BOX SCORE STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. – Quarterback Zack Drayer (Hershey, Pa./Hershey ) tied the school record with four touchdown passes and had a career-high 286 yards, but the Saint Francis football team fell in double overtime at Wagner, 46-39, in the NEC opener for both teams. SFU erased a 21-0 first half deficit to force overtime with the score tied at 32-32.

Khairi Dickson (Cleveland, Ohio/Cleveland Central Catholic) rushed for 19 yards on two carries to put the ball at the Wagner 6 on the Flash's first overtime possession, but he lost six of those yards on second and goal to put the Flash back at the 12 for a critical third down. Drayer rolled to his right and threw back across his body to find Franklyn Williamson (Bowie, Md./Bishop McNamara) in the end zone for the score. Wagner answered quickly, moving the ball the required 25 yards in just four plays, capped by an Otis Wright touchdown run to tie the score at 39.

The roles reversed for the second overtime as Wagner started with the ball. The Flash defense forced a fourth and inches from the 16, but a sneak by backup quarterback Chris Andrews gave the Seahawks a fresh set of downs. On third down from the 9, Andrews hit Bryant Watts to give Wagner a 46-39 lead. The Flash came back on its possession. Dickson gained five yards and Drayer scrambled for a first down to the 12, but the drive stalled. Dickson attempted a halfback pass that was nearly snagged by Terell Smith (West Haverstraw, N.Y./North Rockland) on second down, but the Flash's fate was sealed when Drayer was sacked on fourth down to end the wild affair.

Not only did the Flash erase the huge 21-0 Wagner lead, it took a 25-24 lead on Lance Geesey (Harrisburg, Pa./Cumberland Valley)'s 20-yard field goal with 1:00 remaining in the third quarter. That one-point lead held up for the majority of the fourth quarter, but a drive started by Drayer's second interception allowed Wagner some life with just over seven minutes remaining in regulation. The Flash had just forced a punt, and Drayer went deep on the first play for Williamson. The pass was intercepted at the Wagner 44. Six plays later, Andrews connected with Bryant Watts for a 21-yard touchdown pass to make it 30-25. The two-pointer was successful, and it was 32-25 with just 3:03 to play.

The Flash wasn't finished. Starting the drive from its own 10 after a holding call on the kickoff, Drayer hit Anthony Abeid (Youngstown, Ohio/Youngstown Christian) for 29 yards on the first play. After a Marcus Bagley (Cleveland Heights, Ohio/Cleveland Heights) 11-yard run to midfield for another first down, the Flash moved 14 more yards to the Wagner 36 before calling its final timeout with just 45 seconds left. On the next play, Drayer found his favorite target, Abeid, open down the left sideline for a 33-yard gain to the Wagner 3. On the next play, Drayer's play-action fake fooled the Wagner defense to allow tight end Matt Camilletti (Bangor, Pa./Pius X) to sneak to the back of the end zone for a touchdown. Geesey's extra point tied the score at 32 apiece as the game headed to overtime. Abeid finished with career-highs with his eight receptions, 189 yards and two touchdowns. The 189 receiving yards is second in school history. Drayer's four touchdown passes tied John Kelly in 2009 and Anthony Doria twice in 2005 for the most passing touchdowns in a game in school history.

The fact that the game even made it to overtime was a testament to the Flash's never-say-die attitude. Things started in a dreary manner for the Flash, befitting of the cold and damp weather in Staten Island. Forced into a third and long on its first drive, Drayer had his pass intercepted by Max Wassel and returned to the Flash 14. On third and 10, Seahawks quarterback Brian Gehring scrambled up the middle into the end zone to give the Seahawks a 7-0 lead just under three minutes into action.
Later in the quarter, Dickson was stripped, allowing Wagner to start at the Red Flash 25. On third down from the 9, Gehring found Watts for Wagner's second score off of a Red Flash turnover. After forcing an SFU punt on the next drive, Wright took an option pitch two yards for the score and a 21-0 Wagner lead. After its first two scoring drives combined for 39 yards because of the turnovers, Wagner went 13 plays and 68 yards in 7:45.

The Flash made it into the red zone for the first time midway through the second quarter after a 29-yard run by Dickson to the Wagner 17. Dickson finished the first half with 51 yards. Two plays later, Drayer hit fullback Anthony Bowman (Damascus, Md./Our Lady of Good Counsel) for a 15-yard gain. For 10 of those yards, Bowman carried multiple Seahawks defenders before finally being dragged down at the 2. Drayer rolled right on the next play and went untouched to make it 21-6. On its swinging gate PAT try, Camilletti took the direct snap before the rest of the line came into its set position and found enough room to plunge in for the two-point conversion. It was 21-8 with 5:41 remaining in the first half.

The Flash got a splash play when Lorenzo Jerome (Sunrise, Fla./J.P. Taravella) intercepted Gehring at midfield and returned the ball 32 yards to the Wagner 19 with 49 seconds left in the half. After two incompletions and an SFU timeout, Drayer lofted a pass into the right corner of the end zone, and Abeid made a great adjustment for an over-the-shoulder touchdown grab. The extra point from Geesey made it 21-15 with just 35 seconds to play in the half.

The Flash kept the momentum rolling. Bryan Maley missed a 42-yard field goal for Wagner on the opening possession of the second half, setting the Flash up for a chance to take the lead.  On third down at the SFU 29, Drayer hit Dickson over the middle for a catch-and-run for 39 yards to the Wagner 32. On the very next play, Drayer found Abeid again, this time a step behind the defender down the right sideline for a nice pitch-and-catch touchdown. The Flash, after trailing 21-0 just over 20 minutes into action, now held a 22-21 lead after Geesey's extra point.

Wagner responded with a six-play, 46-yard drive highlighted by a 43-yard reception by Isaiah Gills to the SFU 28. The drive stalled, though, and Maley made this field goal from 42 yards out to make it 24-22 Wagner. But the Flash answered quickly. Drayer found Abeid down the left side for 48 yards to the Wagner 3. The Flash fed its horse, Dickson, three times, but the Wagner defense held tough. After three plays netted one yard, Geesey came on to kick the 20-yarder to give the Flash a 25-24 lead that it would hold until late in the fourth.

Dickson, the leading rusher in the FCS coming into the game, surpassed the 1,000 yard mark with his 125 yards on 30 carries. Bowman finished with two receptions out of the backfield for 28 yards. On the defensive side, four SFU defenders finished with double-digit tackles. Solomon Leaeno (Kapolei, Hawaii/James Campbell) had a game-high 13 tackles, while Lorenzo Coscarelli (Millstone Township, N.J./Red Bank Catholic) finished with 12 stops and a game-high 10 solo tackles. Wesley Nagaseu (Waipahu, Hawaii/Waipahu) had 11 tackles and two tackles for loss, and Jerome finished with 10 tackles, the interception, and two pass breakups.