Cade Thompson said he would do it all over again if he could.

But his split-second decision to spike the football instead of trying to run one more play with one second left in the game cost Tennessee-Martin a chance to upset Eastern. Instead, the Panthers left O’Brien Stadium on Saturday with a dramatic 29-23 come-from-behind win and their Football Championship Subdivision playoffs hopes intact.

Thompson, who replaced UTM starter Dexter Anoka in the third quarter after Anoka injured his ankle and knee, put the Skyhawks in position to win.

With nine seconds remaining, Thompson completed a 30-yard pass to Jamaal Akbar. Akbar leaped up to make the catch at the Panthers’ one, and junior free safety Adrian Arrington‘s immediate hit on Akbar kept him out of the end zone.

Eastern head coach Bob Spoo said he didn’t know where Akbar was once he caught the ball.

“I was afraid,” he said. “He could have been in the end zone, as well as the one-yard line.”

The Skyhawks didn’t have a timeout left, but the first down allowed the Skyhawks offense to line up under center for one more potential play.

“I figured there was one second left and we could get a spike off with, like, .10 seconds or whatever left,” Thompson said. “Looking back, it was pretty stupid.”

UTM head coach Jason Simpson said he doesn’t blame Thompson for spiking the ball.

“He was hoping we could spike the ball and still have a second left, but we couldn’t get another play off,” he said.

Arrington said the Panthers were expecting UTM to run one more play, with Thompson potentially throwing a fade pass in the corner of the end zone.

The Skyhawks (1-7, 1-4 Ohio Valley Conference) started their last drive at their own 20 with 1:27 left in the game. UTM had re-taken the lead after a 33-yard field goal by Tom Hansen put the Skyhawks ahead 23-21 with 3:09 left. But a six-play, 62-yard drive that took 1:29 off the clock for Eastern ended with a three-yard touchdown run by senior running back Ademola Adeniji to give the Panthers a 29-23 lead heading into UTM’s final drive.

The game coming down to UTM needing to come from behind to win was surprising.

UTM led 13-7 at halftime and expanded that lead shortly after the third quarter started. Adeniji fumbled the Panthers first play of the second half and UTM recovered at the Panthers 44.

UTM running back Marcus Dawson scored from one yard out 10 plays later to increase the Skyhawks lead to 20-7 with 9:35 left in the quarter.

“We were talking about the fact last week that maybe we’re a second half team,” Spoo said. “I don’t know what happens. We don’t play well in the first half and we get some opportunities, but we came up big. We held them off, what can I say, and that’s all that matters.”

But the Panthers (5-3, 4-1) answered later in the third quarter. Eastern quarterback Bodie Reeder hit wide receiver Micah Rucker for a 17-yard touchdown pass, the second time the duo connected for a touchdown, to cut UTM’s lead to 20-14.

Reeder’s third touchdown pass of the game, an 11-yard completion to tight end Jordan Campanella, gave the Panthers their first lead since 7-6.

On the play, Reeder (17-of-26 for 189 yards) was in the shotgun formation and rolled to his right, where wide receivers Alicus Nozinor and Rucker were lined up. But instead of going right, Reeder came back to his left, where Campanella went across the middle of the field, unknown to UTM’s defense.

Reeder floated a pass to a wide-open Campanella, and Eastern led 21-20.

“They were in man coverage, and that’s the kind of look we’re going for in that play,” Reeder said. “Jordan’s going to sneak with the crossing route across the field and hopefully get lost in the garbage. You can miss by a lot when a guy’s that wide open. You can miss by about three or four feet, so I was just glad he caught the football.”

The Panthers are still tied with Jacksonville State for second place behind Eastern Kentucky for the first in the OVC heading into next week’s game at Tennessee State. TSU lost at EKU 49-7 on Saturday to drop out of a tie for first place with the Colonels.

“I (think) in the playoff system that I’m aware of and been involved with for 20 years, a 7-4 team doesn’t stand much of a chance of making it,” Spoo said. “An 8-3 team still does. We’ve got to look for help from some of the teams in the league that will still be playing Eastern Kentucky yet.”

Trent Steckel, junior tight end, blocks Tirrdell Byrd, UTM defensive end, at the Homecoming game Saturday, Oct. 20. Karolina Strack/The Daily Eastern News

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