AUBURN — No one on the Edward Little football team was alive when the Red Eddies won their last state championship in 1977, or when they made their last title game appearance in 2002 for that matter, but the players are still aware of the program’s decades-long drought.  

And while their 27-21 double overtime win over Scarborough on Friday doesn’t fix things, it proved to be a step in the right direction — one that was on full display as quarterback Logan Stout rushed 9 yards into the end zone to clinch a Week 5 thriller for his team. 

“(This win) means the world to us and our program,” said Stout, a sophomore. “And our program had been looking for a team like this for so long, and it means so much for us to keep bringing it on and on and on, and bringing it up and up and up for the next few years — and even right now, just bringing it up from here.”

Stout had already thrown a touchdown and rushed for another in regulation. In overtime, he doubled his total, scoring on both of Edward Little’s drives. 

“Coach (Brian Jahna) is like …‘Can you get this (touchdown)?’” Stout said. “I’m like, ‘Yes Coach, I got this.’ First play, it was the wedge, it wasn’t the best. We didn’t get much. But then second play, I knew it was coming. I knew he would give me that sweep to the outside, and just took it from there.”

HOW IT HAPPENED

In the first quarter, Edward Little (2-2) showed it was ready for a fight against a Scarborough (0-5) team that had faced a gauntlet of a schedule, with losses against Thornton Academy, Portland, South Portland and Bonny Eagle in the first four weeks of the season. 

The Red Eddies struck first on a 7-yard touchdown pass from Stout to Ashton Sullivan, and they kept the Red Storm out of the end zone in the first half. Scarborough’s best chance at scoring came with the ball inside the Edward Little 5-yard line, but Sullivan sacked quarterback Oscar Goss to force a turnover on downs.

The Red Storm scored on their first drive of the second half — a 16-yard touchdown pass from Goss to Jackson Leahy — which tied the game, 7-7. On the ensuing Red Eddies drive, Ozzie Bodah returned a fumble for 22 yards for a score, putting Scarborough ahead by a touchdown with under five and half minutes to play in the third quarter.

Edward Little bounced back quickly. On its next drive, Stout had a 26-yard touchdown run negated by a holding penalty, but just under two and half minutes into the fourth quarter, he found the end zone on a 1-yard rush. 

Stout scored in the same way on the Red Eddies’ first overtime drive. Scarborough then answered with a 2-yard pass from Goss to Brandon Brady. The Red Storm had the ball first in the second overtime, but missed a field goal. That opened the door for Stout, who rushed for his third touchdown of the game to lift Edward Little to victory.

UNSUNG HERO

Edward Little’s Adonis Bailey-Curry intercepted two passes late in the fourth quarter. These game-saving plays helped the Red Eddies survive to win the game in overtime.

HEARD IT HERE FIRST

• “They grew up with not seeing a whole lot of wins, so to establish that themselves, it’s a really big deal. And a night like tonight could go either way, right? So to have it fall on our side of things, I think it was really big in terms of their confidence and their belief in themselves.” — Edward Little coach Brian Jahna 

• “I was honest with them just now: ‘We need to grow up.’ And I don’t question their effort, but poise in big moments is important, and that was the difference in the game. So we’re going to keep working, keep moving forward. We’re passionately invested in these young guys. These lessons are tough. They played very, very hard tonight, but it wasn’t enough.” — Scarborough coach Michael Vance

STATISTICAL LEADERS

• Edward Little: Logan Stout (4 for 6 passing, 38 yards, TD; 3 rushing TDs); Ashton Sullivan (TD reception; sack); Adonis Bailey-Curry (2 interceptions)

• Scarborough: Oscar Goss (9 for 20 passing, 125 yards, two touchdowns)