How Loganville pulled off trick play to beat Monroe Area and send Twitter into a frenzy

In the middle of the fourth overtime Friday night, Loganville coach Brad Smith looked down at his play sheet. He'd called everything he could throughout the game, so he turned to his offensive coordinator and asked if they should pull out one of the all-time great gimmicks.

'Banana in the tailpipe,' Smith called.

"It's kind of a joking play just to get the kids excited at the end of practice," Smith said.

With the season opener against Monroe Area tied 39-all, Loganville faced 3rd-and-long at the 13-yard line. The Red Devils lined up in their standard shotgun formation with a tailback and two tight ends to the right.

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At the snap, the tailback took off to the right, the quarterback ran straight ahead and handed the ball to tight end Connor O'Neill going the opposite direction. O'Neill, a senior playing in his first high school football game, flung the ball backward over his head like a basketball trick shot from half court and found tight end Joshua Ruder sliding across the middle for the catch.

Loganville had practiced the play three times earlier in the week to close out practice. It had worked once.

"We practiced it, we drew it up and told them that it’s just a gimmicky play that we’re probably never going to use, but there’s a good chance that when you do stuff like this it’s going to work," Smith said. "Nobody is expecting it, nobody would remotely think that someone is going to throw it over their head like that toward the end zone."

Ruder was ruled down at the 1/2 yard line and Loganville punched in a touchdown next play for a 45-39 lead. The Red Devils stopped Monroe Area on the following series to win the game.

Loganville stole the play from Fitzgerald, Smith said, which had run it on a two-point conversion a few years ago.

"No way did I ever think I was going to run it on the 13-yard line," Smith said. "We didn’t think he’d ever throw it that far. A two-point play he’s throwing it out of the end zone. It’s just funny how everything kind of works out."

Sideline video of the play went viral early Saturday on SportsCenter's account as well as Barstool Sports and CBS Sports. Some questioned Smith calling the play in a regular season game.

"It’s funny reading all these comments like the coach should be fired," Smith said. "I mean, I’m right there with you, man. But I’m sitting there looking at my play call sheet and I’ve crossed through everything. We're running out of plays to run. It wasn’t desperation, but it was just ‘let’s take a chance here, what have we got to lose?’"

After nine wins the past two seasons, Class 5A Loganville picked up a momentum-building victory over a top-10 team in Class 3A.

The Red Devils are in a new-look Region 8-5A with Clarke Central, Jefferson, Eastside, Flowery Branch, Heritage-Conyers and Winder-Barrow.

For a program looking to start its season with a bang, the Red Devils really didn't have much to lose in the non-region contest.

"I’m a big fan of Bruce Arians (who says) 'no risk it, no biscuit,'" Smith said. "That’s what it was."

This article originally appeared on Athens Banner-Herald: Loganville football runs trick play tight end passes ball overhead