The unranked Bainbridge Bearcats continued their march to the Class AAAAA semifinals by trampling its third state-ranked team. On Friday Bainbridge drove five hours to Buford and bounced the No. 2-ranked Wolves 23-20.
“You guys just shocked the world,” Bainbridge coach Jeff Littleton told his players after the game. “Nobody expected you to win … except for the players on this field.”
Bainbridge advances to the Final Four, where it will meet Stockbridge next week. The Bearcats have beaten No. 9 Jones County and No. 5 Wayne County in the first two rounds.
The Bearcats won the game behind three touchdowns from Caleb McDowell, whose 98-yard kickoff return to open the second half proved to be the difference in the game. They won by being opportunistic and by forcing Buford into a series of uncharacteristic mistakes on a misty/rainy night at Tom Riden Stadium.
Bainbridge (8-5) won its fifth straight game and reached the semifinals for the first time since going 13-1 in 2015. Buford (10-3) missed reaching the semifinals for the first time in 11 years.
Buford suffered its first bit of misfortune on the second play of the game when the snap sailed over the head of quarterback Aaron McLaughlin and resulted in a 23-yard loss. Two plays later Aaron Spivie blocked punt out of the endzone and the Bearcats had a 2-0 lead.
Bainbridge quickly made it 9-0, scoring two plays after receiving the free kick. The score came on a 15-yard run by McDowell.
Buford turned it over again on a snap over McLaughlin’s head, this one recovered by Anthony Brooks at the 8. The Bearcats scored three plays later on a 2-yard McDowell run to take a 16-0 lead, leaving the Buford faithful stunned.
Buford scored with 5:32 left in the half on an 8-yard run by Derrian Brown, the University of Texas commitment who finished with 211 yards rushing. But the extra point failed, leaving Bainbridge in front 16-6.
The Wolves cut the margin to 16-13 on McLaughlin’s 3-yard bootleg run. The key play on the drive was a 45-yard run by Brown.
Bainbridge wasted a chance to tack on points before the half. The Bearcats drove to the 11 and missed a 27-yard field goal with no time on the clock.
The Bearcats re-established the 10-point lead when McDowell received the second-half kickoff at the 2, broke through the traffic and cut to the right, where he outraced the Buford defenders to the end zone.
But Buford answered with a quick touchdown of its own, the score coming on a 74-yard run by Brown that made the score 23-20.
Both teams had chances to add points. Buford’s Hayden Olsen missed a 30-yard field goal and Bainbridge’s Caleb Harris was short on a 30-yarder. But Harris was roughed on the play, giving Bainbridge a first-and-goal at the 6. But the Buford defense stiffened and turned it over on downs at the 7.
Buford appeared to have the momentum and drove to the Bainbridge 9. On fourth-and-9, Buford opted for a 26-yard field goal, but a poor snap didn’t help a kick that was drilled into the line.
Bainbridge went three-and-out, leaving Buford with 1:40 on the clock. The Wolves drove to the 23, but McLaughlin was sacked for an 8-yard loss by Roman Harrison. Two incompletions later and Bainbridge had the win.
About the Author
