Few high school football coaches would feel comfortable allowing a sophomore to take responsibility for closing out a narrow win over a rival. But most don’t have Eric McCullough.

With Howard nursing a nine-point lead and its offense struggling Monday evening, McCullough pleaded for more carries and Hustlin’ Tigers coach Alvin Tarver obliged. The 5-foot-10, 190-pound McCullough was handed the ball on 11 of Howard’s final 17 snaps, rushing for 66 of his 94 yards and helping chew up the clock in a 31-20 victory over Brainerd.

“Eric is, without a doubt, our most dependable back,” Tarver said. “When the going gets tough, he just gets tougher. He’s a horse.

“He needed a break in the third quarter because his asthma acted up, but once he puffed on his inhaler, he was good to go.”

Staff Photo by Angela Lewis
Howard's Eric McCullough, (33), is tackled during the game against Brainerd at Howard on Monday. The game was a continuation of Saturday's game which was cut short by a power outage.

The game began Saturday but was suspended when an electrical transformer blew late in the first half. Howard had just scored for a 27-2 lead when the game was stopped, and McCullough converted a two-point run for a 29-2 margin when it resumed Monday.

However, Brainerd’s Jermain Williams returned the ensuing kickoff 85 yards for a touchdown, and the Panthers continued to inch closer throughout the continual rain before McCullough took charge and led Howard to its fifth straight win in the series.

“I wanted the ball as much as anybody could ever want it late in a game,” said McCullough, who had two touchdowns to go with his conversion run and made two tackles for loss. “I wanted to show that I’m ready to replace my cousin (1,000-yard 2007 rusher Tremaine Hudson) and be the guy to lead us.”

The Panthers had a chance to pull closer just before halftime, driving to Howard’s 12. But a run for no gain and three incompletions meant that despite having limited Howard to 69 yards in the first half, the Panthers trailed by 19 points.

That defensive stop loomed even larger after Brainerd began the second half with a seven-play, 70-yard scoring drive, capped by Anthony Broom’s 26-yard pass to Jeffery Sparks. On their next possession, the Panthers made an eight-play, 86-yard drive that resulted in a 3-yard TD run by Broom.

But Brainerd’s next four possessions resulted in 1 yard of total offense, including Broom being sacked for a safety and throwing an interception.

“We have a tendency to beat ourselves sometimes, and that’s what we did in this game,” Brainerd coach Marvin Jones said, referring to the three lost fumbles Saturday and 15 penalties for the game.

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