Schuylkill Haven's Colton Reber lunges forward for yardage during Friday's win over Blue Mountain (Photo by Brook Koch-Guers).

ORWIGSBURG — Colton Reber was mad.

The Schuylkill Haven junior running back took it out on the Blue Mountain defense in the second half.

Reber overcame a defensive miscue late in the first half to score three second-half touchdowns, including the game-winner with 11.8 seconds left, as the Hurricanes outlasted Blue Mountain 34-27 on Friday at the Eagles’ Nest.

In one of the wildest games of the lengthy series between the two Route 61 rivals, Schuylkill Haven won its first Backyard Brawl since 2018, ending Blue Mountain’s six-year win streak.

“You had two teams that literally were in a slugfest, with dudes on both sides,” Schuylkill Haven coach Mike Farr said. “Luckily, we just kept playing.

“We battled through some junk and just kept playing.”

Reber was a big reason for it.

The 6-foot-1, 210-pounder finished with 205 yards rushing on 13 carries, scoring on second-half runs of 58 and 39 yards. He paced a Schuylkill Haven ground game that rushed for 381 yards as Haven racked up 21 first downs and 508 yards of total offense.

What made the game thrilling, however, was the odd plays that turned the game into a back-and-forth affair right down to the final seconds.

Let’s start in the first half:

Schuylkill Haven opened the scoring early in the second quarter on an 8-yard run by Niko Castillo.

Blue Mountain tied the game with 7.9 seconds left in the half when Cohen Kirby hit Chase Guers over the middle for a 56-yard touchdown.

Reber, playing safety, had a chance to tackle Guers around midfield for a relatively short gain but whiffed, and Guers raced untouched into the end zone for the score.

“He knows … he makes that play 99 times out of 100,” Farr said of Reber. “That one time, he decides to go for the kill shot and he whiffs.”

Added Reber: “That really just made me mad, made me ready to go for the second half.”

Schuylkill Haven opened the third quarter with a 10-play drive that featured the running of Niko Carestia, who finished with 145 yards on 23 carries.

On fourth-and-4 from the 11-yard line, the Hurricanes lined up for a field goal but were called for a delay of game penalty. Moving five yards back, Haven kept the field goal unit on the field to try a 34-yard attempt, but William Shaner raced in and blocked it.

The ball shot up into the air and was caught by Reese Miller, who rumbled 86 yards the other way for a Blue Mountain touchdown and a 13-7 Eagles lead.

Reber answered two plays later with a 58-yard TD run. Grayson Fessler’s PAT tied it at 13-13.

The teams traded scores early in the fourth, as Frankie Russo recovered a fumble in the end zone for a Blue Mountain score and Carestia reached the end zone on a 12-yard swing pass from Heim.

With the score tied 20-20 midway through the fourth, Blue Mountain appeared to have scored the go-ahead touchdown on a Kirby sneak but he fumbled, with Reber recovering in the end zone. The Hurricanes then mounted an eight-play, 80-yard drive capped by Reber’s 39-yard TD that gave Haven a 26-20 lead with 1:21 left.

“I want to credit my line,” Reber said. “They’re so big and so strong, they open up the gaps so wide, create easy running lanes to the end zone.”

That’s when things got really wacky.

On the ensuing kickoff, Guers raced 89 yards for a touchdown. Josh Hoover’s kick made it 27-26 with 1:07 left.

Back came Haven. A 26-yard screen pass from Max Heim to Castillo moved the Hurricanes into Eagles’ territory. Faced with a fourth-and-2 at the Blue Mountain 31, Heim dropped back, was under pressure and barreled up the middle for a 9-yard gain to the 22 with 16.4 seconds left.

“Coach Farr would have been pretty mad at me if we lost the game like that,” Heim said. “I knew I had to break free and get a first down.”

After a delay of game penalty moved the ball back to the 27, Heim found Reber streaking open down the middle of the field for the game-winner.

“It was an amazing play,” Reber said. “Deep ball from Heim to me. I made the play. We practice that play every day. To catch that and score, it was so great to win the game. This feels great.”

Added Heim: “I knew Reber was going to be open right away. I saw how they were lined up and my eyes snapped to Reber right away. I knew he was going to catch it for a touchdown. It was amazing.”

The final drive proved how valuable Heim will be to the Schuylkill Haven offense this season.

The 6-foot-5, 240-pound senior transferred from Blue Mountain to Haven early last season and brings a passing element to the Hurricanes’ ground-oriented attack. He finished 6-of-9 for 127 yards and two TDs on Friday, going 3-for-3 and running for a key first down on the final drive.

“I don’t think I felt a better feeling than this in my whole life,” Heim said. “Coming here from Blue Mountain last year, them doubting me and Coach Farr having all that confidence in me. This feels great.”

Game Summary

Schuylkill Haven 34, Blue Mountain 27

Haven (1-0)    0          6          7          21  — 34

Blue (0-1)       0          6          7          14  — 27

SH — Castillo 8 run (run failed)

BM — Guers 56 pass from Kirby (kick failed)

BM — Miller 86 blocked field goal return (Hoover kick)

SH — Reber 58 run (Fessler kick)

BM — Russo fumble recovery in end zone (Hoover kick)

SH — Carestia 12 pass from Heim (Fessler kick)

SH — Reber 39 run (kick failed)

BM — Guers 89 kickoff return (Hoover kick)

SH — Reber 27 pass from Heim (Carestia run)

Team Statistics

Haven-Blue

First Downs —- 21      17

Rushes-Yards — 44-381      30-145

Passes —- 6-11-0      10-17-0

Passing Yards —- 127      170

Total Yards —- 508      315

Fumbles/Lost —- 2-1      2-2

Penalties — 5-35      2-10

Individual Statistics

RUSHING: Schuylkill Haven — Reber 13-205, Carestia 23-145, Castillo 5-24, Heim 2-9, Team 1-(-2). Blue Mountain — Foose 14-105, Smith 8-31, Kirby 6-4, Russo 0-4, Team 1-1, Luckenbill 1-0

PASSING: Schuylkill Haven —- Heim 6-9-0, 127; Team 0-2-0, 0. Blue Mountain —- Kirby 10-17-0, 170.

RECEIVING: Schuylkill Haven — Castillo 2-80, Reber 1-27, Carestia 3-20. Blue Mountain — Guers 4-95, Hoover 2-36, Russo 1-15, Luckenbill 1-11, Strause 1-8, Driscoll 1-5.

INTERCEPTIONS: None.