-Messenger photo by Britt Kudla Dayson Clayton of Fort Dodge gains a few yards against Storm Lake during Dodgers Scrimmage on Friday

PLEASANT HILL — It will forever be remembered as “the catch” to cap “the drive” that sealed “the comeback.”

Dayson Clayton’s nine-yard touchdown reception on a pass from Drake Miller as time expired gave the Fort Dodge football team one of the most dramatic wins in program history here on Friday, as the Dodgers furiously rallied to erase an 18-point deficit in the final seven minutes and stun Southeast Polk in walk-off fashion, 22-21.

The final play and the ensuing end-zone celebration is a moment now frozen in FDSH lore — something those in attendance will tell their children and grandchildren about someday.

Before the improbable victory was crystallized in one dramatic flurry, though, the Dodgers (4-1 overall, 1-0 in Class 4A, District 2) had to lean on each other and start collectively chipping away. And time and time again, when the visitors needed a stop or a big play to happen, a different FDSH player emerged.

So in the end, it was Miller to Clayton. But make no mistake about it, head coach Matt Miller reminded everyone with an exhale afterward: “this one took a village.”

“What can you say: how about this group,” said Miller, his voice cracking after he shared an emotional postgame hug with Drake — his son and senior captain — near midfield. “I’m about as proud as a coach can be of his team. Every single one of them. You don’t come back from down 18 points in the fourth quarter against a program like this without having everyone on board.

“Guys were coming up big left and right. Our defense got stops. We made something happen on special teams. Our offense was patient and didn’t try to do too much. We caught some breaks and made our own. I don’t really know how this just happened, but man, what a feeling for our guys, our school and our community.”

All hope looked lost when the Dodgers took over at their own 6-yard line with 10 minutes remaining in regulation. Fort Dodge was 94 yards from paydirt, trailing 21-3 with just 110 total yards to its credit at that point.

Miller found Clayton for 13 yards, Russell Potratz for 20 and Brycen Bell for 36 to breathe some life back into the sidelines. A short touchdown pass from Miller to Tysen Kershaw with 6:54 left finally got the Dodgers into the end zone.

The FDSH coaching staff rolled the dice on the ensuing kickoff, as senior Anthony Wagner recovered an on-side attempt near his own sidelines and close to midfield. On 3rd-and-10, Clayton — the squad’s standout sophomore tailback — hauled in a 36-yard pass down to the 2-yard line, then scored on the next snap. The conversion try failed, but Fort Dodge was suddenly within 21-16 with still plenty of time on the clock.

Southeast Polk’s offense, churning and methodical all evening long, suddenly felt the pressure. And while the Rams drove to the Dodgers’ 23-yard line and burned some clock, they stalled. Junior Shane Halligan then blocked a field goal attempt, which was returned to near midfield.

With under three minutes to go, Fort Dodge was unable to pick up a 4th-and-1 conversion try and again seemed all but done. The Dodger defense forced a three-and-out, however, and after three timeouts and a short punt, FDSH took over for one last-ditch effort at the 1:34 mark from its own 46-yard line.

Miller found sophomore Tyler Schreier, Bell and junior Tysen Kershaw on short passes. Clayton then hauled in another huge reception — this one covering 20 yards — to give Fort Dodge a 1st-and-goal with less than 30 seconds on the clock.

After two incompletions, on 3rd-and-goal with five seconds remaining from the 9-yard line, Miller calmly stepped up into the pocket and delivered a strike to a diving Clayton in the end zone right as the clock reached zero.

Clayton was mobbed on the ground by his teammates, who rushed the field while Southeast Polk — on its Homecoming night — stood and watched in disbelief.

“I knew I was going to get hit, but I just had to make a play and hold on to the ball,” said Clayton, who caught five passes for 93 yards in the fourth quarter alone. “We never really felt like we were out of it. We got kind of a shot of energy after that (on-side kick recovery) and we just had to keep executing and fighting instead of worrying about how much we were down.

“This is big for our confidence and it’s huge for the program, but at the same time, we have to keep taking things one game at a time and not get overconfident (the rest of the season). There’s a lot of ball still left on our schedule.”

Through the first three quarters, Miller was just 11 of 23 for 77 yards passing. But he caught fire when it mattered most, completing 13 of 24 attempts for 193 yards while scrambling for 21 more on the ground in the last 10 minutes alone.

In addition to out-scoring Southeast Polk 19-0 in the final period, Fort Dodge out-gained the Rams, 238 yards to 59.

“We were going into the wind in the third quarter, and there was enough of it that it affected us. But once we had it at our backs (down the stretch), we really got going,” Drake Miller said. “Coach (Nik) Moser (the Dodgers’ offensive coordinator) told us it was our time, and we just kept believing in each other. Recovering the on-side kick really fired us up, and we could feel the momentum starting to change.

“I think this can be a statement win for us, not necessarily because we didn’t believe it could happen but because we had something to prove to ourselves after so many close losses — especially on the road.”

Fort Dodge dropped two heartbreakers in the closing seconds — at Newton and at Indianola — in 2017, and the Dodgers were stung again this season against the Indians when a last-second drive came up just short. Coach Miller believed the heartache from those experiences fueled Friday’s rally, rather than weighing his squad down.

“We have the scars from those losses, but these kids aren’t going to quit fighting,” Miller said. “I appreciate their resilience and heart. It took a whole lot of both to win on this field; this trip (to Pleasant Hill) has been a real tough one for our program through the years. It’s great to get this one not just for our current players, but all of the Dodgers from before who have walked into that visiting locker room disappointed.”

Fort Dodge was 0-5 all-time at Southeast Polk before last night, with lopsided playoff losses in 2014 and ’15 and a 52-22 regular-season setback in 2016. The Dodgers had been outscored on the Rams’ field 200-43 in those five previous contests.

Ben Nebel kicked a 33-yard first quarter field goal for FDSH, which were “points we wound up desperately needing in the end,” according to Miller.

“He’s been pushing (the coaching staff) about getting more opportunities to kick, so we gave him one and he bangs it through,” Miller said. “That’s what I mean by this being a total team win. It took everyone on our sidelines and in the (coaches’) booth.”

Potratz (4 catches for 73 yards) and Bell (5 for 59) joined Clayton as the Dodgers’ leading receivers. Clayton rushed 17 times for 57 yards.

Gavin Williams, an all-state junior tailback who has offers from Iowa, Iowa State, Michigan and Nebraska among many other top collegiate programs, did have 166 yards on 26 carries for the Rams. But nine of Williams’ last 10 totes went for four yards or less.

“He’s an incredible back, with his patience, vision, power and speed,” Miller said. “And they have three seniors on the offensive line who have been starting for three years.

“To come back like we did against such an experienced group … I just couldn’t be prouder.”

The Rams are just 1-4 now, but their previous three losses were close setbacks to ranked opponents: No. 1 West Des Moines Valley, sixth-rated Iowa City West and No. 9 Waukee.

FDSH takes on Des Moines Roosevelt this Friday for its Homecoming game.

FD SEP

First Downs 17 17

Rushes-Yards 19-78 48-252

Passing 24-48-1 7-11-0

Passing Yards 270 97

Total Offense 348 349

Punts-Avg. 3-39.0 4-35.0

Fumbles-Lost 0-0 1-0

Penalties-Yards 2-20 6-47

Fort Dodge 3 0 0 19 — 22

SE Polk 7 7 7 0 — 21

Scoring Summary

SE Polk — Josiah Cole (1-yard run), 4:53 left first quarter. Logan Sunvold kick.

Fort Dodge — Ben Nebel (33-yard field goal), 0:00 left first.

SE Polk — Cole (4-yard run), 0:45 left second. Sunvold kick.

SE Polk — Isaiah Wagner (38-yard pass from Cole), 7:25 left third. Sunvold kick.

Fort Dodge — Tysen Kershaw (5-yard pass from Drake Miller), 6:54 left fourth. Nebel kick.

Fort Dodge — Dayson Clayton (2-yard run), 6:12 left fourth. Pass failed.

Fort Dodge — Clayton (9-yard pass from Miller), 0:00 left fourth.

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

Rushing — Fort Dodge: Dayson Clayton 17-57, Drake Miller 2-21. SE Polk: Gavin Williams 26-166, Deveyon Montgomery 6-37, Josiah Cole 7-25, Jace Christenson 2-20, Isaiah Wagner 3-16, James Simon 2-1, Jay Combs 1-(minus-3).

Passing — Fort Dodge: Drake Miller 24-47-1-270, Tysen Kershaw 0-1-0-0. SE Polk: Josiah Cole 7-11-0-97.

Receiving — Fort Dodge: Dayson Clayton 6-92, Russell Potratz 4-73, Brycen Bell 5-59, Tysen Kershaw 5-28, Tyler Schreier 4-18. SE Polk: Isaiah Wagner 2-43, Dylan Travis 3-31, Scott Bell 1-12, Jace Christenson 1-11.