SEVIERVILLE — It all came down to one play Friday night for the Smoky Bears in their first round playoff game against visiting Bearden.

With 1:11 remaining on the fourth quarter clock, SCHS quarterback Zach Flynn hit receiver Jeremiah Foster for an 11-yard touchdown to bring the Bears to within one point 35-34.

With a decision to go for the tie or the win on coach Steve Brewer’s shoulders, the 18th-year coach chose to go for the win with a two-point conversion.

Unfortunately for those in Purple (10-1), the try came up one yard short, and the Bulldogs (9-2) would hold on for the 35-34 win, ending the Bears’ season in heartbreaking fashion.

“I thought the play was good, I though we executed it good,” head coach Steve Brewer said of the sideline pass to Kel McCarter that came up just feet short.

“I thought we lost our footing a little bit trying to get turned toward the goal line. In the playoffs you’re playing quality teams. It just comes down to a yard. I think if I had it to do over again, I’d probably try it again.

“I thought we had the momentum, and I thought if we could have gotten the two points our defense would have risen to the occasion.”

The defense had done just that for the last quarter, after Bearden surged to a 35-21 lead to start the final 12 minutes.

Holding Bearden scoreless on two straight possessions gave the Purple offense a chance to catch up, and that’s exactly what they did, as Flynn led the Smoky Bears on two quick touchdown drives to give the team the shot at the win.

The first was an 8-play, 61-yard drive, highlighted by two first down passes to Whaley, which set up a 1-yard TD plunge from running back Dakota Cogdill with 4:14 remaining on the clock.

A huge stand by the Sevier County defense, which saw Issac McMahan and Jake Reppert bottle up lighting-quick Bulldog back Devrin Young, forced the visitors to punt back to SCHS with 2:20 left.

Again Flynn masterfully led the team downfield, hitting Bryant Gilson with a big first down strike to set up the Foster TD from 11 yards out.

Following the failed two-point try the Bears tied an onside kick, but Bearden recovered.

A 43-yard scamper by Young put the Bulldogs deep in Sevier County territory and from there they were able to milk the clock out for the win.

In the game’s early going, Sevier County looked like they had an opportunity to put some space between themselves and the Bulldogs.

Using their patented chip-style kickoff, the Bears caught Bearden off-guard in the game’s opening seconds as Josh Johnson recovered the kick for the Smoky Bears.

Four plays later Flynn found Kel McCarter for a 23-yard TD strike to give SCHS the initial lead. Freshman Jared Baxter’s kick made the score 7-0.

Not to be outdone, the Bulldogs took their opening possession 65 yards on seven plays, balancing Young’s running and quarterback Kyle Riemer’s passing, before Young ran it in from six yards out to knot the score at 7-7 following the extra point.

Sevier County ended a 70-yard drive deep into Bearden territory with a interception at the Bulldog 3-yard line on their next possession, but they were able to score on their next drive.

The Bears went up 14-7 following an 11-play 85-yard drive that saw Flynn Find Whaley, Foster and Gilson all for first downs before Cogdill scored from three-yards out on a run around right end.

The Smoky Bears’ defense stepped up on Bearden’s next possession, holding the Bulldogs to a 3-and-out. But luck was on the Bulldogs’ side, and after a Cisco Carter punt sailed 45 yards to Sevier County’s Danny Chastain, the returner collided with a Smoky Bear blocker and fumbled, giving the ball back to Bearden at the Bears’ 28.

One play later Young was in the end zone following an ankle-breaking run through the Bears’ defense, tying the score at 14-14.

The Purple and White would get some luck of their own, however, later in the second quarter, as Bearden’s Riemer fumbled at his team’s 19, where it was recovered by SCHS’s Brandon Tinker.

The Bears capitalized, taking just three plays to go the 19 yards for the score, as Kel MCarter found paydirt on a 1-yard rush to tie put Sevier County back on top 21-14.

The lead was short-lived, though, as Bearden immediately answered.

Taking the ball 70 yards on eight plays, the Bulldogs tied the score at 21-21 just before halftime with a 37-yard pass from Riemer to Max Guthe.

In the early going of the second half, things continued to go Bearden’s way.

The Bulldog defense stopped three possessions of the second half, while their offense scored two unanswered touchdowns to build a 35-21 lead.

The first downdown was scored by Riemer on a 1-yard QB keeper following a 45-yard run from Young. The Bulldogs’ second TD of the half came on a 3-yard run from Young that capped a 68-yard drive.

From there, Sevier County’s defense clamped down, and things started clicking on offense for the Bears.

But it just wasn’t enough.

“I was proud of our players, we got down in a hole with eight minutes to go,” Brewer said. “We came back and had two scores, and that shows they never quit. We lost to a good Bearden football team. I’m proud of my players for what they accomplished this year.

“Bearden’s got some very explosive people. I thought their quarterback threw the ball well tonight, but I thought defensively we really stepped up from about the middle of the third quarter on, and then offensively we really stepped up there in the fourth quarter and just came up a yard short.”

SCHS’s Flynn ended the game with 325 yards passing and two touchdowns. His leading receivers were Gilson (eight catches, 107 yards), Whaley (seven catches, 125 yards) and Foster (six catches, 67 yards and a score). Dakota Cogdill led the Bears rushing attack with 43 yards and two touchdowns.

Devrin Young, while not as effective against the Bears as he was last year, was the Bulldogs’ main offensive weapon. He rushed for 136 net yards and three touchdowns in the game.

Bearden advances to play Farragut in the playoffs’ second round. The Admirals topped Ooltewah 24-7 in their first-round game.