McShay’s Best Available trailed Off Daily for most of the game, but some late heroics helped the squad mount a comeback and move it up on Mel Kiper’s — or Todd McShay’s — big board.

With only five seconds left in the teams’ first flag-football game of the intramurals season, trailing 21-19, junior quarterback Shane Rachman found fellow junior John Yuhas in the back corner of the end zone to give McShay’s a 25-21 victory Thursday night at the Hawkeye Recreation Fields.

“I knew I wasn’t dropping that thing,” Yuhas said. “I just wanted to make sure I got my feet in.”

Off Daily controlled the tempo for much of the first half with good blocking, which allowed quarterback Cody Kadolph to throw the ball at will. Kadolph, who played football for four years in high school, tossed three touchdowns in the first half — one to Blake Lanum, Tyler Geppert, and Brady Johnson.

Touchdowns by Yuhas and Rachman kept McShay’s in the contest at the half, 21-13.

With each squad having just enough players to field a team, fatigue started to set in during the second half, and the tempo began to shift in favor of McShay’s.

The group opened the second half with a quick six-play drive that ended with a touchdown catch by Josh Bauer. After a failed extra point attempt, McShay’s Best Available only trailed Off Daily by two points.

The team’s defense picked up the intensity in the second half, blitzing more and applying an increased amount of pressure on Kadolph, leaving him less time to throw.

With two minutes to play in the fourth, Kadolph drove Off Daily down the field, completing passes to Ben Kismer, Johnson, and Lanum. It appeared as if Off Daily was poised to add another touchdown and put the game away.

But Mack Baker would have none of it. The drive halted at the 1-yard line when Baker made a crucial interception to give McShay’s another shot.

Having to move the ball 79 yards downfield late in the fourth quarter, the squad went into a two-minute drill. Rachman, who played with a broken wrist on his non-throwing hand, completed five passes in the final drive, including the game winner to Yuhas.

“For him to keep his feet in on that play took great concentration,” Baker said. “This was a great win for us. A great effort by everyone.”

As the first week of the flag football season draws to a close, it’s time for Off Daily to head back to the drawing board and re-evaluate after a disappointing loss. Kadolph blamed the loss on his team showing up just in time for the start of the game. Off Daily is scheduled to face Rubadub Dub next week.

“I think we’d better practice a little bit before the next game instead of showing up right at game time,” he said.

McShay’s will try to move further up the standings when it takes on the Hooligens on Sept. 17.

“We’re moving up the big board,” Yuhas said. “Kiper has got nothing on McShay.”