NAZARETH - It wasn't the typical fall Friday night they're accustomed to. But it certainly felt like it.

And that was all that mattered to the players and coaches in the 47th annual McDonald's Lehigh Valley All-Star Football Classic.A competitive - and sometimes testy - game came down to the final minute Thursday night. Former Freedom standout Joe Young capped a game-winning drive with a 12-yard strike to Allentown Central Catholic's Nick Petros with 40 seconds to play that lifted the Gold team to a 37-34 victory over the Red squad at Nazareth's Andrew S. Leh Stadium."If you came out to this game, you got your money's worth," said Pleasant Valley head coach Mark Versuk, who led the Red team, which was comprised of players from Lehigh, Carbon and Monroe counties.But Thursday night's contest was about more than just the outcome. It was a chance for players, friends and former teammates to take the field together one more time.Perhaps no moment illustrated that more than a fourth quarter connection between Palmerton's Garrett Perschy and Mike Stasko. Trailing 29-28, Perschy hit Stasko for a 40-yard score to pull the Red team ahead 34-29 with 4:49 remaining."We grew up playing together since flag football and we always talk about that connection," said Perschy. "Senior year is coming to an end, and it's just an honor to be able to play our last high school football game together. And to make it even better and top it off to hookup with a touchdown there. That's the stuff that you're never going to forget""It's going to be something that when we're older and we're sitting down together - because we're going to be friends forever - it's going to be something that we remember when we talk about that last touchdown we had in the all-star game," added Stasko.Perschy had no problem directing Versuk's offense, finishing the game 7-for-10 with 107 yards through the air and two touchdowns.In addition to his touchdown throw to Stasko, Perschy also found Pleasant Valley's Mike Mitchell for a score in the first quarter. Mitchell caught seven passes for 147 yards.Mitchell opened the scoring with a five-yard run in the first quarter that put the Red team up 8-0 and finished the game with 46 yards rushing on four carries."It felt really amazing," Mitchell said. "I felt really good getting in the end zone in the McDonald's All-Star game. So the fact that I got to do it twice, it felt really good. It's going to be a moment I remember forever."Northwestern's Trevor Cunningham caught the two-point conversion throw from Perschy after the touchdown pass to Mitchell in the first quarter that gave the Red team a 16-7 lead."Honestly, it's a great feeling to have someone throwing to you that you've been playing against for four years," said Cunningham, who had three catches for 18 yards. "Just to come back to the sideline, and have all these players that you barely know, or you've known for two weeks, and they're giving you a high-five or telling you good job and all that."We're supporting each other even though we just met and it's a lot of fun."The Red team built a 22-7 advantage when East Stroudsburg South teammates Jake Cirillo and Dakota Kross hooked up for a 32-yard touchdown with 1:54 to play in the first half.But the Gold team got a huge score before the end of the half when Easton's Ben Nimeh found Young for a 19-yard touchdown with 45.6 seconds to play in the second quarter that cut the deficit to 22-14.Nimeh caught a 22-yard touchdown from Northampton's Colin Schucker, and Young hit Petros - this time on a two-point conversion - with 1:40 to play in the third quarter to tie the game at 22-22.Stasko recovered the Gold's ensuing onside kick attempt near midfield, and the Red team capitalized on the good field position, going 51 yards in five plays. Allentown Central Catholic's Ethan Persa hit Southern Lehigh's Tim Walter for a 25-yard touchdown that gave the Red team a 28-22 lead with 11:50 remaining in the game. The extra point was blocked.Young did a little bit of everything for the Gold team, running for two scores, while also catching and throwing touchdowns. Young finished with 100 yards passing, 32 rushing and 19 receiving.The last of Young's rushing touchdowns came from one-yard out to cap off a 44-yard drive. A successful extra point from Phillipsburg's Brendan Grube put the Gold team in front 29-28 with 10:15 remaining in the fourth quarter.After Perschy and Stasko gave the Red team the lead, Young led the Gold team, comprised of players from Northampton County, Phillipsburg and Palisades, on a 70-yard drive that chewed up 4:02 before Petros hauled in the game winner. Bethlehem Catholic's Randy Terry added a successful two-point conversion try to set the final score.WHO'S WHO… Other players from the Times News area were: Justin Richardson (Pleasant Valley), Tyler Foster (Northwestern), Joseph Lees (Pleasant Valley), Tanner Filchner (Northern Lehigh), James Miller (Pleasant Valley), Tyler Dooner (Pleasant Valley), Joshua Fitzsimmons (Pleasant Valley) and Ben Bard (Pleasant Valley).STAT LINE… Richardson had three catches for 29 yards.YOU CAN'T DO THAT… The Red team was penalized six times for 85 yards. Five of those penalties came in the second half. The Gold team was penalized four times - all in the second half - for 45 yards.