Marion quarterback Jordan Littlefield (9) hands off to Taylor Greene (11) as Keith Carter (7) prepares to block during the Bulldogs 38-36 win over the Sam Houston Hurricanes last Friday in Marion. Photo by Andre Bullard

Marion coach Glenn Davis was proud of his team after its comeback win over the Sam Houston Hurricanes last Friday night, but there was one player he was especially proud of — his son.

Curtis Davis, the coach’s son, caught a game-tying 14-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Jordan Littlefield with 54 seconds left in the game and Keith Carter found the end zone for the game-winning two-point conversion as the Bulldogs rallied to beat the Hurricanes, 38-36, at Veterans Stadium.

Marion fans could not breathe a sigh of relief though, until defensive tackle Colt Handy stopped Sam Houston quarterback Dominique Broad-nax-Lee at the Marion 5-yard line as time ran out. The Hurricanes could not get another play off, having run out of timeouts.

The Bulldogs snapped a two-game losing streak, improving to 5-2 overall, 1-1 in District 27-3A, remaining in the playoff hunt with a must-win over the Hurricanes (3-4, 1-1).

“You never stopped believing, and you never stopped fighting,” Davis told his team in the huddle after the game.

Davis said several Bulldog players made big plays that turned the game in Marion’s favor at the end.

“This was a total team effort,” the coach said. “I am proud of all of them. Curtis made a great catch (on the TD). I am proud of him for holding on to the ball. It was a great game and a great effort.”

Marion’s game-tying TD came as Sam Houston flushed Littlefield out of the pocket and forced him to run to his left, where he threw to Davis, who made a leaping catch in the back of the end zone.

Davis said he was supposed to have run a corner route on the play, but after the Hurricanes’ defense snuffed that route, he had to improvise.

“They (Sam Houston) were putting pressure on Jordan, so I floated to the back (of the end zone),” Davis said. “Jordan put it perfectly beyond the fingertips of the defender and I jumped and got the ball.”

On his game-saving tackle, Handy said he was able to get at the right spot in stopping Broadnax-Lee just a few yards short of the goal line.

“I read the run and I saw an opening,” Handy said. “I saw the quarterback trying to cutback and I said, ‘I need to stop him.’”

Marion took a 30-16 lead into the fourth quarter, but saw the lead disappear as the Hurricanes came back and tied the game, eventually taking a 36-30 lead on an 80-yard scoring run by E.J. Perkins-Lovings with 3:23 left in the game.

Marion trailed 16-8 at halftime, but outscored the Hurricanes 22-0 in the third quarter to go up 30-16. Taylor Greene tied the score at 16 when he returned a short Sam Houston punt 40 yards for a touchdown. Carter added scoring runs of 5 yards and 1 yard to give Marion its two-touchdown advantage heading into the fourth quarter.

Carter finished with 151 yards rushing. Greene finished with 34 yards rushing and two touchdowns, including a 16-yard scoring run in the second quarter. Littlefield passed for over 200 yards.

The Bulldogs hope to use the momentum from their win over Sam Houston when they hit the road to take on the Luling Eagles Friday at 7:30 p.m.