Central-Carrollton 21, Landmark Christian 7

Landmark Christian and Central-Carrollton took things back to the old school Friday night.

On a field behind a school built in the 1950s, in a stadium named after an octogenarian, the War Eagles and Lions played most of the game between the hash marks.  In the end,Central took advantage of three Landmark turnovers to claim a 21-7 win, in a physical slugfest between two teams ranked No. 8 – Central (5-0) in Class AAA, Landmark (4-1) in Class A.

Central is now 5-0 for the first time since 1987, when the Lions ran the table and finished 15-0 to win the Class AA championship.  Head coach Rico Zachary, in his second season at the helm, has pushed the program’s rebuilding project (started three seasons ago by Grant Chestnut, now on the staff at Kennesaw State) into overdrive.  Last season, the Lions won 10 games for the first time since they won the state title.

“We just continue to try to get better every day, that’s it,” Zachary said. “The kids have worked hard. They’ve been great.  They’ve done everything we’ve asked of them and we’re taking things one day at a time.”

Central took advantage of a Landmark turnover to take a 7-0 lead early in the first quarter.  The Lions intercepted a Stockton McGuire pass and took over on the War Eagle’s 28-yard line.  Four plays later, senior fullback Jayleen Terry – a 220-pound battering ram – barreled in from a yard out.

The teams exchanged punts before Landmark put together an effective drive from its 12-yard line late in the first quarter.  The War Eagles moved to the Central 10, largely on the efforts of McGuire and running back Lofton Tidwell. But on fourth-and-goal from the 2, McGuire and D.J. Brown fumbled a handoff and Central recovered.

But Landmark’s defense, led by senior linebacker Titus Creamer and safety Ben Baggett, forced the Lions to punt. Landmark took over on its 24-yard line and on the ninth play of the drive, Brown took a screen pass 49 yards for a touchdown to knot the game at 7-7 at halftime.

It was the most points Central has yielded all season, and the Lions’ defense wouldn’t surrender any more. Meanwhile, the offense, which relies on old school smash mouth football, used two big plays to put the game away in the second half.

Late in the third quarter, senior quarterback Wesley Long kept the ball on a mid-line option play, broke two tackles and raced 49 yards for a touchdown to put the Lions up 14-7.  Then midway through the fourth quarter, after a holding penalty nullified what would have been a run for a first down, senior receiver Jared Walker got behind the Landmark secondary and Long found him for a 69-yard touchdown for the game’s final points.

Zachary said he expected a close game from the small Class A private school.

“We knew it was going to be tough game,” he said. “They have a great team with great coaches.  They have a great program and they are used to winning and expect to win.”

War Eagle head coach Wayne Brantley was proud of the way his squad faced down a Class AAA title contender.