Photo on the left by Thomas Metthe of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. Photo on the right by Levi Dade of the Ouachita Photo Lab.
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"Three is a magic number."

At least, that's what Bob Dorough and "Schoolhouse Rock!" said. Hip hop's De La Soul went as far as calling it "the magic number." On Nov. 13, 2021, Ouachita's football team needed a magical moment.

Playing in front of 9,458 fans at Cliff Harris Stadium in the 94th Battle of the Ravine, the Tigers were tied with rival Henderson State at 28 points apiece. Just over a minute remained in the fourth quarter. Ouachita faced fourth down at the Reddies' 37-yard line. With the game on the line, Todd Knight, the Tigers' head coach, called on kicker and Arkadelphia native Gabe Goodman. The hometown kid had a chance to be a hometown hero.

Goodman was no stranger to kicking in big moments. He had been the special teams anchor of back-to-back state championship teams at Arkadelphia High School. In his 2019 collegiate debut versus Harding, he made a game-winning 38-yard field goal as time expired to claim a 16-14 victory – a kick that proved to be a catalyst for an undefeated regular season and GAC title.

But this kick was different. This kick was to win college football's most intimate rivalry. The attempt was from 53 yards out. A make would set a new Tiger record and be one of the three longest field goals in conference history at the time. It would also ensure a fifth consecutive Battle of the Ravine victory for Ouachita.

Though the Reddies initially tried to ice him with a timeout, Goodman didn't let the moment get to him.

"People think of it as a stressful moment, but I had a blast doing it," he said. "I had a smile on my face the whole time."

When Ouachita returned to the field, Trey Flint, Hayden Lassiter and Goodman completed the sequence they had done together countless times before. Snap. Hold. Kick.

As the ball sailed through the air, Gabe's father, David Goodman, recalled his daily prayer from the week leading up to the game.

"My prayer was, 'Let Gabe have the opportunity to do something so extraordinary, that it could only be explained as a gift from God,'" David said.

That prayer was answered.

Gabe's kick split the uprights, giving the Tigers a 31-28 lead with less than a minute to go. The home stands erupted as the kicker was engulfed by his teammates. Ouachita Football Network play-by-play man Rex Nelson repeatedly exclaimed "It's good!" on the game broadcast, while a video of Gabe with the words "IT'S GOOD, MAN!" played on the stadium's big screen. 

Moments later, a stop by the Tiger defense secured the three-point win. In a Battle of the Ravine for the ages, three had proven to be "the magic number."

While some may, in fact, credit the unforgettable moment to magic, David firmly believes he knows the true source.

"God gave that to us on a silver platter and carried the ball through," he said. "Our family refers to it as the 'Gift of 53.'"