HS playoffs: Bleckley County survives, West Laurens battles, Baldwin stumbles, full Friday night coverage
By Michael A. Lough
The Sports Report
centralgasports@gmail.com
Saturday’s scouting reports coming Saturday morning
GHSA
First Round
Class 5A
Warner Robins 64, Jonesboro 20
Being without leading rusher Malcolm Brown wasn’t a problem for the defending 5A champs. Standout athlete Fred Perry filled in as the go-to back and scored four first-half touchdowns as the Demons took a 34-20 halftime lead. Christon Lane added a first-half TD pass to Jay Carter. Lane’s keeper three minutes into the third quarter made it 41-20, the Demons adding a late third-quarter field goal before the starters took a seat. The 10-1 Demons passed the 50-point mark for the sixth time, and third time in the last four games. They held the seventh opponent to three touchdowns or less.
Next: at Cartersville, 51-0 winner over Lithonia
Woodward 48, Veterans 14
The second-ranked War Eagles eliminated upset hopes early, storming out to a 41-7 lead by halftime. Undefeated Woodward passed the 40-point mark for the fifth time this season, and kept alive its streak of not allowing more than 14 points in a game. It has beaten a Central Georgia team in the playoffs six straight years.
Jones County 56, Griffin 42
Any update will be around 11 a.m. Saturday, based on new information contributions from teams.
Dear coaches and teams: PLEASE UPDATE YOUR MAXPREPS ROSTERS, so kids can accurately be credited for doing good things. Ditto schedules, results, and stats.
Teams: Please email game information – stats (offense and defense), names, big plays, etc. – to centralgasports@gmail.com by 10:30 a.m. Saturday for addition in Central Georgia’s only roundup.
The Greyhounds and Bears were a little wobbly, Griffin scoring seven touchdowns and failing to make a conversion of any kind and suffering assorted special teams miscues. It took Jones County a good while to take advantage. Griffin, led by former Rutland head coach Rusty Easom, led 12-7, 18-14 at halftime, and 24-14 before the Greyhounds found a groove. A short run by Javious Bond and then a 47-yard aerial connection with John Alan Richter and Zion Ragins put the Greyhounds up 28-24. Another TD pass made it 35-24, only for Griffin to answer, only for Ragins to answer with a long kickoff return for a touchdown and a 42-30 lead. Drew Jones finally sealed it with a 24-yard scoring run early in the fourth quarter for a 49-30 lead.
The teams combined for more than 900 yards, Richter passing for more than 200 yards and three scores, completing 84 percent of his passes. Jones ran for 120 yards and two scores, and Ragins and Tyler Stewart split 140 yards in catches, each with a TD.
Next: vs. Eastside, 41-35 winner over New Manchester
Class 4A
Perry 31, Hardaway 12
The Panthers held their ninth opponent to two touchdowns are less en route to reaching double-digit wins for the first time in program history.
Perry’s special teams got things going when 12 blocked a punt and Price Massey recovered it for the touchdown less than two minutes into the game. Hardaway battled Perry, holding the Panthers scoreless until Daequan Wright took the snap and went up the middle for 9 yards and the score for a 14-0 lead midway through the second quarter. A 25-yard touchdown pass with 1:33 left in the half got Hardaway on the board, only for Caleb Wilson to bring the kickoff back to the 15, setting up Wright’s 4-yard keeper with 49 seconds left for a 21-6 halftime lead. Devin Smoot blasted up the middle for another punt block late in the third, the Panthers adding a 24-yard field goal from Carter Horton on the first play of the fourth quarter.
Hardaway got another score, and the Panthers sealed it with 2:51 left in the game on Perell Lowe’s 1-yarder.
Next: vs. Flowery Branch, 27-14 winner over Mays
LaGrange 19, Baldwin 0
Baldwin’s late-season scoring slump continued at the worst time, with the Braves’ streak of five straight first-round wins coming to an end. Ironically, the Braves were last shutout in the 2020 playoffs, 8-0 at Carver-Columbus. The 9-2 Grangers led 9-0 at halftime, getting a buzzer-beating field goal. They added a 29-yard field goal with 3:48 left in the third and clinched it with a 5-yard TD run four minutes into the fourth quarter. The 6-4 Braves had 12 fewer first downs, with only one in the second half, and were outgained 296-123, and threw four interceptions.
Carver-Columbus, 22, West Laurens 7
The Raiders had one of the upsets of the night going into the fourth quarter, leading 7-6. Carver scored to take the lead, the Raiders muffed the ensuing kickoff, and Carver scored right after that for a two-score lead. The Raiders didn’t have enough offense to rally.
Class AAA
Peach County 42, Morgan County 3
The Trojans won their seventh straight first-round game, scoring 42 points for the third time, and winning by at least 35 points for the fifth time. Colter Ginn passed for six touchdowns. Peach County has won at least seven games every since going 6-5 in 2000.
Next: at Monroe Area, 58-14 winner over North Murray
Burke County 42, Mary Persons 21
Burke County’s run game was too much for the visiting Bulldogs, who gave up a pair of touchdowns four minutes apart in the first quarter. They pulled within 21-7 on Duke Watson’s score with 4:57 left in the second quarter, only for Burke County to add two more scores for a 35-7 halftime lead. Watson added another short scoring run, and Logan Hickman hit Ty Dumas for a 27-yarder, both in the third quarter for the 7-4 Bulldogs.
Class AA
Bleckley County 20, Early County 16
The find-a-way Royals again found a way, after staring a stunning home loss in the face for three-plus quarters. trailing 10-0 at halftime to the fourth seed and 16-6 entering the fourth. Jahvon Butler’s 10-yard run and James Fordham’s kick pulled the Royals within three with a few minutes left. After a defensive stand, Eli Mullis connected with Marcus Newsom on a slant for a 60-yard touchdown with 48 seconds left. Fordham’s kick forced Early County to need a touchdown, which it didn’t come close to.
Next: Callaway, 29-22 winner over Pepperell
Northeast 42, Cook 22
The Raiders led 21-9 only to get a scare on a long kickoff return for a touchdown to make it 21-16 with 4:04 left in the first half. A long D’icey Hopkins put the Raiders up 28-16, the lead at the half. Northeast won its second straight first-round game, which hasn’t happened since 2001-02. The Raiders haven’t ever won a second-round game.
Next: at Haralson County, 34-7 winner over Chattooga
Fitzgerald 15, Dodge County 6
For the second time this season, Fitzgerald won by a 15-6 score over Dodge County, matching the score of Sept. 10. Dodge County’s four losses have come by 9, 2, 14, and 9, all to ranked Class AA teams.
Thomasville 42, Washington County 7
The Bulldogs were on point from the start, getting a 56-yard pass play for a touchdown on their second snap. A 30-yard pass set up a short TD run on their next possession, and they added a 54-yard and 60-yard touchdown pass en route to a 28-0 halftime lead. Th Golden Hawks broke the shutout in the final minute, finishing the season 6-5.
Putnam County 62, East Laurens 7
The undefeated War Eagles cracked 50 for the fifth time and 60 for the fourth time this season, and second time in two weeks. Cedrion Brundage had three first-half touchdowns, and Gerald Kilgore scored once and passed to Jalon Kilgore for an 80-yarder as the War Eagles blasted to a 42-0 halftime lead. Michael Crumbley added a pick-6 in the second half. Omarion Guyton broke up the shutout with a 61-yard touchdown run midway through the fourth quarter.
Next: vs. Lovett, 28-7 winner over Union County