Borregos Salvajes Monterrey capture Mexican college title in double OT thriller

| American Football | 11/27/2022

By Roberto Arturo

It took two overtime periods to decide the Organizacion Nacional Estudiantil de Futbol Americano (ONEFA) champion, but Borregos Salvajes Monterrey finally prevailed beating Autenticos Tigres 32-30 on a clutch two-point conversion.

Borregos Salvajes Monterrey backup quarterback Emilio Elizondo, took the team to victory after throwing the game-tying touchdown pass to Luis Miguel Pulido and then finding Marco Santos for the two-point conversion and the win.  Although Autenticos did score a touchdown after that, quarterback Patricio Quiroga was pressured during the two-point conversion attempt and threw an ill-passed ball, which was caught by one of his offensive linemen who was stopped at the one-yard line.

Neither team was able to dominate that other. Borregos opened the scoring during the first quarter to take a 7-0 lead but Tigres running back Axel Montini bulled his way in from the five-yard line midway through the second quarter to tie the game.

Auténticos Tigres then grabbed the lead on a field goal by Reynaldo Blanco.

During the third quarter, both teams exchanged touchdowns, thanks to Elizondo, as well as a well thrown pass from Quiroga to Marco Vinicio García, to give the home team the lead again.

With three seconds left in the last quarter, Borregos Monterrey kicked a field goal to tie the game 17-17 and head to overtime.

In the first overtime series, Auténticos Tigres attacked first, and managed to score thanks to a rushing touchdown by Ángel Alvarado. Borregos tied the game thanks to running back Mauro Cavallari, thus leaving the score 24-24 after a dramatic extra point that hit the left upright. Borregos received the ball first in the second overtime series and sealed the victory.

It is the first ONEFA championship for Borregos Salvajes Monterrey since 2008, in the last year that they were part of the tournament. They were previously the champions of the rival CONADEIP league during the 2011, 2012, 2015 and 2019 seasons.

 

American Football International is your source for news and updates about American Football outside the United States!