Semipro football: Red and Black generates 80-yard interception return for TD to force overtime, but fall to Southern Tier in NFA championship game

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APALACHIN — Although the outlook appeared dire, the Watertown Red and Black were down but certainly not out of Saturday’s Northeastern Football Alliance championship game.

The Red and Black trailed for most of the second half before Kesean Sparks stepped up, intercepted a pass and returned it 80 yards for a touchdown to draw even late in regulation to tie the game.

But the Southern Tier Stallions generated a back-breaking drive in overtime, capped by a scoring run by Tajae Montgomery to turn back Watertown, 20-14, in the NFA title game at Stallions Field.

The Red and Black, who were in quest of winning their first title in the NFA, finishes their season at 7-3.

“For sure, it was a tough game, for sure,” Watertown veteran wide receiver Keegan Queior said. “They fought hard, we fought hard. We had our opportunities, we just didn’t finish.”

Watertown also lost starting quarterback Nick Cavellier to injury early in the second half.

In the fourth quarter, Southern Tier appeared poised to run out the clock and secure the victory.

But Sparks picked off an Earl Brooks III pass and sped down the left sideline to score the tying touchdown with one minute and 17 seconds left in regulation.

“A hell of a play,” Watertown head coach George Ashcraft said. “That really gave us a huge lift. Everybody tonight played their butts off, so I’m proud of them.”

“That definitely amped us up, man, we were waiting on that play all game,” Queior said. “The defense was balling all game, they were making plays all night and we knew it was a matter of time until we could turn one of those into points. It was a huge play in the game, for sure.”

After the Stallions won the coin flip before overtime, Brooks guided them on the decisive scoring drive which covered 62 yards in 14 plays.

The touchdown was set up by a 17-yard catch by J.J. Jones, with Montgomery then powering his way to the winning touchdown as he dove into the end zone with 4:49 left in overtime.

“Important football games are won by large men late in games,” Southern Tier coach Andrew Croft said. “Maybe it was the travel, but we seemed to have a little bit more in the tank in the fifth quarter of an already tenuous championship football game. I just felt we had a little bit more umph, committed to running the football a little bit more and we were able to get it done.”

Per NFA rules — essentially modeled after NFL overtime rules — Southern Tier secured the win with the touchdown and Watertown didn’t get a chance to touch the ball on offense in overtime.

“We never got the ball,” Ashcraft said of overtime. “It’s kind of strange, but I’m going to leave it alone right now. There’s a lot I’d like to say and there’s a lot left on the table so to speak.”

“They won the coin toss and we never saw the field as an offense,” Queior said. “We never got the opportunity to do anything about it, they drove down the field and killed the clock. They did what they were supposed to do, they finished, but we never got a chance to touch the ball.”

Sparks return for a touchdown was one of seven turnovers forced by the Watertown defense on the night, including four in the second half.

J.J. White led the way for the Red and Black by recording an interception in each half.

The Stallions also fumbled on the winning drive, but recovered the ball to maintain possession.

“Both teams fought hard, it was a really hard-fought game,” Red and Black veteran defender Jeremy Machia said. “We both wanted it, it just didn’t go our way at the end of the day. It happens, but you’ve got to hold your head high, everybody gave it their all out there.”

The Red and Black, who recorded three shutouts in its previous four games, had allowed only 13 points over this stretch after a regular-season loss at Southern Tier.

“A great season, my hat’s off to Nick, he’s a warrior and he did a great job leading us since Jason went down,” Watertown offensive coach Jerry Levine said. “Defense was fantastic, the big play they made to tie it and that’s all you can ask. It’s disappointing because we were this close, it’s tough.”

Earlier, Watertown scored on the game’s first possession as Queior hauled in a short pass from Cavellier and scored on a 35-yard touchdown to cap a 64-yard drive in seven plays.

Southern Tier, which forced three turnovers of its own, capitalized on a fumble deep in Red and Black territory as No. 6 made a 21-yard touchdown catch in the right corner of the end zone on the first play of the second quarter. The Stallions pulled to within 7-6 after the run conversion attempt failed.

The Stallions cashed in on their next possession by generating a lengthy 87-yard drive, finished off on a nine-scoring scamper by Brooks with 26.7 seconds left and led 14-7 on Brian Alexander’s conversion run.

Cavellier, who guided Watertown to the playoffs after two-time MVP Jason Williams, was sidelined with a knee injury, completed 15 of 28 passes for 150 yards on Saturday.

Thaddeus Frame took over for Cavellier at quarterback after he left early in the third quarter with a shoulder injury.

“That was definitely a blow for us,” Queior said. “Cav, he’s been balling for us ever since he stepped in for Jason and we had all the faith in him, and then he got hurt and it just put a damper on things. Thad came in and tried to do what he could and he gave us a shot, too.”

“One heck of a game,” Watertown offensive coach Jerry Levine said. “We didn’t realize how bad Nick was hurt at the start of the second half or we might have made a move sooner, we probably should have made a move sooner. But Nick’s our leader and he wanted to stay in and Thad came in and did a great job.

“He moved the ball down the field for us. And I honestly think if we’d got a chance with the ball we would have won the game, we just never touched the ball the last 15, 18 minutes of the game.”

Meanwhile, regular-season champion Southern Tier (9-1) won its fourth NFA title as a franchise and its first since 2023.

“It was a wonderful football game against two well-coached teams,” Croft said. “It was a great football game, the league needed that, especially after this week.”

“It’s very sweet,” Brooks, a native of Fort Lauderdale, Fla., said. “I’ve been a Stallion for three years, so upon coming here three years these guys have been like open and welcoming and it’s like a brotherhood. And you know these guys play my type of football as far as they have a love for the game and play for each other. That’s the type of environment I want to be around and the reason I came here is I wanted to win a championship and now we have.”

Saturday’s loss in the NFA final capped a wild week for the Red and Black.

After defeating the 716 Wildcats, 10-0, in a semifinal last Saturday which including a game-ending brawl between both teams, Watertown was kicked out of the NFA by the league.

But Red and Black team ownership reached out to the NFA and was able to get the team reinstated, at least for one more game, and was allowed to play in Saturday’s championship game.

“But I was proud of the team,” Ashcraft said. “For a team that couldn’t practice Tuesday because they thought they were done, it all changed by Thursday. And then to come down and go into overtime and we never touched the ball. I don’t know, it was kind of weird because I didn’t really know how the overtime was really going to work, I just don’t know.””

Six Red and Black players were suspended by the league, including defensive leader Derrek Dalton, who was suspended for three games.

“We were down one of our key players on the (defensive) line, Derrek Dalton,” Machia said. “So that hurt us, I had to drop down to (defensive) end from the linebacker spot I’ve been playing and then that wasn’t working so I had to come back up. Having a play maker like that out really limits us on defense, we can only do so much.

“They’ve got a really big and physical offensive line, so you need guys that are physical. We’ve got some good rushers on the edge, but they’re a little bit smaller so they did the best they could. At the end of the day, everybody played their butts off, so that’s all you can ask for.”

Watertown, which has won four league titles in the modern era, last won a championship when it secured back-to-back titles in the Empire Football League in 2022 and 2023.

“Oh my God, those guys have heart,” Croft said of Watertown. “(Machia), absolute dog both sides of the ball, never stopped, he’s almost super human. He was an absolute problem and a game wrecker. Thad Frame, great routes all game long, steps in at quarterback with the game on the line and gave them a chance.

“Their whole defensive line gave us fits all day. We pride ourselves on running the football and we were able to run it in at the end and win, but we really couldn’t consistently run the football all day. Just a great team effort by them as well.”

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