CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. — Grant Paulette kicked a 33-yard field goal with two seconds remaining as Austin Peay clipped previously undefeated and 14th-ranked Murray State 34-31 on Saturday.
Paulette kicked two field goals Saturday — his first attempts of the spring season. He was 3-for-4 last fall.
In those final ticks, Murray State wideout LaMartez Brooks, as he was being tackled, attempted a lateral to Malik Honeycutt. Honeycutt raced down the left sideline to the end zone while Austin Peay players and coaches charged onto the field in celebration as the referees had signaled Brooks was down by contact before getting rid of the ball.
Despite the loss, the Racers (5-1, 5-1 Ohio Valley Conference) will square off next week with 12th-ranked Jacksonville State (8-2, 5-1) for the OVC title and automatic berth to the FCS playoffs.
Austin Peay (4-5, 4-2), which edged then-No. 7 Jacksonville State 13-10 in its previous game, defeated ranked teams in back-to-back games for the first time. Jacksonville State’s win at Eastern Illinois on Saturday dashed the Governors’ hopes of a repeat OVC championship.
Grant hit a 40-yard field goal to open the scoring in a close battle that saw the score knotted five times. Murray State took its first lead on Damonta Witherspoon’s 18-yard touchdown run that made it 31-24 early in the fourth.
Draylen Ellis found CJ Evans with a 10-yard pass to tie at 31-31, setting up Grant’s game winner after a final drive reached the Murray State 16 with seven seconds left.
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