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DEL.ICIO.USLassiter “miracle play” appears on ESPN
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
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Note: Click here to see the play
There’s a name in Lassiter’s playbook for what tight end Philip Lutzenkirchen did on Friday night against Centennial: Ace Left Mesh Wide.
Now the Trojans - and everyone else - can call it something else: Magnificent.
That was the word ESPN anchor Mike Greenberg used Monday on the 6 p.m. live broadcast of SportsCenter to describe this play that Lutzenkirchen made in the first quarter of the Trojans 49-24 victory against Centennial Friday.
After repeated viewings, “magnificent” may simply not be enough. Incredible? En fuego? Cooler than the other side of the pillow? Lassiter’s coach may have the proper answer.
“Everyone was speechless,” Trojans first-year coach Chip Lindsey said. “Just speechless. You could just feel the buzz through the crowd. People didn’t know what to say.”
Lindsey didn’t even know what the hype was about. He was 50 yards away on the other end of the stadium. An assistant coach had stepped in the way of a proper viewing. Basically, Lindsey knew he had a touchdown, and that’s about it.
“I’m on the other end, so I had no idea what was going on,” Lindsey said. “I was focused on that it was fourth down. The play we ran wasn’t designed for anyone in particular, but Philip was the first read on the play. Hudson [Mason], our quarterback, went through all his progressions and had to come back to Philip. “If he took a sack on the play, he [Mason] knew I’d choke his guts out.”
That’s how marvelous happens, it seems. A coach decides to go for it on fourth-and-7 from the 12 yard-line instead of going for a field goal. An offensive line blocks long enough to save its junior quarterback’s neck. A smart player makes an even smarter play.
And then some kid with No. 22 strapped to his back is lucky enough to have his awkward, yet brilliant touchdown catch played on national television. But no one is talking about senior Reid Handler, the player who statistically speaking, actually scored on the play.
All eyes are on Lutzenkirchen. But just like the pass, the Trojans senior is deflecting the attention.
“It’s really cool, but a lot had to happen for me to make that play,” Lutzenkirchen said. “The offensive line gave Hudson a long time to throw that ball. He just lobbed it up, and I caught it. I got pushed out of bounds, so once I realized that I wasn’t going to get a foot down, I saw the Centennial defense just kind of stop. That’s when I kind of did a push pass to Reid, No. 22, who got open at the last second.”
Sounds easy enough. Sure. But making it from Friday Night Legend status around Eastern Cobb County to national highlight star took some help. The video was on YouTube by the next day. Atlanta TV station WAGA-Fox 5 sent a copy of the highlight to ESPN and informed Lutzenkirchen on Monday after practice.
Oddly enough, Lutzenkirchen isn’t Lassiter’s only product with 15 seconds of fame. Louisiana State freshman goalie and 2008 Lassiter graduate Mo Isom made SportsCenter with a 90-yard free kick against BYU on Aug. 25. Even Lindsey arrived with fanfare last spring after spending a season as offensive coordinator for Hoover High School in Hoover, Ala., the school at the center of attention in MTV’s reality show “Two-A-Days.”
“I never thought anything like this would happen to me,” Lutzenkirchen said. “When Mo Isom was on there, it was a big deal. It’s great for our school and team to get that kind of attention.”
Attention is something Lutzenkirchen deals with daily. Prior to the amazing play, he was still one of the most sought after recruits in the Southeast. The 6-foot-4, 245 pound tight end is committed to Auburn. The midseason firing of Tigers offensive coordinator Tony Franklin has muddied those waters, however.
Lutzenkirchen plays in Lindsey’s spread offense and has thrived, as indicated by the highlight. A three-point stance and a cloud of dust for four years at Auburn isn’t something that excites him, should the Tigers go that direction with a new O.C.
“I’m just going to have to deal with that when the time comes,” Lutzenkirchen said. “I want to see who they hire. That will make a big difference.”
Lutzenkirchen traveled to Gainesville, Fla., for an unofficial visit to see the Gators face Kentucky two weeks ago. Florida had offered by the middle of the next week. Since Franklin’s firing, Lutzenkirchen has also gotten offers from Texas Tech and South Carolina. There are untold numbers of phones and mail is piling up from places like Kansas and Texas A&M.
“Every night it seems I get a call from another area code that I’ve never heard of,” Lutzenkirchen said. “It’s kind of crazy.”
Crazy is certainly one way to describe it. When it comes to Lutzenkirchen, one word may not be enough, however.
Magnificent seems like a good place to start.
Did you see the play? What do you think? Is that the state’s play of the year? If not, please describe one that’s better.
Permalink | Comments (11) | Post your comment | Categories: Auburn, Florida, South Carolina
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By Biscuit
November 4, 2008 7:29 AM | Link to this
War Damn Trojans!!
By Biscuit
November 4, 2008 7:35 AM | Link to this
War D@mn Trojans!!!
By Bru
November 4, 2008 11:23 AM | Link to this
When we saw this play happen live, it took us some time to realize what happened. Even the referee takes a couple seconds to call it a touchdown. I’m sure he gave up on the play thinking the ball was well over the end line. Chip is right in that it took a while for the buzz in the crowd to die down. We knew that we had seen a rare spectacular play.
By EagleHorn
November 4, 2008 2:38 PM | Link to this
Philip, that was amazing! It reminds us Auburn fans of the Karlos Dansby 2001 Peach Bowl interception. We are looking forward to seeing you be a star for the Auburn Tigers — and don’t worry,the Auburn Tigers will be back!
By Scorpio
November 4, 2008 3:55 PM | Link to this
Go Trojans Go!!!!!! Lassiter is #1…. Upscale schools produce outstanding football players also… Go Trojans Go!!!!
By Brian
November 4, 2008 8:19 PM | Link to this
Sweet! Now Lassiter might be known for something other than it’s band.
By Gator Actual
November 4, 2008 8:54 PM | Link to this
Lassiter Band is 2 time National Champion. Kinda hard to upstage that!
By GTMan
November 4, 2008 9:22 PM | Link to this
Phil,
Auburn is a joke academically and it’s football program is not far behind….. come to Tech and get a good education and play for a good football team!
By Jared
November 5, 2008 6:33 AM | Link to this
balls
By Jared
November 5, 2008 6:33 AM | Link to this
balls
By AFnPC
November 5, 2008 2:24 PM | Link to this
GTMan
Notice how he said he wants to be in a spread formation…I’m not thinking CPJs offense is what he has in mind, but good luck with that!