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Chandler Paul saves Wasco's season with GW touchdown to beat Kerman; earns AOTW honors

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Last Friday's game in Wasco was certainly one to remember. "We just kind of pound it in their head," said first year coach Mike Rowland. "Never give up, we're never out of it."

Trailing by 3 points with under a minute to play, the Tigers needed a miracle and they got one in one of the quietest players on the team.

For a team that had more than 300 yards on the ground, the Tigers would win the game through the air. "We've got pass plays. People might not know about it but we've got them," Rowland said.

Backup quarterback Dontreon Smith entered the game and would heave the ball down the field looking for junior Chandler Paul. Wasco players and staff swear that the rest happened in slow motion.

From thoughts of "The ball was underthrown" to "I thought it was an interception", Paul kept his composure thinking, "I just gotta make a play." The ball bounced out of the hands of the Kerman defender and somehow found Paul's hands who, after juggling it himself, ran the rest of the way for the game winning touchdown.

Incredibly the catch was his first of the season but jokingly said he was prepared for the moment by juggling a football for years as the ball boy at Bakersfield College. 

As a safety who spends most of his time making plays on defense, his catch kept the Tigers' season alive and given Wasco a chance to make some more memories when they take on the #1 seeded Selma Bears Friday night.

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