Backup QB rallies Pulaski Academy past Harrison

HARRISON — Pulaski Academy coach Kevin Kelley said he briefly wondered if Nolen Bruffett was ready for such a stage as he was about to take Friday night.

The Bruins’ junior quarterback was thrust into action when Braden Bratcher was temporarily down with an injury, and he directed the decisive drive in a 28-21 victory over Harrison during Class 5A state playoff quarterfinal action at F.S. Garrison Stadium.

“You never know how it’s going to go,” Kelley said. “But I was so proud because Nolen is such a great kid. He works hard, and he’s always ready.

“When Braden went down, he came up to me and said ‘Coach, I’m ready.’ That made me feel pretty good, so I decided we were going to run our offense instead of trying to hand it off and stuff.

What a job he did executing the offense.”

Bratcher suffered his injury on the opening play of the fourth quarter as he caught a reverse pass from Mason Kolb that only resulted in a yard gain. Bruffett then entered the game and completed his first three passes, moving Pulaski Academy (10-2) from its 44 to the Harrison 15.

Three plays later, Caleb Nichols punched it in from a yard out, and Bruffett hit Andrew Cobb with a two-point conversion pass with 10 minutes, 18 seconds remaining.

“What a job he did, getting in there and executing the offense,” Kelley said of Bruffett, who completed 4 of 5 passes for 55 yards on the decisive drive,” Kelley said. “He went out there, making throws and making reads. Couldn’t be more prouder of him.”

While Pulaski Academy is known for its explosive offense, it was the Bruins’ defense — led by junior linebacker Futa Shinkawa — that came to the forefront. Harrison (12-1) recovered the

onside kick at midfield and drove to the Pulaski Academy 17 in six plays, but a blitzing Shinkawa sacked Goblins quarterback Ben Johnson for a 3-yard loss on a fourth-down play with 6:44 remaining.

Harrison had one more chance after linebacker Brooks Both pressured Bratcher into throwing an interception, and Bryant Ulrich returned the ball from the Goblins 44 to the Bruins 43. On the ensuing play, Shinkawa blindsided Johnson again and forced a fumble, and Clinton Wilson recovered the loose ball at the Harrison 48.

Pulaski Academy then ran out the remaining clock to preserve the victory.

“We executed our game plan to perfection,” Harrison coach Joel Wells said. “They just made one more play than we did. We had the opportunities down here and didn’t quite get it done.

“Our guys laid everything out there on the line and did everything we asked them to do. We said if we had the lead going into the fourth quarter, we thought we would win. I think if we had to do it over again, we would.”

Pulaski Academy led 20-7 at halftime, thanks to Bratcher’s 45-yard touchdown pass on the final play to Cobb, who outleaped two Harrison players at the 5 to catch the ball then ran into the end zone. The Goblins, however, went 35 yards in seven plays to start the second half, and Johnson’s 1-yard run cut the Bruins’ lead to 20-14 with 8:57 left in the third quarter.

Harrison then forced Pulaski Academy to turn the ball over on downs and started its next drive at the Goblins 25. Harrison needed 11 plays to cover the distance, with Gabe Huskey breaking loose on a fourth-and-2 play and scoring from 32 yards out, and Max Payne’s extra point gave the Goblins a 21-20 lead with 53.8 seconds left in the third quarter.

FOUR DOWNS

• Huskey, who scored Harrison’s first touchdown on a 1-yard run, finishes his career with 91 rushing touchdowns, good for second all-time among Arkansas high school football players.

• Harrison’s defense made a stand in the second quarter as Pulaski Academy had firstand-goal at the 1 and came away with nothing.

• Pulaski Academy, noted for its continuous use of onside kicks, recovered only one of them.

• Pulaski Academy advances to the semifinals and hosts Morrilton, a 45-14 winner over Texarkana. Harrison’s season is completed and ends with a loss to the Bruins for the third consecutive year.