Fittingly, it came down to defense. With two seconds remaining, Buford turned back one last McEachern rally when David Curry batted down a pass in the end zone, securing a 27-20 win for the Wolves.
Buford took the lead with just over two minutes remaining on a 5-yard touchdown run by Joshua Thomas and a two-point conversion pass from back-up quarterback Mic Roof to Caleb Auer.
But Tyler Smith put the Indians (0-2) in position to score moments later when he returned the ensuing kickoff 36 yards to the Buford 37. McEachern moved down to the 6-yard line with 16 seconds remaining, but its final two shots at the end zone fell incomplete.
The frenzied final minutes were a far cry from the more hum-drum early stages of the game.
After a first half in which neither team was able to move the ball, both offenses sprung to life in the third quarter, touching off a back-and-forth second half that featured four lead changes.
The Wolves (3-0, No. 1 Class AAAA), who entered the game on the heels of back-to-back shutouts to open the season, held McEachern to 50 yards of total offense in the first half on their way to a 12-6 lead.
The Indians found yards somewhat easier to come by in the second half, but only finished with 220 in the game.
Similarly, Buford's stalwart running game was bottled up for the better part of the first two quarters (23 carries, 60 yards), but churned out 132 in the second half. Thomas led the Wolves with 76 yards and two scores on 19 carries.
McEachern is now 0-2 after beginning the season at No. 1 in Class AAAAAA. Filling in for injured standout Taj Griffin, who suffered a season-ending injury in the season opener against North Gwinnett, Michael Nwagbara led the Indians' running game with 35 yards on 10 carries. Sophomore quarterback Bailey Hockman completed 16 of 36 passes for 157 yards.
Buford hosts White County next week in its Region 8-AAAA opener. McEachern will host Peachtree Ridge.
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