Warner Robins cruises, Dublin wins a shootout, but Buford quiets Jones County
Teams: send info to centralgasports@gmail.com by or 9:30 a.m. Saturday
The overall record, region and region finish accompany each team. Ranking is from the Atlanta Journal-Constitution
GHSA
Semifinals
The Buford crowd wasn't as expected, but Jones County's was, and the home side was packed, exploding as the Hounds entered the field after the coin toss.
Video: Michael A. Lough/The Sports Report of Central Georgia, www.centralgasports.com
Class 5A
No. 5 Buford 29, No. 7 Jones County 0
There was much ado from the Buford area about seating and safety and the field and parking, so Jones County brought in seats and adjusted its assignments to make sure the Wolves’ fans were comfortable.
Buford didn’t come close to filling the visitors’ side, but the Wolves made sure those who stayed home will get another game, thanks to an impressive performance that quieted the huge Jones County crowd.
The game looked like it’d be close early, Jones County’s defense putting up a stand to force a field goal on Buford’s first possession. The Greyhounds then drove deep into Buford territory, sparked by a long pass from Hunter Costlow to Maleek Wooten, and seemed destined to score and take the lead.
was a long pass from Hunter Costlow to Maleek Wooten, but such plays ended up few and far between.
Video: Michael A. Lough/The Sports Report of Central Georgia, www.centralgasports.com
A penalty on third and goal from the 2 was declined, and a missed block on the fourth-down play led to a 13-yard loss and no points.
Buford spent the first half making Jones County pay for every mistake, missed block or tackle, the defensive line keeping quarterback Hunter Costlow company.
The visitors extended the lead on a reverse pass from Treyton Rank to Craig Clinkscales, the receiver outjuking a pair of Greyhound defenders for a 29-yard score and a 10-0 lead on the first play of the second quarter.
Another chance at changing the momentum came when an official ruled that an interception by Jitavius Whipple wasn’t an interception. Again, Jones County held and forced a field goal.
Buford added a safety when it got to Costlow in the end zone before he could unload a pass, making it 15-0 with 5:45 left in the half.
The Wolves got it back and added a 6-yard run in the final 83 seconds to take a 22-0 lead into the locker room.
Jones County came out and moved the ball only to get stopped on fourth down in the red zone.
The next time that happened midway through the third quarter, Buford converted it into another score.
The Greyhounds, mostly stuffed in the first half, managed around 200 yards, but well below their average, and Buford dumped Costlow a half-dozen times. The Wolves were a yard short of 300 rushing.
It was the first time Jones County was shut out since 2013 (38-0 to Houston County) and first time that’s happened at home since 2012 (35-0 to Northside).
GHSA Finals
Georgia State Stadium
Friday, Dec. 13
10 a.m
Class A Private
Wesleyan vs. ELCA
1 p.m.
Class AA
Brooks County vs. Dublin
4:30 p.m.
Class AAAAA
Buford vs. Warner Robins
8 p.m.
Class 5A
Allatoona vs. Harrison
Saturday, Dec. 14
10 a.m.
Class A Public
Irwin County vs. Marion County
1 p.m.
Class AAA
Cedar Grove vs. Crisp County
4:30 p.m.
Class 4A
Blessed Trinity vs. Oconee County
8 p.m.
Class 7A
Lowndes vs. Marietta
Buford will play Warner Robins at about 5 p.m. next Friday in the championship. Jones County’s season ends at 12-2.
No. 2 Warner Robins 55, Starr’s Mill 3
The Demons were just dominant from the start and in all phases, scoring in all sorts of ways.
Armon Porter went in from 5 yards out for the early score, and quarterback Jalen Addie raced in from 21 yards out for a 14-0 lead before the midway point of the first quarter.
They then reeled off a 70-yard possession with a short TD run from James Smith and led 21-0 after one.
Three minutes into the second quarter, Jahlen Rutherford took a simple screen pass to the right 63 yards for a touchdown after Demarcious Robinson recovered a fumble. The visitors broke the shutout with a 31-yard field goal with two minutes left in the half.
The break in action was no break in scoring, the Demons taking their first drive of the second half the distance for a score, then getting a 50-yard fumble recovery from Taijun Galloway for a touchdown from 46 yards, and it was 42-3 with a full 6:16 left in the third quarter.
Tempers and a brief scuffle ensued after Warner Robins’ Ty Carr picked off a pass on the Starr’s Mill sideline, but nobody was ejected.
Another Smith run early in the fourth added another score, and the Demons kept going, adding a long defensive score for the final points with five minutes left.
It was Warner Robins’ highest point total since beating Carrollton 63-24 in the 2017 playoffs, the Demons nearly splitting almost 350 yards in offense evenly between ground and air.
Warner Robins (13-1) will play Buford at about 5 p.m. next Friday in the championship. Starr’s Mill ends the season at 10-4.
Class AA
No. 5 Dublin 55, No. 6 Thomasville 45
The Irish and the Bulldogs went at it, the Irish leading from the start, up 21-10 after one and 41-24 at halftime, and holding on.
But as is often the case, JaQues Evans was too much to deal with.
The versatile senior had a whopping 334 yards and five touchdowns on 19 carries by halftime and the 17-point lead.
Dublin scored on a 76-yarder from Evans on its first play, and Thomasville answered with a field goal. Evans then scored from 13 and 49 yards, the answer coming on a TD pass.
An Evans 1-yarder was countered by a 29-yard scoring pass only for Evans to go in from 54 yards and a 34-17 lead. A batted pass was snagged by the Irish and returned for a defensive touchdown by Romello Height, the Bulldogs managing a score with 1:24 left before half.
The lead fluctuated between 10 and 17 points the rest of the way, Thomasville’s final score coming with just more than a minute left. Zion Kemp, who had Dublin’s first score of the second half, sealed it with a first-down run after Dublin recovered the onside kick, the kneel-down coming shortly thereafter.
Thomasville managed nearly 525 yards, almost 370 through the air. Evans finished with 408 yards and five touchdowns on 29 carries, helping the Irish to 586 yards in offense.
Dublin (13-1) will play Brooks County, for the second time this season, at 1 p.m. next Friday in the championship. Brooks County beat Callaway 39-35.