Perry's Kameron Ramos outruns Edgren's Ren Dick into the end zone for the game's first touchdown. (David Shepherd/Special to Stripes)

MISAWA AIR BASE, Japan – Unhappy with the situation his Samurai faced on fourth-and-20 deep in their own territory, Daniel Burns decided to go against the odds – and punter Preston Ramirez answered the call.

The Matthew C. Perry kicking specialist ran a fake punt for a first down, leading to the third of quarterback Jordan Burford’s three touchdown runs as the Samurai rallied from a two-score deficit to beat Robert D. Edgren 27-21 Friday.

“I didn’t like our field position. We had problems stopping the run,” Burns said, adding that losing defensive star Braylon Stephens in the second quarter fueled the feeling that his team might not be able to keep Edgren from scoring.

Perry had seized an early 14-0 lead before Stephens left the game and the Eagles scored 21 unanswered points.

“But we responded. The fake punt changed the momentum, we just ran the ball downfield, we scored and held on for dear life,” Burns said.

“That was the backbreaker,” Eagles coach Brian Johnson said of the fake punt.

With the win – and Yokota’s 22-6 upset over top-seeded Zama – the D-II final pits the fourth-seeded Panthers (3-3) at the No. 3 seed Samurai (4-2). The teams split their two regular-season games.

Friday’s game was a far cry from the last time the teams met in mid-September, when the Eagles shut out Perry 20-0 on Samurai Field.

“That shouldn’t surprise anybody,” Burns said. “All these (Division II) teams are even.”

Perry's Jacob Bradley gets wrestled down by Edgren's Gabriel Marceron and Terrance Dove. (David Shepherd/Special to Stripes)

Perry QB Jordan Burford bursts past Edgren defenders Terrance Dove and Parker Kuns for the game-winning TD. (David Shepherd/Special to Stripes)

Edgren's P.J. Lorenzo exults after scoring one of his two touchdowns. (David Shepherd/Special to Stripes)

Kameron Ramos got the Samurai on the board with their first touchdown and Burford also scored to give Perry a 14-0 first-quarter lead.

Edgren (3-3) responded behind P.J. Lorenzo’s 102 yards and two touchdowns on 15 carries, and 51 yards and a TD on four attempts by Parker Kuns. Haruki Jones added a two-point conversion for the Eagles.

Burford tied the game with his second touchdown, setting the stage for Ramirez’s heroics with four minutes left. Edgren got the ball back with a chance to tie or win it but couldn’t get the ball downfield.

“We ran out of time,” Johnson said. “We made a couple of mental mistakes on offside penalties on their fourth downs. But we made up for it with intensity and heart. We wish them (Perry) the best. They played well tonight.”

The D-II final is scheduled for 6 p.m. Friday at Samurai Field. Yokota edged Perry 29-28 in overtime on Sept. 6, then the Samurai topped the Panthers 26-22 on Oct. 4.

“This is for all the marbles,” Burns said. “It’s never easy playing the same team three times, but we’ll see what happens.”