The Class AAA championship game definitely lived up to its billing. Calhoun won the game 27-20 and claimed its second state championship under coach Hal Lamb and its third overall.
The Yellow Jackets can boast about having one of the best two or three programs in the state. They've won 10 or more games for 14 straight seasons. Seven times they've reached the state championship game during that stretch. They moved up in classification this year, tore apart Region 6-AAA and wound up winning it all.
Washington County has an excellent team but was outperformed in crunch time. It marks the second straight season the Golden Hawks have lost in the championship game.
Both schools represented well at the Georgia Dome. The fans turned out in big numbers, just like they do at Washington County's House of Pain and at Phil Reeve Stadium in Calhoun. (The only thing (gratefully) missing was the Calhoun guy blowing his overly loud truck horn.) Fans were respectful of each other, even in disappointment.
Fans from both schools should be pleased with the way their teams played. Both sides were championship material. Calhoun just found a way to make the big play at the right time.
Observations about the state championship game:
The Game-Winning Play
The Calhoun football team will never forget the play “Soldier 5R Throwback.” Neither will Washington County.
That double-reverse option pass thrown by a backup quarterback to a target who had never even fielded that play in practice, turned out to be the game winner for Calhoun in its 27-20 victory in the Class AAA championship game on Friday.
Quarterback Kaelan Riley was supposed to be the target of the pass from Baylon Spector. But Riley was covered, so Spector threw it to a wide-open Carson Brown for a 40-yard touchdown. Brown had to wait a second for the ball to come down, then stepped the final few yards into the end zone, diving over the pylon for the score.
That play stood up and Calhoun its second state championship for coach Hal Lamb. The Yellow Jackets haven’t done it the easy way; they’ve beaten a pair of bullies, first Buford in 2011 and now No. 1 Washington County, which set the state’s single-season scoring record this year.
“I’m happy for our community and I’m happy for these guys, especially the 22 seniors,” said Lamb, who last week applauded the efforts of the senior class.
The Interception: Blown Call or Correct Call?
Washington County fans will pin part of this loss on the official who waved off what appeared to be an interception early in the fourth quarter. Disallowing the interception allowed Calhoun to continue what proved to be the winning drive.
Calhoun had second-and-17 at its own 49. Quarterback Kaelan Riley threw a deep pass downfield that Gray appeared to snare for an interception. One official even marked the ball but another called it incomplete and gave the ball back to Calhoun.
One angle on the replay shown on the big video screens at the Dome seemed to indicate Gray had made a great play on the ball and had an interception. Another angle showed the football may have been pinned against the turf as he rolled out of bounds. There was no doubt that Gray was in bounds or that he hung onto the ball through the play.
On the next play Calhoun converted a third-and-17 pass to Thomas Lester, who had four catches for 61 yards. Three plays later the Yellow Jackets scored what proved to be the game-winning touchdown on the reverse pass.
Lamb told the Augusta Chronicle, “I thought the referee made a great call. From our sideline (the same sideline on which the play occurred) you could really see the ball hit the ground, even though it was a really great play by A.J. Gray.”
Gray told the Chronicle, “It was an interception. I fell in bounds and rolled out of bounds. I don’t know what they saw. I didn’t drop it, because I held it out when I got up. It’s the refs’ call, but I think they made a mistake.”
Did the officials make a mistake? That probably depends on what color jersey you were wearing on Friday.
Washngton County hurt itself
The Golden Hawks were called for 10 penalties, costing them 50 yards. There were an assortment of calls, from illegal procedure to illegal receiver to not having enough players on the line of scrimmage. But it was the timeliness of the penalties, not the distance, that were most costly.
“We played as mistake-ridden football as we ever could have possibly played,” Washington County coach Joel Ingram told the Macon Telegraph. “It’s just real disappointing it happened at this point.”
A non-penalty mistake was the decision to field a kickoff at the 1 instead of letting the ball bounce into the endzone or out of bounds. Waco had to start the drive to possibly tie the game from its own 1 and eventually had to punt.
The Calhoun defense was stout.
The Yellow Jackets were quick and played their assignments well, something important when dealing with a quarterback like Waco’s A.J. Gray. The Georgia Tech commitment ran for 122 yards and two touchdowns, but carried it 29 times and was gassed by the end of the game.
“We wanted to make him throw the ball and not run it,” Calhoun coach Hal Lamb said.
Gray completed 12 of 24 passes for 142 yards, but was sacked twice and never seemed to have an easy throw.
Gray will be playing at Georgia Tech next year. He’ll likely play safety for the Yellow Jackets; his size and athleticism will be welcomed in the team’s secondary. He’s got great closing speed and showed his ability to high and defend the pass. However, Gray could get a look at quarterback; he has the physical stature of former Tech quarterback Joshua Nesbitt, but has more speed and a stronger arm.
What about the Calhoun QB?
Riley had a successful introduction to a statewide television audience. The junior seemed comfortable on the big stage. He never appeared to be rattled at any time. With his good side (6-4, 200) and skills, Riley is likely to be a major target for recruiters.
Riley completed 11 of 22 passes for 164 yards and one touchdown. He ran 16 times for 61 yards and one touchdown.
“Everyone knows what a great player A.J. Gray is,” Calhoun’s Lamb said. “Kaelan is special, too.”
Riley is comfortable talking to people holding a microphone, too. He expresses himself well. He's got star potential.
Who else stood out?
For Washington County: Defensive lineman Logan Hunt and linebacker Will Coneway both seemed to be in plays all night. Ethan Ray ran the ball hard, picking up 77 yards on 10 carries.
For Calhoun: The Yellow Jackets had nine tackles for loss and two sacks. Austin Bennett (eight tackles), Will Conley (7.5), Jireh Wilson (seven), Landon Rice (seven) and Thomas Lester (6.5) were around the ball all night. Versatile Cole Jackson rushed 12 times for 97 yards and caught two passes for 22 yards and a touchdown.
Breaking down the numbers
The numbers reveal a very even game. Washington County rushed for 218 yards and threw for 142, a total of 360. Calhoun rushed for 190 and threw for 204, a total of 394. Washington County had 20 first downs, Calhoun had 19. Each team punted only three times. On third-down conversions, Washington County was 9-for-16 and Calhoun was 7-for-11.
The only big edge came on time of possession: Washington County kept the ball for 30:02 and Calhoun only 17:58. Washington County had the only turnover, a fumble. Neither quarterback threw an interception.
Washington County – 7-17-3-0-- 20
Calhoun – 7-7-6-7--27
WC – A.J. Gray 8 run (Wesley Ruberia kick)
C – Cole Jackson 7 pass from Kaelan Riley (Alex Flores kick)
WC – Gray 1 run (Ruberia kick)
C – Olico Dennis 19 run (Flores kick)
WC – FG Ruberia 24
C – Riley 18 run (kick failed)
WC – FG Ruberia 29
C – Carson Brown 40 pass from Baylon Spector (Juan Palmerin kick)
Individual leaders:
Rushing: Washington County – A.J. Gray 29-122, Ethan Ray 10-77, Darius Tucker 5-9, Justin Lawrence 2-7, Lorenzo Watts 1-3. Calhoun – Cole Jackson 12-97, Kaelan Riley 16-61, Olico Dennis 3-32.
Passing: Washington County – Gray 12-24-0 142. Calhoun – Riley 11-22-0 164, Baylon Spector 1-1-0 40.
Receiving: Washington County – Jaquavious Latimer 5-45, Antonio Jackson 4-51, Logan Hunt 2-31, Markevese Latimer 1-15. Calhoun – Thomas Lester 4-61, Carson Brown 3-78, Chazz Moss 3-43, Jackson 2-22.
Punting: Washington County – Luis Guerrero 2-31.0, Team 1-15. Calhoun – Jonah Landry 3-31.3.
Tackles (solo-assist): Washington County – Gray 5-0, Hunt 4-2, Will Coneway 4-2, Antwoin Butts 3-3, C.J. Davis 3-2, Julio Cruz 2-1, Dylan Steadman 2-1, Dylan Hilson 1-3, Justin Lawrence 2-0, Logan Jones 1-1, Ethan Ray 1-0, Anfrene Collins 1-0, Brian Allen 0-1. Calhoun – Austin Bennett 3-8, Will Conley 6-3, Jireh Wilson 5-4, Landon Rice 4-6, Thomas Lester 5-3, Baylon Spector 4-1, Ethan Woodard 3-1, Malik Lawrence 2-2, Blaine Anderson 2-2, Bryson Bushong 2-1, Tristan Fuller 1-1, Dustyn Harris 0-3, Nathan Petty 1-0, Ryan Randall 0-2, David Prater 0-2, Carson Brown 0-1.
