Ehrlich throws late touchdown pass to rally Broadneck football past Old Mill
Welcome to spring football during the COVID era.
Sloppy, mistake-filled and penalty-ridden.
Broadneck and Old Mill both struggled to move the football Thursday because of a wide range of miscues. But when all was said and done, it was the visiting Bruins who did just enough to eke out a win.
Junior quarterback Josh Ehrlich rushed for a touchdown and threw for another late in the fourth quarter to lead a furious comeback as Broadneck pulled out a gutsy 21-15 victory over Old Mill at Bob Golliday Memorial Field in Millersville.
Senior running back Rashid Proctor rushed for 120 yards on 11 carries and also turned a screen pass into a 38-yard gain for the Bruins, who improved to 2-0 in this four-game season.
“I said to the offensive line we’re going to go down and score twice and win this game, which is exactly what happened,” Ehrlich said. “We had to really earn this one. It was Broadneck grit in the fourth quarter. We came out and won it.
“Shout out to Old Mill, which is a great program. We were just the tougher team tonight.”
Ehrlich had a difficult day passing the ball, completing just 12 of 34 attempts
for 140 yards. However, the 6-foot, 185-pound signal caller came through in the clutch, rallying the Bruins from a 15-7 deficit.
Sophomore Daquan Dorsey scored two touchdowns — one off a long return of a free kick and another off a goal-line plunge — to propel the Patriots to an eight-point lead with 10 minutes remaining in the game.
It was all Broadneck the rest of the way. Ehrlich directed an 11-play, 72-yard drive that cut the deficit to 15-13. Freshman Eli Harris caught three passes for 50 yards on the march, including a 33-yarder over the middle that set up Broadneck at the 12-yard line.
Two plays later, Ehrlich scored from 8 yards out off a quarterback draw up the middle with 6:37 remaining. Coach Rob Harris went for two to tie the contest, but Ehrlich’s pass was tipped away in the end zone by senior Ben Wilson.
That set up Wilson to be the hero if Old Mill (1-1) could salt away the final 6 ½ minutes. However, the Patriots proceeded to go threeand-out and were forced to punt. All-County performer Jackson Burleson got off a 35-yard punt that rolled dead at the Broadneck 29-yard line with 4:02 left.
Ehrlich was up to the task. He scrambled for 11 yards on first down to get things going then completed a 6-yard pass to sophomore Machi Evans. Old Mill was flagged for illegal helmet contact, which proved critical as it advanced the ball 15 yards to its own 35-yard line.
A pair of incompletions produced third-and-10 and Ehrlich remained calm, cool and collected. The heady signal-caller once again used his legs, pulling the ball down and racing around the left end for a 19-yard gain that gave Broadneck a first down at the Old Mill 16.
A holding penalty set the Bruins back, but Ehrlich saved the day again by rushing for 15 yards. Two plays later, Ehrlich found Harris wideopen in the end zone for a 17-yard touchdown toss that gave the Bruins their first lead of the game with 1:52 remaining.
“Josh is a heck of a player, a heck of an athlete. He took us down the field twice,” Rob Harris said. “You can tell Josh is a three-year starter. He never got frazzled, made some big plays with his feet, made some big plays throwing the ball. I was pretty impressed.”
Eli Harris is the son of Rob Harris, the longtime Broadneck coach.
“Eli really balled out tonight and showed everyone what he can do. He’s a player even though he’s a freshman,” Ehrlich said.
Rob Harris, whose twin daughters Kayla and Brianna played Division I lacrosse at Navy and Florida, respectively, said the coaching staff noticed something Old Mill was doing in pass coverage and made an adjustment that resulted in the touchdown to his youngest child.
“Everybody has an opportunity to step up. He just happened to be the guy that was put in that position and he made a play. I’m proud of him and I love him obviously,” Rob Harris said. “Eli got his chance and Josh trusted him and put it out there.”
Broadneck went for two again and this time Ehrlich completed the pass to junior Kyle Pierce in the corner of the end zone to provide the winning margin of six points.
Old Mill took over at its own 35-yard line with 1:52 remaining. A personal foul penalty on Broadneck brought the ball to midfield and provided hope for the home team.
However, quarterback Myles Fulton was only able to complete 1 of 4 passes, and that one to tailback Caron Tull went for a 1-yard loss. Fulton tried to find junior wide receiver William Ennis in the flat on fourth down, but the ball fell harmlessly to the turf with 1:02 to go, allowing Broadneck to salt away the remaining time.
It was a tough day at the office for the second straight game for Tull, who finished with 31 yards on 15 carries. All but two of Tull’s runs went for three yards or less. Meanwhile, Fulton completed 15 of 20 passes for 100 yards.
Both teams spent the bulk of the first quarter trying to get out of their own way.
Old Mill had possessions end poorly because of a fumbled snap that resulted in a 14-yard loss and a fumble by Tull. Meanwhile, Broadneck had possessions foiled by a failed quarterback-running back exchange, a sack for a 12-yard loss and an intentional grounding penalty.
The Bruins made the costliest mistake as Ehrlich was flagged for intentional grounding while throwing from the end zone. It resulted in a team safety that gave the Patriots a 2-0 lead with 17.5 seconds left in the opening period.
Senior defensive back Avery Holliday set up the safety by blocking a punt attempt by Pierce and setting up Old Mill at the Broadneck 18-yard line. Although the Patriots turned it over on the fumbled snap by Proctor, the Bruins took over at their own 11-yard line.
Old Mill immediately added to the lead on the ensuing free kick, which Dorsey returned 77 yards for a touchdown. Dorsey, a running back-linebacker, made multiple defenders miss shortly after receiving the ball then broke into the clear and was gone down the left sideline.
Jackson Burleson booted the extra point and the Patriots led 9-0 as time expired in the first half.
Broadneck responded on its next possession with Proctor finding a hole off-tackle then breaking outside and racing down the sideline 64 yards to the home team’s 2-yard line. Two plays later, Ehrlich took a quick snap and dove over from a yard out off a quarterback sneak.
Sophomore Ryan Della kicked the extra point and the Bruins trailed 9-7 at the 11:12 mark of the second quarter.
“You know what, we had some problems early in the game with some protection. They did some good things off the edge,” Rob Harris said. “We had 13 penalties in the first half. We only had three penalties in the second half, which was the big difference.”
Following a scoreless third quarter, Old Mill padded its lead when Dorsey powered his way into the end zone from a yard out with 10 minutes left on the clock. That capped a 13-play, 68-yard yard touchdown drive. Big play was a 21-yard pass from Fulton to junior Garrett Perrotta.
A total of 24 penalties were called in the game.
“This was a battle of field position. There was a lot of sloppy play with the conditions being cold for both teams,” Old Mill coach Chad McCormick said. “Our defense did it just flying around and doing an awesome job. We’re just not scoring enough points as a whole.
“Awesome football game and, overall, I’m really proud of how our kids played. Unfortunately, we came out on the wrong side of the scoreboard.”