Football: Narbonne pulls out victory on final play [Video]

When it comes to drama and excitement, Thursday’s season opener between Narbonne and Palos Verdes had it all.

Palos Verdes took a 23-21 lead with 33 seconds left on a one-yard touchdown run by quarterback Daniel DiRocco.

Narbonne got the ball back on its own 30 with 23.8 seconds left. Sophomore quarterback Roman Ale, forced into playing because of a wrist injury to starter Eban Jackson, completed a 41-yard pass to Dallas Lopez. Then came an incompletion.

There was 4.4 seconds left. The ball was on the Palos Verdes 29-yard line. It would be the final play of the game. Ale, a left-hander, rolled to his left. He appeared ready to run out of bounds and not get off the pass. But then he suddenly released the ball, and the 6-foot-5 Lopez leaped up, caught it and fell into the end zone for a touchdown as time expired, giving Narbonne a 27-23 victory.

It was the 100th career coaching victory for Narbonne’s Manuel Douglas. “What a memory,” he said.

Ale completed 18 of 25 passes for 178 yards. Lopez, a senior transfer from Banning, caught three TD passes, two of which came on fourth-down throws from Ale. After the game, Narbonne learned that Jackson will be sidelined four to six weeks because of a fractured wrist to his non-throwing arm.

Both teams returned fumbles for touchdowns. Both teams ran up more than 100 yards in penalties. But both teams showed they can fight back.

“You never give up until the game is over,” said Ale, whose uncle, Arnold Ale, was one of the best City Section players of the 1980s when he attended Carson.

Eric.sondheimer@latimes.com