Lee County football rallies for wild 43-32 win over Sequoyah

CANTON — Three minutes.

That’s about all the time Lee County needed to turn what looked like its first loss of the season into one of its most improbable victories.

Down 11 points with three minutes remaining Friday night, the No. 2-ranked Trojans scored three touchdowns — including two in stunning fashion in the closing moments — to rally past Sequoyah 43-32.

A 55-yard punt return for a touchdown by Texas A&M commit Jaden Upshaw gave Lee County the lead.

Then Montravious Clay slammed the door with a pick-six.

Touchdown.

Touchdown.

Touchdown.

Game over.

“It was an amazing game,” Lee County coach Dean Fabrizio said.

That’s one way to put it.

Another might be unbelievable.

Sequoyah led 32-21 with three minutes remaining and appeared poised to hand Lee County its first loss.

Instead, the Trojans somehow walked off the field 3-0.

The comeback started with a 10-yard touchdown with a little more than two minutes remaining, cutting Sequoyah’s lead to 32-28.

Then Lee County’s defense did what it has been doing for the past two weeks.

It took over.

The ensuing kickoff pinned the Chiefs deep in their own territory, and the Trojans forced a punt.

Lee County called timeout before fourth down to make sure everything was set for the return.

Good call.

Sequoyah punted to Upshaw.

Fifty-five yards later, he was in the end zone.

The senior receiver, who had already tormented the Chiefs’ secondary all night, took the punt back for a touchdown and suddenly Lee County had the lead.

But the Trojans weren’t finished.

Sequoyah still had time to answer, only to have Clay intercept a pass and race the other way for another touchdown.

In a matter of minutes, 32-21 had become 43-32.

If the finish was remarkable, the way Lee County got itself into position for it was becoming strangely familiar.

A week earlier, the Trojans trailed nationally ranked Carol City of Miami 20-8 at halftime before staging a remarkable defensive turnaround in a 23-20 victory.

Carol City didn’t record a first down in the second half.

It never crossed midfield.

Friday night, Lee County’s defense essentially did it again.

Sequoyah led 32-21 at halftime.

The Chiefs managed only two first downs after it.

That’s two straight weeks in which Lee County has gone into halftime trailing a talented opponent and emerged with a defense that barely allowed the opponent to move.

This time, the offense eventually took advantage.

Quarterback Cohen Lawson completed 24 of 36 passes for 277 yards and two touchdowns. He threw two interceptions, but when Lee County desperately needed points, Lawson and his collection of receivers kept the Trojans within striking distance.

Nobody was more productive than Upshaw.

The Texas A&M commit caught 12 passes for 143 yards and two touchdowns and added a two-point conversion.

And that was before his biggest play of the night.

His 55-yard punt return gave Lee County the lead for good and capped a night in which he accounted for 198 yards between receiving and the decisive return.

Clemson commit Carter Blackwell added five catches for 73 yards, giving Lawson another major weapon in the passing game.

Jordyn Bush led the rushing attack with 50 yards on 11 carries.

But numbers alone don’t adequately explain this one.

Lee County was 180 seconds away from losing.

Then came a touchdown.

Then a defensive stop.

Then Upshaw.

Then Clay.

And somehow, the Trojans were celebrating again.

They won’t have much time to enjoy it.

Lee County is 3-0, but the schedule isn’t getting any easier.

Next Friday, the Trojans head to Moultrie for a South Georgia showdown with No. 10 Colquitt County (2-1), which beat Cook 38-6 Friday night.

Two weeks.

Two second-half comebacks.

Two defensive shutdowns.

And Lee County is still unbeaten.

Apparently, these Trojans aren’t particularly interested in doing things the easy way.