the rivalry didn't officially earn that moniker until 1994 - what transpired on Friday was a game that may never be forgotten over the course of the next 32 Mohawk Bowls.
"You had so many different players making the big plays tonight," UHS head coach Eric Snyder said. "And then you also had some key mistakes made by some big-time players, too. (Morgantown) made so many big plays, but our guys kept moving on to the next play and were able to buckle down and respond."
The game had more storylines than any daytime soap opera could ever dream of, and George found himself intertwined in so many of them, which we will get to in just a moment.
But first, with all apologies to Martinsburg quarterback Brian Dick, the two top quarterbacks in Class AAAA - maybe even the entire state - were on display inside Pony Lewis Field.
Morgantown High's Maddox Twigg and University High's Harrison Helbig put on a show. Twigg finished with 113 yards rushing and 123 yards passing. His scrambles were art. At least a dozen times a UHS defender was in position to drop him for a loss only to grasp at nothing but air.
Helbig passed for 210 yards and a touchdown, but he had a 9-yard run in the fourth quarter that will never be forgotten.
Not known as a runner, Helbig tucked the ball on this play only to be met at the 1-yard line by a MHS defender. The collision was epic. And just when you thought there was no way Helbig was getting up from it, he bounced up, quickly celebrated and then tied the game two plays later with a 1-yard run to make it 13-13 with 8:19 remaining in the game.
For those who see Helbig as some type of finesse pocket passer or just some type of system quarterback, he proved otherwise in that moment. He's really one tough you know what.
"If I was a fan, I'd love to see both of them play again," Morgantown High head coach Sean Biser said. "I'd still take my guy (Twigg) every day of the week and twice on Sunday, there's no question about that. But, yeah, both guys had their moments."
And with those two great quarterbacks, it was a running back throwing the football that won the game.
"If you would have told me before the game that Brody Kehler was going to throw me a touchdown pass to win the game, I would have looked at you like you were nuts," George said.
George had himself a night with six catches for 143 yards and a TD, but his entire evening was not always filled with glory.
His second reception of the game - midway through the first quarter - was unbelievable. Helbig's toss was a little high. George somehow got his fingertips on it and somehow had enough wits about him to keep after the ball and then hauled it in. Then he started making people miss like Taylor Swift makes pre-teen girls scream.
It was a sure incomplete pass that turned into a 59-yard gain. The other side to George's night also saw him flat out drop a third-down pass that would have extended a UHS drive. Late in the third quarter, he also dropped an interception that would have been an easy pick-six.
"I definitely remember the drops," he said. "I hate dropped balls. They don't happen to me often. Those drops definitely hurt, but I think I made up for it on the last play."
He most certainly did. And now we do our own calendar search. There are just 33 days between now and the Class AAAA state championship game in Charleston. If nothing else, both University High and Morgantown High (7-2) proved in the Mohawk Bowl they are talented enough to be playing on that final day.